The Oskaloosa Church is burning!!!

[Joel Merrill]

I don't know any other details other than it has been burning for several hours. That doesn't sound good. It is the biggest Nazarene church in the Iowa district. I went there back in the 70's when it was built. My wife and I were married there.

Joel

[Dave McClung]

I have heard a lot about that church. Way back in the 1950's the pastor was T.T. McCord. He moved to Louisiana to the be our d.s.

Then in the 1970's, Jim Diehl was the pastor. He mentions the Oskallosa Church in his sermons from time to time.

Keep us informed.

[Joel Merrill]

I have heard a lot about that church. Way back in the 1950's the pastor was T.T. McCord. He moved to Louisiana to the be our d.s.

Then in the 1970's, Jim Diehl was the pastor. He mentions the Oskallosa Church in his sermons from time to time.

Keep us informed.
Gary Henecke was the pastor right after him. He is also one of the great holiness preachers in the Nazarene church. I moved there the week they dug the hole for the new church basement. It was a very exciting time. I drove a church bus and did the maintenance on them. We had 5 buses at the time.

Joel

[Joel Merrill]

Here are some pictures of the church taken a couple years ago. LeAnne was singing with the deputation team from Vennard Bible College that night. One picture is of them.

Joel

[Joel Merrill]

It started in the furnace room. No one was in the church. Someone came to the church in the evening to practice and found it burning. The church is a total loss :basic04 They are meeting in the high school gym. At least no one was hurt.

Joel

[William Hunter]

My office sec. has a son and his family who attend that church. They phoned and said it looks to them like a near total loss. They watched it burn.

I guess it is the largest church in town and many of the civic functions take place there.

[BobHunt]

Wow! That was a beautiful church!

[Marsha Gupton]

Pastor Henecke told us about this this morning. Dr. Henecke was pastor there when they entered a building program to build that building.

[Joel Merrill]

Pastor Henecke told us about this this morning. Dr. Henecke was pastor there when they entered a building program to build that building.

I remember him well. The church was in it's finest hour then. I still have many of his sermons on tape.

Joel

[Larry Osweiler]

Attended many District Assemblies and zone meetings at the Oskaloosa Church. I'm sure it is a tremendous loss for both the church and the community. I pastored two churches close to there.

[Joel Merrill]

Here are some pictures I took this afternoon. There is no question that it is a total loss. I haven't heard an official cause yet but it sounds like an electrical fire.

Joel

[Joel Merrill]

More pictures

[Joel Merrill]

This is where the fire started.

[Joel Merrill]

Looking through the doorway you can see a round ring in the middle of the sanctuary. That is the base of the iron steeple. I helped carry the steeple up the roof and set it up on that ring when the church was built. The steeple was very heavy. All of the arches were connected to that ring. The church also had beautiful stained glass windows which are gone.

Joel

[Dennis M. Scott]

Joel,

Thank you, for these pictures. Thoughtful of you to go get them for us. We do water and fire damage restoration, and occasionally on churches and parsonages. We've not done anything this large. Twenty years ago, however, I pastored a large church that had previously had a total loss fire. Even though it had been twenty years previous, there were long remaining painful memories for congregants who had been there that long. Rebuilding the building will only be part of the healing from this devastation. Even when no one is physically hurt, fires are powerfully painful. There should be grief-loss counseling offered for members, friends and neighbors. These are people who have been tragically violated, and emotional reactions will be very deeply felt.

This is a church in need of prayer, and understanding patience.

[Joel Merrill]

Joel,

Thank you, for these pictures. Thoughtful of you to go get them for us. We do water and fire damage restoration, and occasionally on churches and parsonages. We've not done anything this large. Twenty years ago, however, I pastored a large church that had previously had a total loss fire. Even though it had been twenty years previous, there were long remaining painful memories for congregants who had been there that long. Rebuilding the building will only be part of the healing from this devastation. Even when no one is physically hurt, fires are powerfully painful. There should be grief-loss counseling offered for members, friends and neighbors. These are people who have been tragically violated, and emotional reactions will be very deeply felt.

This is a church in need of prayer, and understanding patience.
Pastor David Childers has been the interim pastor there but I'm pretty sure they are going to call him as their pastor. He has lots of experience with building programs so he is in the right spot at the right time for this. I heard that he preached this morning that the church didn't burn, only the building did. I'm praying that this will unify the church and start a revival like when that church was built 30 years ago.

