Gary Shields, caretaker, stands in the rebuilt sanctuary of East Lake Ainslie. He holds a cross made from nails recovered from the ruins of the previous church, which burned down in December, 2011.
On Dec. 18, 2011, only days before Christmas, the Presbyterian church in East Lake Ainslie, N.S., burned to the ground.
One year later, the congregation celebrated Christmas Eve with a service in its new building, which sits in the footprint of its 131-year-old predecessor. The new church looks much like the previous one and seats 140. There was standing room only at the Christmas Eve service.
The congregation plans to hold a formal dedication service in July.
“Presbytery cautioned us strongly [about rebuilding],” said Rev. Louis Ihasz, the retired United Church minister who serves the two-point charge of East Lake Ainslie and Farquharson, Middle River. “They said this may not be a good time to rebuild because churches are closing.
But sometimes the worst of times is the best of times to show your faith in the church.
“These people were determined, and they’re the salt of the earth.”
In the months that followed the fire, volunteers helped clear away the scorched ruins of the old building. They gathered up square nails, which one member welded together into crosses. A former member, who now lives in Halifax, made wooden bases so the crosses could be sold to raise funds.
The congregation set up a building committee and a fundraising committee. Support flooded in from churches in Cape Breton and across the country.
Rev. Ian MacMillan, who now serves at St. Andrew’s, Lancaster, and St. Andrew’s, Martintown, Ont., grew up in East Lake Ainslie and was ordained in the old church. At his request, the session of his Lancaster church sent the offering from their 2011 Christmas Eve service to the Cape Breton congregation. Members of the Martintown church also pitched in with special donations. Together the congregations contributed about $4,000.
Roman Catholic churches in West Lake Ainslie and East Margaree also raised support. And donations from former members and families rolled in over the summer in response to letters sent out by the fundraising committee.
“We gave them the opportunity to buy a pew and we’d dedicate it in memory of someone,” Ihasz said. “We had 20 pews to sell, and 27 families willing to buy pews. So we divided some pews up with one family name on one end and another family on the other end.”
A church that was closing donated the pulpit, communion table and chairs; another sold the congregation its pews.
Although the treasurer, Clifford Collins, had not completed his year-end calculations at press time and a few bills from the contractor were yet to arrive, he estimated the total cost of rebuilding was about $400,000. With $350,000 received from an insurance payout and between $50,000 and $75,000 from donations and fundraising, “we’re going to be basically debt free,” he said.
“They seem to have a renewed energy in their faith,” MacMillan said of his old congregation. “It’s incredible. It’s not a big church; it’s one of these little rural churches. But the people who go there are very committed.”
A congregation has been worshipping in East Lake Ainslie since 1833. This is its fourth building.
“I tell people our church didn’t burn down,” Ihasz said. “Our building burned down. The church is the people.”
