What’s your name and what fills your time?
Reid McCormick. I was born at St. Vincent’s Jacksonville in 1957 and grew up at the Beach. About a year ago, I was asked to serve as the Interim Rector for St. Paul’s by the Sea Episcopal Church. SPBTS has been our home church since I retired (the first time) in 2019. Seems I will be serving in this capacity until the end of the year.
At age 12, I began working in our family (clearing, earthmoving, underground, paving and concrete) construction business, B.B. McCormick and Sons. B.B. McCormick is my grandfather. He, my grandmother and their six children were dropped off where Atlantic Blvd. met the ocean on July 1, 1919 after their house in Springfield burned to the ground, losing everything. They walked to a boarding house located on 11th Ave South and began planting their roots at the beach. My father J.T. McCormick was 3-1/2 years old at the time.
After graduating from Auburn University, I began working full time, Walt Disney World’s EPCOT Center being my first job in 1979. That’s where I met my wife Jackie. We began our life together in Jacksonville Beach after we were married in 1982. We have two daughters; the oldest (Molly) and her 6 year old son (Tate) live in Ponte Vedra. Our second daughter (Natalie) lives in Viera with her husband (Bryan) and their 3 and 5 year old daughters (Margot and Maclaine). I am forever grateful for the love and life that Jackie and I have shared through the years.
After serving one term as Mayor of Jacksonville Beach, I left the family business in 1994. Our family moved to Sewanee, TN for seminary where I earned a Masters in Divinity. I have served as an Episcopal priest in multiple churches throughout the Southeast since that time.
Anything special going on for this summer?
My time as Interim at St. Paul’s has been a true blessing. It has allowed me to reconnect with many past acquaintances, including one or two who helped raised me, as well as to make some new friends. St. Paul’s by the Sea was the FIRST church at the Beach, being established in 1887.
The original church, where I was baptized as an infant, is now located on the Beaches Museum campus, right next to my great grandparent’s home that they built in 1873 that was relocated ten years ago from what is now Nocatee.
The good people at St. Paul’s are currently experiencing a phase of renewal; they are working to re-identify their mission, discovering and exploring new ministries that will hopefully enhance the lives of the Beaches and East Jacksonville communities. The people at St. Paul’s are deeply involved and committed to serving outside the church walls into the larger community. Needless to say, it’s an exciting time to be a part of the church where it all began 137 years ago!
St. Paul’s has always been a part of the Beaches Fine Arts organization, hosting concerts and art exhibits throughout the year. The church also has a lot of fun, hosting a Shrimp Boil in the spring and our upcoming Oktoberfest will be held on October 5 for example. Come join us!
Any hobbies or interests worth telling us about?
I have started playing golf again, mostly at Jax Beach Municipal, as well as doing some inshore saltwater fishing and surf fishing on my days off. I do some writing – poems, essays, reflections and hunting and fishing stories based on my life experiences. I pick up a guitar from time to time. I also enjoy just spending time on the beach, looking for sharks’ teeth, fossils and certain shells.
Growing up, I had the privilege of hunting in the North Florida woods between Jacksonville and St. Augustine but those woods are now long gone, falling to the hands of development. I have been an avid archery hunter since 1987. The hunting is a side deal for me. I mostly enjoy sitting in trees in Alabama and Georgia, observing nature and reflecting on those early days as well as being with friends.
I am also involved in the Beaches Museum and History Center, which was my mother’s (Jean McCormick) passion and is now becoming mine. I enjoy serving alongside Christine Hoffman and so many wonderful people who give so much of themselves to maintain our sense of place and heritage in the midst of the tremendous growth that we are experiencing. If you aren’t already a member of the Beaches Museum, I beg of you to consider joining.
What’s one thing (funny, different, cool) that many might not know about you?
I was close friends with Fland Sharp, former councilman and fellow Mayor of Jax Beach, until his death in January of 2019. Fland talked me into building a flats boat. I had never laid fiberglass much less worked with wood beyond building a few Adirondack chairs. I ended up building an 18’ Technical Poling skiff in 2016 while serving at a church in Alabama. It took me over 300 personal hours (in one to eight-hour segments) to complete. I couldn’t have done it without Fland’s (remote) advice as well as the help of many friends who would show up at my shop at the most opportune times to hold a piece of wood or mix some resin. I enjoy fishing out of it to this day and have a great sense of pride every time I pull away from the boat ramp. Some days, it’s a fish-catching machine, others not so much, LOL.
How do you like living on the First Coast?
Someone recently asked me if I couldn’t live here, where would I want to live? I couldn’t answer the question and I still can’t right now. From the time I left for seminary, I have held a longing to return to my home and I am grateful that the Lord has guided me here. The Beach is and always will be a unique place. I treasure the privilege of smelling low tide and the salt air, especially when I feel that East wind that saves us in the summer. In spite of the increased traffic and sheer number of people at the beach, there is no place else I could imagine living.
Anything else that you would like to tell the community?
As beaches residents, we have a tremendous challenge set before us as we continue to grow and change. I recall a sign in front of someone’s home that read, “Welcome to our beach. Now, go home.” All kidding aside, as we feel the pressure of growth at the Beach, it would be easy to buy in to that attitude. But that has never been who we have been in my lifetime. We must find a way to remain in community with each other.
I pray that we may love one another and never allow indifference to divide us and allow us to forget the importance of community, not only for survival but also for our mutual enjoyment and appreciation for all of us as recipients of God’s creation. We have a tremendous heritage to experience here, whether someone grew up here or just showed up yesterday. The Beach is filled with wonderful people from all walks of life and I believe that each and every one of us has a responsibility to those who have gone before us as well as the little children among us to uphold, cultivate and preserve our deep sense of community, purpose and heritage.
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Mike is a native First Coaster and was a leading figure in surfing and skateboarding for most of his life. After promoting music for many years on the local music scene, Mike now brings a unique perspective to FirstCoast.Life as a contributing writer.