Joel

[Marsha Gupton]

I am not sure, but I believe that the son of one of my Mother's friends was pastor there for a while, Gary Smith. Joel, do you know if I am right on that?

[Joel Merrill]

Here is a link to WHO TV channel 13. Click on "Oskaloosa Church Fire"
There is a very good video clip. One man they interview is Phil Sereg. He is a miracle! He was an alcoholic and got saved shortly before I moved there. If my memory serves me right, the church was picking up his kids on the bus and he got saved because of the bus ministry.

I don't know how long they will keep this story on this link.

http://www.whotv.com/

Joel

[Joel Merrill]

I am not sure, but I believe that the son of one of my Mother's friends was pastor there for a while, Gary Smith. Joel, do you know if I am right on that?

Yes, he was there. First he was the associate pastor for James Bearden (I hope that's spelled right), then he came back a few years later as the senior pastor.

Joel

[Barb Bouldrey]

I attended an NMI Regional Conference there about 12 years ago. This is our youth pastor's home church.

Joel, did you know Candice Wiley and her family? She has been in the ministry now 25 years, but I do not know when her parents left Oscaloosa.

She said the board had met last night with the D.S. to discuss finding a new pastor. Someone smelled smoke, but they could not find the source. 30 minutes later the church was a blaze.

It had a beautiful, very unique sanctuary.

Barb

[Joel Merrill]

I attended an NMI Regional Conference there about 12 years ago. This is our youth pastor's home church.

Joel, did you know Candice Wiley and her family? She has been in the ministry now 25 years, but I do not know when her parents left Oscaloosa.

She said the board had met last night with the D.S. to discuss finding a new pastor. Someone smelled smoke, but they could not find the source. 30 minutes later the church was a blaze.

It had a beautiful, very unique sanctuary.

Barb
I remember the name but there were around 800 people going there then and it was hard to know everyone. It has also been a long time and I have forgotten a lot of names.

What I heard was that the custodians were there about 1:00PM Saturday and smelled something but couldn't find anything. Later about 3:00 someone was in the church office which is the old parsonage across the parking lot. They tried to connect to the Internet and couldn't. The fiber optics come in the church in the area where the fire started so the fire may have already burned them. Later on around 6:30 or 7:00 someone came to the church to practice. When they opened the door the sanctuary was full of smoke. The fire department got there very quickly. They thought they were getting it under control, then the roof caved in and once air got to the fire, the whole building was engulfed in about 10 minutes. There were still little fires burning here and there when I was there this afternoon.

Joel

[Marsha Lynn]

This is our youth pastor's home church.


This church must be a "sending" church. I have met several people who grew up there or once attended there and are now in ministry elsewhere.

How sad to lose that beautiful building, but it's good to know that the actual church is only damaged and temporarily homeless not destroyed. Not to get into platitudes, but it's times like this that remind you that the church truly is a people rather than a building.

Marsha

[Marsha Gupton]

Marsha, you are so correct on that. Yesterday that is exactly what Pastor Henecke told us. I have to admit that I think that humanly we do get attached to a building. Even though the building may be gone, the memories are with you in your heart. God's work is in your heart and soul not in a building. I think at times it takes things like this for people to take assessment about what is important and to be obedient to God's calling on our lives.

[Dave Becker]

Joel and others: thanks for the pictures and news about the Osky church. I was raised in Oskaloosa and came to Christ as a 16-yr old under Jim Diehl's ministry. At that time we had not built the "round" santuary. In one of your pics I can see the older building where I knelt to receive Christ. That was 34 years ago and I have been a Nazarene Pastor for over 20 years! I remember people like Phil Sereg and Bill Ulmet (my 10th grade geometry teacher) who prayed with me and supported me as I grew in my faith. My prayers are with the fine people of the Oskalossa church. Dave Becker, Atlanta, TX

[Joel Merrill]

Joel and others: thanks for the pictures and news about the Osky church. I was raised in Oskaloosa and came to Christ as a 16-yr old under Jim Diehl's ministry. At that time we had not built the "round" santuary. In one of your pics I can see the older building where I knelt to receive Christ. That was 34 years ago and I have been a Nazarene Pastor for over 20 years! I remember people like Phil Sereg and Bill Ulmet (my 10th grade geometry teacher) who prayed with me and supported me as I grew in my faith. My prayers are with the fine people of the Oskalossa church. Dave Becker, Atlanta, TX
Hi, Dave :fav09 Wow! It's good to hear from you. I have wondered many times where you were. You may not remember me, I moved there in August of 1974, the week they dug the basement for the new building. I was 20 years old then. I hung around you, Gary Snook and Brian Hanson when I could.

