Church Using Decades-Old Shattered Glass To Make Jewelry That Gives Back

Shattered stained glass from a Texas church window damaged during a hurricane has been given new life by a local jeweler nearly two decades after its destruction.

The Sealy window at Trinity Episcopal Church in downtown Galveston was given as a gift to the church in 1905. Called one of the church’s “most treasured possessions,” the Tiffany-stained glass window depicts Jesus welcoming children into his presence. One of the special features of the window is that the colors change throughout the day depending on how the sun hits it.  

When Hurricane Ike hit Galveston in 2008, portions of the window were destroyed, leaving behind shattered glass all over the floor of the church. 

“During the cleanup right after Ike, folks just came in and put [the glass] in big buckets,” Reverend Jimmy Abbott told ABC 13.

The buckets ended up in storage where they remained until earlier this year when a church administrator tasked with reorganizing closets in the church found them.

Kathy VanDewalli decided to take the buckets of glass as a sign it was time to revive the Phoenix project, an effort aimed at raising funds to support communities hit by disasters and she contacted local jewelry designer Karla Mock. 

Mock, who runs online jewelry store K.Mock Design uses the broken pieces of glass to create custom pieces of jewelry. She learned to make jewelry in 1987 when she was a student at Texas Tech University and has been making it part time ever since. 

While Mock has used a variety of materials in her jewelry, including fossils, record vinyl - even aluminum cans - she says this is the first time she’s ever used shattered glass with rough edges. 

“I’m not cutting the glass, I’m using it as it broke,” Mock said. 

That often means digging through many pieces before finding two similar enough to make a pair of earrings.  

“I’ve always been one to find unique stones and unique shapes and unique colors to put together for my jewelry line and this is just a kind of an add-on,” Mock said about her work with the Phoenix Project and the glass from Trinity Church. 

"Getting a cohesive piece of the end is kind of satisfying.” 

Abbott said so much was given to his church in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, so it’s nice to give back in this way.  

The Phoenix Project has given $10,000 to Ukrainian refugees and $5000 to a church in Hawaii after the wildfires.  

“I encourage people to . . .buy items from the Phoenix project so that we can continue to support people around the world,” Abbott said.