In the early morning hours of January 4, 2006, a fire broke out near the choir area of the American Lutheran Church of Windom, Minnesota. The fire is believed to have started by an electrical short in the ceiling. A leak in the roof allowed water to corrode metal conduit and cloth wire insulation in the church built in 1952.
The Church board members talked with Grace Lutheran Church, of Westrbrook, Minnesota, about working with GuideOne Taylor Ball after suffering a fire a number of years ago. The board liked that GuideOne Taylor Ball used local contractors and offers almost turn-key services, and approved the hiring of the firm for restoration of the church.
The sanctuary was destroyed beyond repair and had to be torn down, except for the block walls and the floor. While church leaders held services in the Business Arts and Recreation Center auditorium in Windom, the 25-member restoration committee worked with GuideOne Taylor Ball to restore the facility to practically the same as it was before the fire. Virtually everything – from the organ and baptismal font to the pews and the cross at the front of the church – had to be replaced because of smoke, water and/or fire damage. The roof and arches were replaced and the roof was reinsulated. A new sprinkler system was also installed, bringing the facility of up current code. |
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GuideOne Taylor Ball's Ralph Olmans was the project manager on the restoration, and credited good subcontractors and the church volunteers with doing the hard work necessary to get the facility up and ready for dedication on January 28, 2007.
“I think this one went rather well. We would have liked to have been in before Christmas but that was a little too much,” Olmans said. "The church did a lot of work, kept things going and made decisions that had to be make."