It is really sad that this happened but God is going to use this, mark my words, God still has a plan for that church. I go to the Evangelical Church (formerly The Evangelical Church of North America) on South Market Street now. It's a long story how I got there but it is also a good holiness church.

By the way, Welcome to Naznet. I hope we see a lot more of you here. :basic01

Joel

[Dave Becker]

Good to hear from you as well, Joel. (It's my first time to use NazNet so I'm a little fuzzy on how to post etc.) I can remember being involved in helping hang drywall in the foyer of the Osky church. I spent a lot of my summer after my freshmen year at MNU (75) helping out on the new building. All I can say is that buildings can be replaced but memories and souls won live on. I hope they rebuild both physically and spiritually. Have a great day.

[Wesley Smith]

Thanks, Joel, for your pics and information. My, this is tragic. I'm with everyone's statements re. the real church is the people, but it is true that many, many people put heart and soul into thoses buildings and that many, many memories are invested in various locations throughout the structure. I was raised down the road at Moravia and have wonderful memories of Osky, mostly the ministry of Alec Ulmet. We had great fellowship with the church and with the Ulmets back then.

[David B. Lester]

A friend who is the pastor at the Free Methodist in Oskaloosa sent me pictures of the church Sunday afternoon.
Rather saddening. Joel and I spent a lot of time in that building.
David

[David B. Lester]

Hey Deve!!
Keep me updated on things with you! Haven't known where to find you since we left Osky in '03.
My email is lostscot96@yahoo.com
We are now in Washington state-the home of the future Super Bowl champions Seattle Seahawks!!!!
David L.

[Joel Merrill]

I was talking to one of the fire fighters. He said that the way the building was constructed made it so it was easier for the fire to spread and harder to fight the fire. There is a new church here in town that is about that size. They had a sprinkler system installed when they built their church. I don't know how common that is. I know that would add a lot to the expense of building a church and congregations usually barely have enough to build a building in the first place.

Joel

[Sharon Isley]

I found out about this fire while at a retreat this week. It is heart breaking. I'm sure hope our district is praying, and that all of us will do all we can to help.

[Joel Merrill]

I found out about this fire while at a retreat this week. It is heart breaking. I'm sure hope our district is praying, and that all of us will do all we can to help.
How are you doing, Sharon? I've been praying for you.

Yes, it is sad about the Osky church. There are a lot of memories there and many of the people who built that building are still alive and remember the work and the sacrifice. But from everything I am hearing, they are determined to rebuild and come out of this stronger than ever. I have not heard a single discouraging word. I wish someone from that church would register and post. I'm sure there are lurkers in that church (hint hint) :basic01 As special as that building was, the lives that have been touched by that congregation are the real blessing of that church. God has used that church and he is not done with it. Our former district superintendent, Dr. Forrest Whitlatch preached a message about the time that church was starting to be built. I still remember it. It was the verse where Jesus told Peter and the disciples, "I will build my church and the gates of Hell will not prevail against it."

Joel

[Gina Stevenson]

Hey, Joel! You're talking about Craig's dad, aren't you? That reminds me of Angie ... wonder how she and their kids are doing since Craig's gone? We've not seen/heard from her in "eons."

"Dr. Forrest Whitlatch preached a message about the time that church was starting to be built. I still remember it. It was the verse where Jesus told Peter and the disciples, "I will build my church and the gates of Hell will not prevail against it."

[Joel Merrill]

Hey, Joel! You're talking about Craig's dad, aren't you? That reminds me of Angie ... wonder how she and their kids are doing since Craig's gone? We've not seen/heard from her in "eons."

I haven't heard anything about her either. The last I heard was that she is really busy. That is not surprising.

Joel