Sacred Space
Sacred Space Renovation Story
On May 11, 2002, a task group from the elders of First Christian Church was appointed by Bill Crittenden, the current chair of the Elders. The members of this group were Chris Furr, Margaret Jarman and Charles Sanders. They began meeting immediately to identify major issues facing First Christian Church. This group was also charged to make recommendations to the elders and congregation as to how these issues should be addressed. Over a period of six months, this group, along with the ministers of First Christian Church at that time, Dan Webster and Kathy Reinger, met a number of times. Following a report to the General Board of First Christian Church in January 2003, the group was directed to move forward to develop a plan to renovate and refurbish the "sacred space" (the sanctuary, chancel, and narthex of our church).
The group was expanded to include those directly involved in worship and other congregational leaders. The group developed a list of specific needs for this project. The list was presented to the congregation as a whole and to a number of small groups within the church. Comments, suggestions, and questions were collected in March 2003. The list of needs was then refined and the process moved forward. In October 2003, John Sawyer Architects was selected to begin developing a specific plan based on the list of needs. Mr. Sawyer and his staff presented the committee with a schematic design with projected cost in January 2004. The schematic design was reviewed and finalized in the spring of 2004. Planning began for a capital campaign to underwrite the cost of the project.
A capital campaign with the theme "A Great Heritage, A Great Future" began in the fall of 2004. Following the campaign in the winter and spring of 2004, the schematic design and projected costs of the project were revised to align with the pledges received. The project was presented for construction bids in April 2005. Waldkirch and Saunders General Contractors was chosen as the general contractor for the project. Construction began in September 2005 and was completed in February 2006.
Throughout this project, our congretation has been guided by our God - where God guides, God provides. Those who have come before us, our biblical ancestors and our First Christian Church ancestors, have been wonderful examples of the power of faith. This congregation was founded in 1907 and we will soon begin our second century of ministry in this community. Our prayer will continue to be that God's call for our church to bring people into a saving, healing, and loving relationship with Jesus Christ will be symbolically represented and made possible by this building.
On March 5th, our congregation celebrated our first service in our newly renovated Sacred Space. Our guest preacher was Rev. David Alexander, who was the minister at First Christian Church when the sanctuary was originally built.
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Work-in-Progress Photos
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |