St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church was founded by a gathering of nine members in October 1963. This founding group met at Palmetto Elementary School. The nursery met across the street in a private home. By the end of 1963, the members numbered fifty-three and became an organized mission of the Diocese of South Florida. In September of 1964, the services were moved to Howard Drive School and the first Vicar, The Reverend Calvin O. Schofield was called. In 1978, the Diocese of Southeast Florida elected Schofield Bishop (coadjutor). The Parish Hall is named after him.

The summer of 1966 saw the start of the construction of the congregation’s own church. The setting of the five-acre property chosen as the site was on the corner of the historic Old Cutler Road and Southwest 144th Street. This first sanctuary building is still standing and now serves as the preschool and administration building. 

Between 1969 and 1973, the facilities at St. Andrew’s were rented to the Dade County Public Kindergarten program and then to St. Richard’s Roman Catholic Church. Each party left as its own facilities were built. After these tenants moved on, St. Andrew’s added the Parish hall.

The present building, which houses our worship, was dedicated in 1989. In August 1992, Hurricane Andrew dealt a devastating blow to South Florida and St. Andrew’s church. Much of the tree canopy was lost. The parish hall and the cooperative nursery school that it housed were destroyed. The hall was rebuilt and the nursery school has been reborn. 

The hurricane’s winds did not break St. Andrew’s spirit! Today sixty years after our founding, we are a vibrant parish that reflects the rich ethnic and cultural diversity of our area.