Outside puddles formed on the new concrete slab from an early June downpour that rolled through Gillespie. The work site smelled of the fresh-cut lumber of stud walls and trusses. The yard was ringed by pick-up trucks and construction trailers, but mostly it was silent.
Inside the church basement was noisy with the sounds of lunchtime chatter as 90 workers munched and talked in southern drawls. A man in a workman’s yellow shirt stood to talk about building walls like Nehemiah and serving like Moses.
The people were Carpenters for Christ (CFC), an Alabama-based ministry that sends volunteer construction crews to build church facilities. This project was a 10,000 square foot addition at Trinity Baptist Church in Gillespie.
“We get to listen to the stories of folks that have sacrificed all their lives to get to the place where the church is ready to build,” said Dave Tidwell, project chair for the volunteer carpenters.
This isn’t the first project Tidwell has led in Illinois. CFC starred in Carlinville in 1987, followed by Pittsfield, Woodlawn, Summerville, and Medora. In Gillespie, the folks had been dreaming a long time, first under the leadership of pastor Richard Hill during 23 years there, and then under Dane Solari, the current pastor.
Solari said the need for space was evident right away.
“I feel this is something that God was awakening us to,” Solari said. As one example, he pointed to a spot where more than 20 youth were meeting regularly in an old garage.
The church envisioned expansion of worship and office space, children’s ministry, nursery, and restrooms. But mostly, they wanted to share their ministry with the community.
“I was a latchkey kid,” Solari said, one of those children who let themselves into their homes after school then wait for their working parents, often single mothers, to return at the end of the day.
For families like these, Solari has ministry plans. “We want to be a church that sees broken families come together and meet in this place—and, if the Lord wills, be restored.”
Solari’s vision for Trinity is clear. “We exist for the community. God put us here for that reason.”
A utility pole in an odd location near the existing building had stopped the project for years. “That was our Goliath,” Solari said. So, they began praying over it.
God started sending people who would work on the project, including an experienced project manager who worked for Boeing in St. Louis. “It’s been a faith building exercise for me,” said Danielle Massey. Construction is different from airplanes, she said, but God is using her skills. “I had one problem last week, and my response was just to say, ‘Father, would you please take care of this?’”
He did.
Just as he did with the obstructionist pole. The utility company first wanted large fees to move the pole, but eventually they abandoned its use and gave it to the church. Designers worked the pole into the building plan.
CFC had two crews working over two weeks. They stayed at nearby First Baptist Church of Litchfield, which has become a ministry partner for the Gillespie congregation. “It’s exciting to know that we’re all in this together, you know,” Solari said. “We’re not alone in ministry.”
Inside chair legs scraped across the floor as workers stood, corralled their plates and cups for the trash can, and headed upstairs to the work site. Outside the sounds of saws, hammers, and nail-guns soon filled the air, as the lunch crowd transformed back into their teams.
“I cried happy tears when I saw those trusses being raised,” Massey said. It was easy to see how so much had been done on just the first morning of work.
– reported by Ben Jones, written by Eric Reed