The beautiful memorial windows of Trinity Episcopal Church were installed over a 30-year period as funds became available. All but the clerestory windows and “Christ and the Centurion” on the west wall were designed and fabricated by the Judson Studios in Los Angeles. Now celebrating 103 years in business, this studio is credited with producing many of the most exquisite stained glass windows throughout the United States.

Following a process little changed from the Middle Ages, windows are entirely handmade. Each one starts life as a small watercolor and moves through a series of production steps from working drawings to templates to kiln. At one crucial step, artists paint details onto the surface of the cut pieces of colored glass, adding everything from facial features to shading. These details are fused into the glass through firing, after which pieces are assembled one section at a time.

Metals and metallic oxides added to molten glass create the colors. Gold is added for ruby, cobalt for deep blue, and manganese for amethyst. Stained glass never fades and certain colors are symbolic. Green is the color of nature, signifying hope and an acknowledgment of eternal life, and blue indicates heavenly strength. Red, not surprisingly, represents love and zeal while purple and violet are the colors of penitence.