St. James is an Episcopal parish in the Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast
THE RIGHT REVEREND J. RUSSELL KENDRICK
Bishop Russell was elected to be the fourth bishop of the Central Gulf Coast in February of 2015, and was consecrated as the Diocesan Bishop on July 25, 2015. A native of Fort Walton Beach, Florida, Bishop Russell earned a Bachelor of Arts in architecture and marketing from Auburn University in 1984. Then in 1995, he received a Master of Divinity from Virginia Theological Seminary. At the time of his election, Bishop Russell was rector of St. Stephen's in Birmingham, Alabama since 2007. Russell is married to Robin, and they have two children, Aaron and Hannah.
GO FORWARD
The Diocese celebrated its 51st anniversary in February 2022, at which point the Bishop announced the “Go Forward” capital campaign, originally planned to begin in 2021 but delayed due to Covid. The Presiding Bishop, The Most Reverend Michael Curry, offers these thoughts on the campaign.