SPECIAL EDITION OF THE EPIPHANY ESTAR--NOVEMBER 28, 2022
Dear Epiphany Family:
We have been blessed and challenged. I know most of you know that the church was hit by a major lightning strike during the thunderstorm on Nov. 11. (I know, really bad timing with the holidays!) It blew off the top of the bell tower and wreaked havoc with the electrical system and equipment in the church. There were people in the church at the time and no one was hurt, and the church did not catch on fire. So again, so much for which to be grateful. The other good news is that everything damaged should be covered by our insurance.
We are in the midst of meeting with numerous service & insurance people. We already know that many things were destroyed: the phone system, the copier, multiple pieces of computer & electrical equipment, the electric organ/piano and multiple lighting fixtures, two A/C units not to mention the bell tower. As each service person comes, we add to the list. The insurance coordinator assures us that this is very typical, and we may still find items in the days to come. We will work through all of it, and I’m confident come out better on the other side.
I would like to ask for volunteers to work on task teams that will help work on our restoration. We will need to select major items i.e., A/C units; a new phone system (we discovered our former phone company is no longer in business); organ etc. We need to investigate & make wise choices. The bell tower will need major repair (we’re awaiting review by a structural engineer & we’re working with a restoration company assigned by the insurance). If you would be willing to work on one of these teams, please send me an email. Please put your area of expertise/interest (computer; phone; structure repair; lighting, organ etc.) We may not need everyone, but we will be grateful for a pool from which to draw.
We will be forming small teams who will work together, probably meeting by Zoom and reporting to me and the Vestry on their findings. They also would meet with me and the respective service people when they come to the church. Thank you so much for considering working on this effort! Again, please let me know by email. Even if you can’t work on a team, most importantly you can support Epiphany with your prayers.
I will continue to keep you updated as we move forward.