To the right is the most compelling and powerful image of our fire on the morning February 12th 2006 ... It was taken by Daryl Holyk, a reporter for the Minnedosa Tribune, and it was taken shortly after 7am that morning (I know this, because I walked home at 7 am when the flames broke through the roof) ... within an hour (when I returned) the roof and steeple were gone ...Today has been a hectic day (like most of those before), and I've been busy ... I had Bible Study this morning (in the library), I recieved a box of books from Wood Lake Books as a gift (thanks for the generosity), then we swapped food with Samaritan House to get our food cupboard back up and running ... I've been helping with the local Big Brothers/Big Sisters Bowl for Kids Sake, and I've been working on a funeral for tomorrow ... So, tonight's contribution is an email I sent to my colleagues in Presbytery, and my circle of family and friend earlier in the week, reflecting back on the two weeks I had put in ... some of the details have been covered ... but I think this is worth sharing ...
It has been a long two weeks ... so, this morning is a good time to get all up to date on where we are and what we are doing ...
Our life took an unexpect and unwelcome turn in the early morning hours of Sunday February 12th, when our phone rang at 5:20, and again at 5:59 am ... I jumped out of bed for the second call and as I went down the stairs I could smell smoke (in a Century old home this is NEVER a good smell ...) when I answered the phone I found out that the smoke was not from our house, but from our Church ... The local newspaper editor was calling to tell me our church was on fire, and I should get down there ...
I threw on pants and a sweat shirt and boots along with my parka ... socks and underwear would have to wait ...
When I arrived on site the north side of the building was fully engulfed and flames were shooting out the southern corner where the choir loft was located ... within an hour the roof was breached and the grand old dame began to collapse on herself ... I went home when the first flames licked through the roof, and began the process of calling our Presbytery to share the news - my email blasted across Canada in minutes ...
As the morning progressed we watched as the 105 year old sanctuary collapsed into smouldering ruin. We were very, very fortunate that the Centre with our new kitchen, renovated hall and offices was spared. I was particularly fortunate that the firefighters (volunteers all) went into the building around 10 am and retrieved from my office the Bible that was once Dad's (it WILL be Sam's in time), my Indian Blanket from Bella Coola and the photo of Dad that has hung on my office wall since I began in ministry ... they also brought out a few other books and pictures ...
At 11am, in the basement of the Catholic Church we gathered to "worship". Folks had been gathering there over sandwiches and coffee for an hour or so prior to my arrival ... I came and with a half frozen loaf of bread (ironic in the face of an inferno that consumed our church) and chalice taken from our cupboard, we broke bread and affirmed to one another that we were still standing and we would walk the words of the resurrection ... There were many tears and there was deep sorrow and anger (we knew then that the fire was deliberately set and the suspects were in custody) ... but we looked to tomorrow ...
In the afternoon the firefighters let us go into the remaining portion of the building an.d retrieved the office stuff - the records and archival material ... I was going to leave the books in my library until the next day ... but why 1:30pm, I felt that the "hot spots" in the foundation could be a problem through the night, so with lots of help we boxed, handed through the windows and moved to a borrowed office two doors down the street all the books that six years ago, had taken me close to a week to sort, pack and move ... (I had said at the time that I didn't want to do this again any time soon - Hannah on Saturday helped me finally begin unpacking my books and quipped - "well dad, you're gonna have to do it again sometime soon ...")
By sundown on Sunday I had taken a case of beer to the firefighters to say "thanks" for trying ... they are heroes in my eyes. They tried their best to save a building that loomed large in our community both physcially and spiritually ...
On Monday we cleared out the rest of the office stuff and most of my office too ... By the end of the week the Insurance company had written off the building and cleared us to remove everything from the site that was salvagable - the minus 35 temps with a howling wind delayed everything until the following Monday (the 20th) - we didn't feel like getting stuck to the filing cabinets as we carted them outside ...
On Wednesday we had our Presbytery meeting in Brandon and I felt like the prodigal son coming home ... the last two years have been a long haul for me and my relations within Presbytery. I went from being Chair to being a pariah almost overnight because of my fight with the local funeral home ... I had learned on Monday that on Wednesday morning at 9am, the ownership of the local funeral home passed to another company and the guys I had my dispute with were GONE !!! (some good news amid the bad ...) So, it felt good to be welcomed home and to have the past left where it rightly belongs - in the past ...
On Thursday we learned that one of the suspects in our fire was charged in the 2004 fire at Brandon Hills United Church that leveled their historical and heritage building ... it was not news we welcomed ... On Thursday too, our new Voices United arrived, along with new Bibles from the Bible Society ...
ON Sunday, we met in the sanctuary of St Alphonsus Roman Catholic Church for service - it was well covered by the Brandon Sun (there is still an article posted in their local new section online). I've posted the entirety of the service on the blog site I've set up for folks across Canada and around the world who see our church as home (even if they haven't darkened the door for years). It was clear to us then, and has become more clear to us in the days since how many people saw this building as "MY church ..." and have responded accordingly.
Last week was filled with mundane things like trying to arrange for furniture for me to set up an office ... clearing out the remaining stuff ... finding a place to store our stuff ... and watching on Monday as the back hoes moved in and began clearing the site ... This morning, one week later, the site is still NOT cleared. The old girl is not going down without a fight. It took three full days to take down the front steps !!! They were solid cement, rock and rebar - and they were not going anywhere without a fight ... Saturday they finally fell, after a hard three days !!
