CABELL COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) – A Sunday service at a Barboursville church is still cordoned off with police barricades after a partial roof collapse. The congregation at Elmwood Mission Baptist Church is not letting up despite the obstacle they are trying to overcome.
One phrase Pastor Matt Waskey said several times during his sermon was, “Church is not about the buildings, it’s about the people.” This was evident in how much love each individual in the church had for one another—and how relieved they were that no one was hurt.
Pastor Rick and his wife, Brenda Glass, helped build this church over 30 years ago before moving away. They are back for appointments and attended services at Elmwood on Sunday. When they heard about the collapse recently, they thought the worst.
“My heart felt like stone because I know people here. They’re over there in the kitchen all the time,” Brenda Glass said.
They were on their way to church in their hometown and had no cell reception. They desperately wanted to know if anyone was injured.
“The person I was trying to call called us on her phone and assured us that no one was there and no one was hurt,” Glass said.
Longtime church members are grateful that no one was in the building at the time of the collapse, but they revel in the memories that the shattered walls carry.
“You know we have our Christmas dinners, our homecoming dinners, when someone dies, we serve dinner to the families, the grieving families. I mean, my mom and dad died at different times and we had, you know, the family dinners, the ladies of the church fed us,” said Brenda Glass.
They were able to hold services in the sanctuary on Sundays because the gymnasium was a separate building and remained untouched.
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