Johnson City, NY (WBNG Binghamton) Built to mimic the style of architecture found in Poland or the Ukraine, The Church of the Sacred Heart in Johnson City is a landmark in our area. The community is giving the church a makeover.
Action News reporter Matt Markham shows us how a piece of Eastern Europe is being preserved in the Southern Tier.
A lot of life happens in this church. Children are baptized, couples are married, the dead are put to rest.
But the church itself has seen a lot of life...in the form of bad weather.
So parishioners have raised money through popular Friday ethnic dinner sales to bring new life to the church.
"This church is something that is a large part of their heritage," said Father Teodor Czabala. "They really enjoy it. So, they're trying very hard to keep it going."
"It's also our responsibility to leave the next generation something that doesn't require a lot of maintenance down the road," said Stephen Czebiniek, trustee and parishoner of Sacred Heart. "This is an expensive project."
Sacred Heart is known for being a completely wooden church -- inside and out. The harsh weather in the area has taken a toll its cedar shakes, and caused the roof to leak. But preserving the architectural beauty of the building was crucial.
"We decided to go with something that was as close to the original wood as possible, but was longer lasting," Father Czabala said.
The new, synthetic shakes look almost identical to the old ones, and the exterior is being stained and cleaned.
Crews will start working on the domes -- they're the most complicated to complete.
"It's warrantied by the manufacturer for 50 years. Typical cedar shake roofs last 15-20 years at the most," said Greg Griffiths, field rep for BSR, the firm which is working on the project. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be doing a building such as this."
With a few church alterations, a place of tranquility and peace for many more lifetimes to come.
Sacred Heart was built in 1977. The construction should be complete by the end of November.
If you want to see the architecture of the Church for yourself, tours will be offered at the Christmas Bazaar on December 4th.
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