The John the Baptist window was given in memory of John Turnstall Handy and Lu Lawrence Corbett Handy. Dedicated on Sunday, December 18th, 1969 at the 11 o’clock am service, this was the final of the three lancet windows at the rear of the church. John Handy died in 1963 and Lu Handy in 1966. At the time of their respective deaths, their families directed that contributions in their memory should go to the St. Mark’s Memorial Fund. These funds were used to help pay for the window.
In the bulletin from the dedication of the window, Rev. Len Whittlinger noted that:
“The Rector, Wardens, and Vestrymen of the parish have been happy to install this new window on behalf of the Handys, who gave so much to this parish in so many ways out of their modest yet deeply rich lives.”
The Handys did lead quiet lives. They had no children and no pictures of them have surfaced to date. But nevertheless, they left their mark on St. Mark’s in many ways.
John and Lu had somewhat similar backgrounds. Both were born in the South (John in 1881 in Canton, Mississippi, and Lou in 1889 in Paducah, Kentucky (US Census). Both were the youngest children in big families…about 18 years younger than their oldest siblings and born when their mothers were in their 40’s.
John’s family had deep Southern roots in Mississippi. His grandfather was a chief justice in Mississippi during the Civil War years, and a strong secessionist (Wikipedia). John’s father, Captain George Handy, served in the Confederate Army during the war against the states (Palo Alto Times). John grew up in Mississippi, but after 1900, the entire Handy family gradually migrated to Santa Clara County. John’s older brother, Robert, had moved to Palo Alto in 1904 to begin a long career in banking – commuting every day to San Francisco from Palo Alto on the train (Palo Alto Times). In 1909, the papers noted John was “spending the winter in Palo Alto at the home of his brother, Robert.” (Palo Alto Times)
By 1915, the entire Handy family (parents, sibling and their families) were living close together in Palo Alto (Amy Handy Lorber at 451 Tennyson Ave., Mary Ellen Handy Agnew at 1749 Bryant, Robert Handy at 1330 Cowper, Enola Handy Roberts on a fruit farm in Los Altos, and their parents (Captain George and Mary Handy) at 1148 Bryant) (US Census). These were the early days of Palo Alto and life in California had to have been a dramatic change from life in Mississippi.
The winter with Robert must have influenced John to pursue a similar path. He moved to San Francisco in 1910 and became a bank clerk at the Mercantile Trust. He later went to work for the Real Estate and Loan department of the American Trust Co in San Francisco…and worked there until his retirement in 1951!
Lu Lawrence Corbett Handy was born in Paducah, Kentucky. Her father was a traveling salesman who died when Lu was only 5. At some point after her father’s death, Lu and her mother moved to live in Chicago with her older sister. There are only a few traces of her early life. In 1907 she was mentioned in her brother’s obituary as being at school in Fondulac, Michigan (News-Democrat). In 1910 she was the attendant at the Memphis wedding of a good friend from Paducah (The Paducah Sun). In 1915, her engagement was announced in Chicago to Edmund Pincoffs, but she did not end up marrying Edmond (Chicago Tribune). By 1919 she was married to John and living in San Francisco. How they met and when they married is a still a mystery.
The Handy’s lived in San Francisco until 1951 when, after John’s retirement, they moved to Palo Alto near the other surviving members of John’s family. In fact, after his sister Amy’s death, they moved into her house at 451 Tennyson (US Census). In April of 1952, they joined St. Mark’s. The record notes that they were transferring from St. Mary the Virgin in San Francisco (St. Mark’s Archive).
Both became heavily involved in St. Mark’s. John served as Junior Warden and Vestryman. Lu participated in various Women’s Auxiliary activities and other volunteer work at the church. In their obituaries, particularly Lu’s, the importance of St. Mark’s to them is clear. John’s obituary describes his service at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. Lu’s obituary is titled: “Mrs. Lu L Handy Dies; Active Church Worker.” (Palo Alto Times). It notes that after the death of her husband, Lu spent most of her time working at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. Later in the article it again describes that “she and her husband were very active members at St. Mark’s church and after her husband died she devoted most of her time to church work.” Since information in obituaries come from friends and family, these pieces show devotion to St. Mark’s and that they wanted to be remembered as active participants in our church community.
Both Handys are buried in Alta Mesa Cemetery. To honor their legacy of service at St. Mark’s, and their “modest yet deeply rich lives” the church dedicated this beautiful lancet window in their memory.
