August 19, 2026

Wednesday Word . . . Window Stories: South Nave – Middle

The south wall of the nave (on the left as you enter the church) has three windows. The middle window is unusual in that it doesn't depict a biblical image or story. Instead it has a dedication and donor information which reads: Dedicated to Rev. and Mrs. George McKay by the Skoonataps.

I had to do some digging, but here's what I uncovered:

On page 33 of 100 Years of Worship: 1884-1984 (the centennial history of our parish), there is a sketch of this window. Although the window isn't titled, the book refers to it as the “Red Cross Window.” The priest to whom this window was dedicated, Fr. George McKay, had been a chaplain in the Canadian Mounted Police and supposedly served as the model for the hero of Ralph Connor's novel, The Sky Pilot, although that may not be true as there are other claims to who the character was modeled after.

Fr. McKay and his wife (who unfortunately is only ever referred to as “Mrs. McKay”) came to Saint Luke's in 1918 and served until 1926 – although his picture in Onderdonk Hall says 1918 – 1929.

Fr. McKay was the easy part, but who were the Skoonataps? As it turns out, they're not a who but a what. During his time as priest, Fr. McKay “organized a fine group of young matrons of the Church known as 'The Schoonataps' . . . The meaning known only to the members.” This social group of women were active in the life of the church and extremely fond of Fr. and Mrs. McKay, who was also an excellent musician and she helped with the choir and other church music. The group was so fond of both of them, in fact, that they gave this window in their honor.

The image itself is of an unknown item and derives the Red Cross name from the small, red, St Andrew's cross in its center. The item, at first glance, seems to be an old-fashioned key, but upon closer inspection is not. A purple brocade surrounds the image on all sides.

The story of this window is like the stories of countless Christians through the centuries. It remembers a man who faithfully served the Church. It remembers a woman whose only name is attached to her husband, but who also faithfully served the Church. And it remembers a group of anonymous Christians who served the Church in their own way. The story of this window is that knowing the specific names of people and what they did isn't important; what's important is that those people served faithfully. What's important is that our story is a story of faithfulness.

We all have faith stories to share. What's yours?

Blessings,

Todd+