A church beloved for its small country charm will close next month as repair costs increase.
The last Mass at St. Anne Catholic Church in Glasgo will be Oct. 28, said the Rev. Ted Tumicki, the pastor overseeing St. Anne and three other area churches.
The church was built in 1891 and is showing its age, Tumicki told members after inspections in January and April by parishioners who work in the building trades.
Rotting sills, old ductwork and a crumbling chimney need replacement; new insulation, fire stops in the walls and roof trusses are needed.
Adding to that the cost of bringing the church up to code — which would require indoor plumbing and handicapped access — the bill could be well more than $400,000, Tumicki said.
The church, modeled after a St. Anne Church in Quebec, was built on land donated by the Glasgo Finishing Co. to serve its French Canadian mill workers.
It’s small by design, with about 35 people gathering in its 24 pews each Sunday for its only Mass at 7 a.m.
The church has been a mission church of St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church two miles away in Voluntown almost since it was built.
“It’s small and there’s no plumbing, but it’s a nice little country church,” Tumicki said Sunday. “It has that feeling when you walk in, that you’re in a village church.”
Joyce Gresh, of Griswold, a member for more than 25 years, said her children grew up in the church, and were altar servers there.
The day the closure was announced, “there were quite a few tears,” she said. “Even though I joined St. Thomas, this one always felt more like home.”
It’s a tight-knit community, said VickyAnn Deledda, of North Stonington.
“I love my little church,” she said sadly. “I hate it when something has to close.”
The church’s records and many religious articles will go to St. Thomas in some sort of procession that is still being planned. Items not taken to St. Thomas will be removed.
Stained-glass windows bearing the names of their donors may go back to them, Tumicki said.
The building’s future is less certain. The 1891 deed stipulates that, if the church is no longer functioning as a church, the property goes back to the original owner, the Glasgo Finishing Co., Tumicki said. With the company and its mill long gone, the Diocese of Norwich is looking into the issue.
Deb Schena, of Voluntown, a member of the planning committee and church member since 1978, said she hopes the church is treated with respect after the doors are locked for the last time.
“I hope it’s taken down respectfully, and not left to fall into ruin and get vandalized,” she said.
Several parishioners said they come solely because the church has a 7 a.m. Mass. Tumicki said Mass schedules have not yet been decided for post-closure.