On February 17th at approximately 11AM, there was a fire at Trinity Community Commons, located in the historic Trinity United Methodist Church building at 204 East Trinity Lane. The fire was mostly localized in the beloved Sanctuary, the most historic part of the building. Though we are relieved that no one was in the facility at the time of the fire and no one was injured, the damage to the sanctuary is devastating and we share the sadness and grief of so many in this community.
Make a donation.
Because so many have asked, we have created an online donation page where you can donate specifically to our fire relief efforts. Community members are also welcome to donate to our general fund as we navigate the process of relocating our regular programs and continuing our work.
Volunteer.
We have created a volunteer category on our volunteer sign up page for future volunteer efforts regarding our next steps after this event. We do not expect to need volunteers immediately but we will keep your names and information and contact you as we move forward in consensus with the community and our partners.
Update: 3.31.21
The building has now been completely cleaned and emptied. Supplies and items that could be salvaged have been returned to partners, distributed in the community, or stored in pods at the TCC site. Damaged historical pews have been broken up and stored for use in the future restoration. Volunteers are lined up to separate broken stained glass from grass and other debris so the pieces can be cleaned and stored for use in the future restoration as well.
Progress
Our cleanup team from SERVPRO, has started the process of ice blasting the smoke damage from the newly exposed rafters in the sanctuary. This is extremely interesting and delicate work that will extend through the week.
After that, they will move into asbestos removal which will clear the building of all asbestos, including floor and ceiling tiles and HVAC ducts. This process is scheduled to begin April 12th and will take at least ten days. During that time there will be NO access to the building and limited presence of TCC staff on site. We will release an update if that date changes.
The Community Meal has continued and will proceed without interruption on Tuesdays at 5:30 and we've been so grateful for this consistent connection point with the community.
TCC staff have been on site for most of the cleanup and have loved the many drop in and drive by visits facilitated by our makeshift "office" in the parking lot, so please keep on stopping by!
We'll be releasing more volunteer projects and summer plans over the coming weeks, so please join the email/text list and/or join the volunteer list to stay informed. We are beyond thankful for the support from this community!
