Clergy Verification
This need has been verified by local Orthodox clergy.
How You Can Help
Due to several large repairs, we are now facing significant financial challenges that threaten our ability to meet our monthly obligations, repair and maintain our church building, and continue the ministry that has made our parish such an important spiritual home for so many people.
Our most urgent needs are repairs to roof, ceiling and meeting our monthly operational expenses. Sections of the ceiling are peeling badly, and portions have begun to deteriorate and cave in. This has become a serious concern, both for the preservation of the building and for the safety of our parishioners. The roof and the resulting water damage need to be addressed before the problem becomes even more extensive and costly.
Our current financial difficulties have not come from a lack of commitment from our parishioners. Rather, we have had to deal with a number of substantial and unexpected expenses in recent years which has drained all of savings and investments.
For example after spending a significant amount of money on a contractor to have our front stairs rebuilt we discovered that the work did not meet the necessary building codes. As a result, the stairs had to be redone at considerable additional expense. We eventually succeeded in getting the work completed properly, but the process placed a tremendous burden on our parish financially. We also have the very significant expense of replacing our boiler, along with the ordinary maintenance and repairs required to care for an aging church building.
Despite these financial difficulties, our parish continues to grow. This is what makes preserving our historic church building so important. We are not simply trying to maintain an old building for its own sake. We are trying to preserve a place where people are actively coming to worship, learn about the Orthodox faith, have fellowship and become part of a Christian community. Our parish’s outreach with our rector’s lead embraces a small mission in West Brookfield and regular Liturgies in Amherst for students of the Five Colleges.
All prayers and donations are deeply appreciated.