Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
The town-appointed committee for the former Garfield Methodist Church will host its second event Sunday at the 1906 building on West Union Street. The church was de-consecrated in May and sold to the town.
Garfield invites the public to a Christmas concert and open house Sunday, Dec. 9, at 2 p.m. Performing will be a range of acts, including vocal group the Joe Street Jokers, Potlatch Community Band brass ensemble, John Elwood, Matt Zook and Garfield school groups.
The former church is now officially named Silver Creek Connection.
Church building tours will follow, with refreshments in what has been named the Silver Springs Fellowship Room, formerly a meeting and overflow room for the church adjoining to the main chapel.
Other rooms include two offices and an upstairs youth group area with couches and a foosball table.
A first musical performance was held in October with Elwood and Zook.
“It's a chance to determine what to do with the space,” said Bruce Manning, president of the town's committee. “This is a test market. The building really has great acoustics. It's probably its primary strength.”
The church's main room holds an estimated 100 people in the pews.
The downstairs houses Seedlings Daycare during the week.
After the Christmas show and open house, the six-member committee aims to put on another event the weekend of Dec. 20 with plans for a family-friendly music and/or movie night.
The committee will present a report to Mayor Jarrod Pfaff and the town council at the end of the first quarter, 2019. An analysis of utilities and maintenance costs for the building will be included.
“Looking to find what might work for long-term use,” Manning said.
From 2007 to 2009, the church saw a drop in congregants after its last full-time pastor left.
In January of this year, the church went to an every-other-Sunday format, due to its numbers and to allow a chance for congregants to visit other churches.
Garfield Methodist was known for its large choir in the early and mid-1900s, with instrumental accompaniments. They lost their last organist/choir director at the end of 2014, Janet Foley, who moved to California.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
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