MIRACLES

Since closing the church, at 684 S. 3rd St., after the lightning strike, Lutz has been working with a fundraising professional, a local contractor and a team of volunteers to raise the money, which must come almost entirely from donations. So far, the church has raised about $2.4 million.

The project stalled last year because of a lack of donations and a diocesan rule that requires the church to raise at least 50 percent of the money needed for each phase of a construction project as well as enough pledges to cover that phase’s entire costs, said Doug Stein, who founded Veritas Philanthropy and is working with the church to raise the money.

Phase one, completed at the beginning of 2017, included putting up scaffolding to stabilize the structure for construction, tracing paintings that will be re-created later and putting protective coverings over precious parts of the church such as the pipe organ.

Phase two, which began last month and is expected to last four months, involves reinforcing the building with a steel structure that won’t be visible, said Bryan Hamilton, a parish representative and the contractor overseeing the project.

The church still needs more than $3 million for the third and final phase, Hamilton said.

That last phase will involve installing heating, air-conditioning, painting, putting in a new floor and replacing the artwork and statues in the church. The stained-glass windows also must be refurbished, the organ’s electrical damage repaired and the ceiling re-plastered and painted, Hamilton said.

Lutz is hoping the project will be done by Christmas. But construction officials say that Easter 2019 is more likely, which would make the project about a 2 -year undertaking.

The church began its public fundraising campaign after Thanksgiving and recently established a core group of 15 volunteers to reach out and meet with potential donors, he said. The time it took to build that group also contributed to the delay, Stein said.

In the meantime, the church’s approximately 600 parishioners are worshipping in St. Mary’s neighboring school cafeteria.

Lutz said he never expected to be taking on such a big endeavor just a few years from retirement.

“This is a full-time job,” he said of the fundraising effort. “I don’t know what Pharaoh thought when he built the pyramids, but I’m about 2 years from retirement and the church is about a year and two months away from completion.”

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus loaned the church about $500,000 to get started on the reconstruction project, Lutz said. The money already has been paid back, he said.

To be successful, St Mary will have to get donations from people beyond its parishioners, Stein said. “We need people in the community to help St. Mary’s.”

Stein said they hope to wrap up the fundraising campaign by the end of spring if possible.

“I do feel like it’s an attainable goal ... I like what I see a lot,” he said.

As part of the fundraising efforts, Stein has sent packets about the project to all parishioners, hosted meetings to let the community know about the progress, and sent 900 letters to alumni of St. Mary High School, which closed in 1968. He also has communicated with other churches around the country with “St. Mary” in their name, hoping that they’ll be sympathetic to the cause. In return, the local church will paint their names on the ceiling, he said.

Though a lot of money still needs to be raised, Lutz said he’s confident the community will come through.

“This is an investment in our future, when we can preserve our past,” he said. “I believe in miracles.”