Groton ― St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, which has served the community for more than six decades, plans to close its doors later this month amid changes in church membership since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Community members are invited to the last church celebration Aug. 25 at 10 a.m. at the church, which is located at 310 Fort Hill Road.

The Rev. Dr. Shannan R. Vance-Ocampo, General Presbyter of the Presbytery of Southern New England, said “the congregation decided after a period of prayerful and heartfelt discernment that they could no longer manage the many responsibilities of stewarding and managing a congregation.”

The decision comes amid a national trend of a downward shift in church membership that was exacerbated by the pandemic.

“It is always so hard and painful on the local level, but we have assured them that coming to this difficult discernment does not mean they or their ministry has failed in any way,” Vance-Ocampo said. “They have a strong legacy they have left in the community and beyond.”

“For over 60 years St. Andrew Presbyterian Church (SAPC) has served the Groton Community faithfully,” the Administrative Commission of the Presbytery of Southern New England, which is overseeing the church closure, said in a statement to The Day. “SAPC members have provided meals, served the homeless, provided faith support for those incarcerated, been a home to Cub Pack 41, supported mission trips to build housing, provided shelter to those in need and served the small ones in our community by providing a pre-school.”

But the commission said there has been “a shift in church membership across the country ever since COVID changed how people see church.”

The church currently has 57 members, and at its peak had 215 members, according to the St. Andrew Presbyterian Church office.

“Over the last year, the dedicated members of SAPC have worked to maintain a full time pastor and a home for those seeking a supportive church community, witnessing to the love of God,” the commission’s statement continued. “After a time of discernment in which the leadership of SAPC worked with a commission from the Presbytery of Southern New England, it was decided to close the doors on August 25th.”

The Presbytery of Southern New England owns the property, which is currently on the market, and will oversee the property until it is sold. The nearly five-acre property houses the 13,570-square-foot church building.

According to The Day’s archives, the church was organized on May 5, 1963, after holding the first service in September of 1962 at the former William Seely School. The church building on Fort Hill Road was dedicated in 1968. In the 1980s, the church realized a longtime goal when an approximately 260-seat sanctuary was built and added to the existing building, a worship and center hall.

“This is a very sad time for the members of SAPC; however, they remain faithful to God and hopeful they will continue to minister within other church communities,” the commission added. “SAPC has been blessed to be able to serve Groton over the last several decades and believe God will lead each one in this special community step by step into the future.”

Vance-Ocampo said the Presbytery has shared with church members other options for churches to attend in the area. As the church members make decisions, the Presbytery will help them with their membership transfers.

Saint Andrew Presbyterian Church Preschool, which was licensed for 28 preschool children, closed on July 23, according to Maggie Adair, Communications and Legislative Program Manager for the state Office of Early Childhood. The program notified the Office of Early Childhood of the closure.

Adair said parents can contact 211 Child Care, operated by United Way through funding from the OEC, to find other available child care options in their community.

k.drelich@theday.com