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Volunteers spent the holiday season framing walls, laying carpet and installing shelves as the Koinonia Foundation prepared to move into a new home near Olivet Episcopal Church. The larger facility will allow the nonprofit to expand its food pantry, introduce new programs and serve more people in the Franconia area.
“We have needed a larger space for a long time,” Director Judy Davis said.
Koinonia, which provides food and financial assistance to people in need, operated for 50 years from a 1,100-square-foot space behind Franconia United Methodist Church. Its new location, inside the historic Mount Olivet Chapel at 6107 Franconia Road, offers 4,200 square feet at the corner of Franconia Road and Beulah Street.
Olivet began sharing religious services with several other churches during the pandemic. Although church leaders initially expected normal operations to resume afterward, that did not happen, leaving the entire building available for Koinonia.
The added room will give clients access to private interview spaces and provide room for a larger clothing closet. Koinonia also plans to stock more fresh and refrigerated food in an expanded pantry. A commercial-size kitchen will help the organization prepare healthier options, Davis said.
Volunteers have handled much of the renovation work. The Rose Hill Civic Association, which has supported Koinonia financially over the years, will consider making an additional contribution.
The move has been slowed by Fairfax County’s permitting process, which Davis described as “a little bit of a struggle.”
Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk, whose office is a few doors from the new location, supports the expansion.
“With more space, Koinonia will not only be better equipped to store larger quantities of donations but also provide a higher level of service to members of this community,” Lusk said.
Koinonia has asked Lusk’s office for help with the permits, but the process has not advanced.
The nonprofit also partnered with the Alexandria Children’s Theater and its November production of “Holiday Time Travelers” to collect money, food and toys. The Kingstowne Residential Owners Corporation worked with Koinonia on its “Winter Wonderland” fundraiser.
The holiday season brought additional volunteers, including people from Inova Hospital and offices on Walker Lane.
A chapel tied to Franconia’s past
The present Olivet Chapel is the fourth Episcopal chapel built in Franconia. Union troops dismantled two chapels erected on part of the Bush Hill estate during the 1850s, using their materials for shelter and firewood during the Civil War.
A third chapel was built after the war near what is now Bush Hill Drive and Westchester Street, but it did not survive financially. The current church has appeared under several names, including Mount Olivet, Olivet Chapel and Olivet Episcopal Church.
Its land was purchased for $5 from William W. Boyce and his wife, Mary Ellen, shortly before Boyce’s death in 1890. The couple lived at nearby Ashland, whose history dates to 1820.
Before the Civil War, Boyce represented South Carolina in the U.S. House of Representatives. Although he opposed secession, he resigned and represented the state in the Confederate Congress in 1861. After the war, the Boyces moved to Fairfax County, where he practiced law. The location was selected in part because it was close to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Local historian Carl Sell Jr., a Beulah Street resident, researched the chapel’s history.