South Church celebrates 'new life'

By Nick Grabbe
Staff Writer

Published on October 30, 2009

South Congregational Church has just completed more than $500,000 in structural and energy efficiency improvements to its 1824 building on the South Amherst common.

At this Sunday's 10 a.m. service, the building will be rededicated. During her sermon, the Rev. Caroline Meyers will display items that were found in the walls, including old church bulletins, newspapers and nails, a beveled mirror, and a jelly jar with jelly still in it.

"The church really wants to make a pledge to the future of the church that says this building is not just for us," Meyers said. "We see it as a place where we want to continue to be a community of the faithful for generations to come."

The church has about 270 members.

Several years ago, some longtime members noticed noises that didn't feel right, said Steve Mabee, chairman of the church's board of trustees. An investigation of the basement revealed that columns were starting to rot and the building was settling unevenly, he said.

The structural work started two years ago. The building was reinforced with concrete footings, the bell tower was renovated, and the roof was strengthened and replaced. A fund-raising campaign brought in pledges of $685,568.

"I was completely humbled and in awe when the pledges came in," said Meyers. "Grateful doesn't really begin to cover it."

The last phase of the project involved tightening up the building, and that took place from May to September. It required that Sunday services take place at the adjacent Munson Memorial Library. Before the improvements were done, the church was so drafty that you could walk by a window and feel the air rushing in through the leaks, Meyers said.

Dave Cody, a Belchertown contractor and church member, supervised this last phase of the project. "The place was an energy sieve before," he said.

His crew replaced 34 windows, installed nine inches of foam insulation, sealed leaks, and put up new siding on three sides of the building, he said. He estimates that the church's energy consumption will decline by 35 percent.

The church's interior also got new carpets, painting, lighting and sound.

"As a third-generation carpenter, to work on a church is a goal I've had, and to be able to achieve that goal is fantastic," Cody said. "It's gratifying that a community of faith will extend their faith to you, and being able to return a perfectly turned out project is how we can return our faith."

His only concern was having more than 200 clients for one project, but he was able to deal with a building committee and get the job done on time and at budget. "I want to continue to attend the church," he said. "I didn't want to foul my own pond."

The church anticipates having about $130,000 left over when money from the pledges comes in, Mabee said. Possible uses of the money are renovations at the parsonage, where Meyers lives with her family, and paving the parking lot, he said.

A brass quartet will be performing special music at Sunday's rededication service, said Meyers, who has been pastor of the church for four years.

"The project has promoted a sense of belonging to each other, and the sense that the community isn't just people there currently but people who have been there," she said. "We opened up the walls and saw what was done for us close to 200 years ago, and we're doing this now for others who will be here 150 years hence. It's extended our sense of community as well as encouraging it."

The spirit of the church has not flagged during the construction, and attendance at services at the library was actually up last summer, she said.

"People have really been on board for this," she said. "The whole church stands up straighter."