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by Erik Alsgaard
UMConnection Staff

Yaasmeen Spencer was shopping at Costco in Washington, D.C., last fall with her three-month old son, Rhys, in tow. A nice man struck up a conversation with her, and out of the blue asked if the baby had been baptized.

“It was kind of crazy,” Spencer said. “We had just been talking about that as a family.”

When she replied “no,” the man – the Rev. John Warren, pastor of Ryland Epworth UMC in Washington, D.C. – handed her his business card. “I can take care of that,” he said.

Nine months later, on the last Sunday in June, the now one-year old Rhys William Spencer came to be baptized at the church.

It was the first baptism at Ryland Epworth in more than 20 years. The small church, located near the corner of Branch and Pennsylvania avenues in Washington, D.C., has been in ministry for more than 175 years. After falling on some hard times, signs of new life are beginning to emerge.

Rhys’ baptism is just the latest one.

Yaasmeen Spencer grew up in the Methodist church. “I wanted Rhys to be baptized,” she said, “not a baby dedication. Pastor Warren told me to give him a call to talk about it and set up an appointment. We did, and I was like, ‘This is great.’”

Family and friends from Texas, Georgia and Tennessee joined in the celebration of the baptism, as 20 people crowded around the baptismal font.

“Rhys did very well during the baptism,” said his mother. “He likes water, so that was good.” Warren said the church had to create a custom-made baptismal certificate for Rhys. “All the certificates in the office,” said Warren, “had ‘19__’ printed on them.”

Spencer had never met Warren prior to that day in Costco. Warren said that these kinds of encounters are just part of his ministry.

Whenever he sees a small child in the community, Warren said, if he can, he strikes up a conversation with the parents and simply asks if the child has been baptized.

“If the answer is no, I say I can take care of that and give them my business card,” he said.

Warren’s infectious good-nature is hard not to notice. He carries that spirit with him, even to the point of standing on the street corner Sunday mornings at 8:30 to simply wave and greet passersby.

As recorded carillon music spills out of loudspeakers mounted on the church, Warren – dressed in full liturgical garb, including green chasuble, surplice, robe and pectoral cross – waves at vehicles as they go by, often giving people two “thumbs-up” with a large smile. “I’ve been doing this since Easter,” Warren said.

“I’ve had people honk at me and wave back at me. I’ve even had a woman wave at me then drive past me, turn around and come back. She said thanks and that she may just surprise me one day” and show up in church, he said.