For the last seven years, worship spaces have been a constant on the Historic Wilmington Foundation’s Most Threatened Historic Places list.
But this year saw just one church on the list. Amanda Greene of Wilmington Faith and Values tells us why.
The foundation released its annual round-up of needy historic places May 29. The list included historic houses, schools, wood windows and cemetery markers.
The one church on this year’s list has been a constant there since 2006 – the gold-domed Sts. Peter and Paul Russian Orthodox Church in St. Helena, near Burgaw.
George Edwards, executive director of the Historic Wilmington Foundation, says the list underlines the benefits of preserving historic places and helps generate ways to fix them. The director says the reason fewer churches are on the list this year is a drop in nominations.
But the foundation is aware of many rural congregations such as some Brunswick County African Methodist Episcopal churches whose aging or dwindling membership can no longer care for their withering buildings.
This summer the HWF is planning a workshop with the national nonprofit Partners for Sacred Places to help churches address their building needs.
