A 112-year-old Temperance congregation is planning its final service.
“St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church is closing,” said Pastor Lisa M. Hayes, the church’s interim pastor. “The membership made the very difficult decision to close due to an aging congregation.”
A closing service will begin at 1 p.m. Sunday, June 28 at the church, 9144 Lewis Ave. Presiding will be Bishop Donald Kreiss of the Southeast Michigan Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. A luncheon will follow.
“We are still hopeful that a local church or community service group would be willing to take over the ministry of the community food pantry, which has been part of St. Paul’s ministry to the Temperance area community for many, many years. Our last food distribution will be in June,” Hayes said.
The church building is listed for sale for $398,000.
“(Church members) have put the building up for sale. They hope to find a buyer who will be interested in using the property and the building in a manner that is consistent with the mission and values of the congregation,” Hayes said.
The brick building, according to the sales listing, was constructed in 1956 and is 19,769 square feet. It seats more than 150 and features a chapel with balcony, choir stand, fellowship hall, commercial kitchen, conference/library space, lounge with kitchenette, operational daycare, food pantry and storage.
The 6.88-acre property also has a fenced playground and multiple sheds.
The St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church congregation predates its building.
“We opened in 1914,” Hayes said.
According to Monroe News archives, members originally met in each others’ homes. In 1915, they started meeting at First Baptist Church, then located at Temperance Road and Lewis Avenue. The church was reorganized July 30, 1922.
“Our original location was a small church building about half a block away from our current location,” Hayes said.
The first church building was dedicated May 16, 1937, and was located at Lewis Avenue and South Park Drive, according to Monroe News archives.
The current building was dedicated in 1956 and an extensive addition was erected in 1969.
— Contact reporter Suzanne Nolan Wisler at swisler@monroenews.com.
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: A 112-year-old Temperance congregation is planning its final service
Reporting by Suzanne Nolan Wisler, The Monroe News / The Monroe News
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