Call for funds to help restore church
EVEN divine intervention hasn't saved Dannevirke's historic St John the Baptist Anglican Church from the vagaries of the weather.
But with a major $400,000 project about to get under way to save the building and its interior from the ravages of the rain, those involved are praying for some financial help from the public.
“Leaking has been a problem for a long time, but the roof is deteriorating quite quickly now,” the Rev Jo Crosse, the vicar of Southern Hawke's Bay, said.
And she admitted that while “roofs aren't sexy,” leaks are a huge problem and she's hoping parishioners and the community will lend a hand by donating to the church repair fund.
The honeystone church on High St is listed as a Category 2 historic place.
The current sanctuary and chancel were erected and consecrated in 1935, replacing an 1888 wooden structure.
The church is more than a place of worship for parishioners.
“St John's is part of the community and people are fond of this church, which has been an important part of life in this community,” the Rev Crosse said.
Church warden Bob Bell said Dannevirke was fortunate to have the historic building.
But like all old buildings, the time has come for major repairs, with leaks in the ceiling resulting in rotting carpet, wooden veneer peeling and the ravages of time showing.
And while the roof is off, a ply diaphragm will be installed under the new roof to help with earthquake strengthening.
At 34 per cent of the earthquake code, the church meets all standards.
The building will be shrinkwrapped for the job and will emerge from its chrysalis ready to weather many more decades.
“This is going to be a huge job,” the Rev Crosse said.
“The church will be shrinkwrapped so contractors can keep working in all weathers, but how they'll deal with the steeple, I don't know.”
Although the $400,000 fundraising target was a “bit scary”, she said the church had enough funds already to cover a quarter of the cost ($157,000) and the vestry would be applying for grants, but would still need to rely on the generosity of the community.
“We have a contingency built into our funding because once the
roof comes off we don't know what we'll find,” she said.
Morris and Bailey are the main contractors for the repairs, with Hamish Illsley managing interior woodwork repairs and David Veale as project manager.
The church is also required to have upgraded safety features, including installation of fire alarms and emergency lighting, electrical rewiring, safety rails and improved accessibility.
Once the scaffolding goes up, possibly by the mid-April, the congregation will be out of the church for three months.
“We don't want to take the roof through another winter,” the Rev Crosse said.
Warden Murray Cushing has been involved with the church for 35 years and says he is looking forward to the future-proofing work.
Fellow warden Mr Bell has been with the church for 15 years andpreviously the Matamau church.
“The church and my faith are very important,” he said.
“The maintenance of this building is our duty because we've been given the duty to look after the church.”
“It's much more than just a church,” Mr Cushing said.
“We have organ recitals, band concerts with 50 musicians, animal blessings and we held local body election meet-thecandidate meetings in here.”