On Sunday, we shared communion at St Alphonsus, and then held our Annual General Meeting ... at the meeting we affirmed the recommendation from the Official Board to rebuild on the same site, but we also said that we would consider all our options if we find that the current site no longer meets our needs ... Today we begin our journey to rebuilding in earnest ... This morning just prior to worship, the Baptismal Font gifted to us from Oak Bank United Church arrived (it looks remarkably similar to the one we lost in the fire !!)... and I "christened" The Story Stool for the childrens' time in our worship service - again replacing a lovely stool we lost ... the new stool will have a piece of yarn tied on it for each week we are NOT in our own building as a reminder of our wandering ... Yesterday we tied two pieces to it ...
It's been a long and arduous two weeks. I'm bone tired - today I'm staying home (I have a CBC Manitoba interview at noon & and a Big Brothers/Big Sisters meeting after supper) and resting. I think I've earned a couple of days off after two weeks with long long days and one afternoon off ...
The kids have been great - Hannah has been there to help me any time I need it, and Sam and Rebekkah have too, though not as much. One of my highlights was opening last Tuesday's Brandon paper and finding there a full page article about our first service after the fire and there on the top of the page was dear old Sam olding one of the bricks we had salvaged from the debris ... he commented that day - "hey, I haven't been to church for months and when I show up I get in the paper - I should go more often ..."
One of the highlights in the week following the fire was the hosting of a touring company lead by Ron Klusmeier, a composer who has written many, many hymns familiar to United Church folks. Along with Ron was Jan Laurie, the wife of my supervisor when I was a student in Port Hardy - it was good to have them come and hold their workshops and concert. We had to use the school for obvious reasons. But it was a good day - the music was exceptional, and the care they offered to us was extraordinary ... Having Jan here was a bonus for which I and Mag are grateful.
Music has always been important in the life of this community, so the concert and workshops coupled with the salvaging of 8 enormous boxes of frozen and tattered choir music (a tiny fragment of what was once a HUGE collection of choral pieces owned and cherished by our choir) from the remains for the basement, breathed some hope into our souls. I also found a tiny, very battered, very dirty and very smoky smelling Blue Hymn book ... not much else came out of the remains of the sanctuary, but what did will be cherished ... It was funny, but the flags for the local scouting troop turned up intact and unscathed too - fire is a fickle thing at times ...
This weekend I had to borrow a van (our aerostar has a chronic problem - it may or may not get fixed today - the mechanic isn't making any promises - he's as bewildered as we are ... it was being cranky in the cold weather, so we thought it was water in the line ... then they looked at the fuel pump and said - "oh," that's the problem and replaced it ... then it wouldn't start so they checked the relay and now ... well, we just don't know ... it sits at the garage and they spin some wheel that has slots on it naming problems and see what comes up (okay they aren't doing that, but the mechanic said they may as well ... the joys of old vehicles). So, I borrowed a van and drove to Brandon (my first trip since the fire) and picked up a table and two dining room chairs for my office - the furniture store gave me a GREAT deal on them - to use in my office as a desk. If you've seen my desk, you would understand that a large table will work better then a desk ... I call my contributions to the church newsletters - "musings from a messy desk" for good reason.
So, on Saturday Hannah and I spent three hours setting up furniture and sorting and shelving books, and by the end of the day it was beginning to look like an office ... The Rotary club are having a book sale this month, so I WILL be making some donations ... I have books I haven't looked at in 15 years or more - they are NOT being moved again - they will get pitched ...
Soooooo, I guess that's my life of late ... I end each day posting an entry on the minnedosaunited blog linked below. I have been posting my services too ... I have also been amazed at the places where hits are coming from - it is extraordinary - they are literally coming from all over the world ... Proof of the creed we share in the UCC that begins - We Are Not Alone ...
In the midst of this, the kids have been great. They have continued with school, gymnastics, piano and so forth - much of that has fallen to Mag ... most days I have to have a 2Do list, or it ain't getting done ... A highlight for me was last Saturday when all three joined the Klusmeier concert as part of a six voice kids choir!! Even Sam sang. Earlier he had attended a workshop on drumming in worship and he wants to get a drum to accompany the choir - "it would be cool," is his mantra. After six long years, Church is again on his radar - the last two weeks he's been in church for the whole service and he has even said my sermons are interesting ... Gee, my little guy is becoming an amazing young man !!!
Rebekkah's contribution to the last two weeks has been catching me everytime I say "I'm going down to the church ..." She says - "really ?? What are you going to do in the pit??" I correct myself and say - "the office ..." though it still feels funny rolling off my tongue ...
I've said repeatedly that the journey we are on is not marked by huge leaps and bounds, but by small steps ... and every day we take one or two little steps, and every day we move a little bit farther down the road. It will be hard a journey, and it will challenge and stretch us, but I am very fortunate and blessed to be where I am, and working among the people I am working amongst. I have said that I wouldn't wish this on anyone, but at the same time I wouldn't miss it for the world - I'm glad that if this kind of thing was going to happen in my ministry, it would be while I am with a group of people like those I meet everyday here in Minnedosa ... I don't want to sound cruel, but the statement: "this couldn't have happened to a nicer group of people" is very very true.
Our building burnt down - but our Church will rebuild it ... on this you can be sure. And every step of the journey will strength us as a community and as a faith family ... It's a journey that's already begun ... and it IS a journey that will take some time. For now - that's what I have filled the last couple of weeks with ... So, how was your week???
L'chaim,
No comments:
Post a Comment