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St. Paul’s United Methodist Church

A scene from 'A Killer Day'

Halloween comes around a week early to the Playhouse at St. Paul United Methodist Church, 270 Main St., Northport as it plays host to the 13th Annual Northport One-Act Play Festival – “Halloween Edition.” The new plays that make up this year’s festival all share something in common. Each embraces the strange, sometimes scary aspects associated with All Hallows Eve, whether as a comedy or drama.

The plays featured in the festival will be performed twice each, once as a matinee and once in the evening at the theater They will be brought to the stage by directors and actors from the Long Island theater community.

Program 1 will be presented on Saturday, October 22nd at 3:00 p.m.

Program 2 will be performed on Saturday, October 22nd at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, October 23rd at 3:00 p.m.

PROGRAM SCHEDULE

Program 1Saturday, October 22nd at 3:00 p.m.
Mortal Lives by Seth Freeman

Date Night in Roissy by Les Abromovitz

Fall of the House of Hasenpheffer by Michael Casano

Grave’s Anatomy by Rich Rubin

Program 2: Saturday, October 22nd at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, October 23rd at 3:00 p.m.

Meeting Acute by Chuck Smith

The Psychic by John Passadino

Bite Me by Pete Mergel

Margo by Peter Scarpinato

A Killer Day by Joe Bulvi

Admission is $25 to each of the four festival performances. You can reserve tickets for the festival (recommended) at www.northportplays.com or call (631) 223-8053.

 

From left, Kathryn Curran, executive director of the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation; Peg Breen, president of the New York Landmarks Conservancy; and Rev. Bette Sohm, pastor of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church with the $35,000 check. Photo from St. Paul's United Methodist Church

A Northport congregation’s prayers for help to save its historic steeple have not fallen on deaf ears.

St. Paul’s United Methodist Church received a $35,000 grant from New York Landmark Conservancy’s Sacred Sites program Dec. 4. The funds from the nonprofit organization, whose mission is to preserve and revitalize architecturally significant buildings, will be used to help restore the church’s historic steeple that towers over Northport village.

St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Northport. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh

“We’re absolutely thrilled to hear that we’ve earned this to fund the steeple work,” said Greg Polli, chairman of St. Paul’s board of trustees.

St. Paul’s church, originally built in 1873, is a red-brick late Greek Revival-style church designed by local architect and builder B.T. Robbins. Rising from the building is the iconic, white-painted wooden shutter board steeple capped with a copper dome.

“Long Island’s long history is reflected in its religious architecture,” said Peg Breen, president of the New York Landmarks Conservancy. “The conservancy is pleased to be able to help this remarkable building continue to serve [its] congregations and communities.”

The Conservancy’s Sacred Sites grants are supported by the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation, a Hampton Bays nonprofit that supports the study of New York State history.

The bell tower’s issues date back more than a decade. Parishioner Alex Edwards-Bourdrez, a member of the church for 26 years, said churchgoers noticed rainwater was leaking into the sanctuary, but determining the source of the issue took a lot of guess work. For nearly a decade, St. Paul’s churchgoers used a system of pots and pans to catch the water and even went as far as to replace the building’s roof without solving the issue.

A stained glass window in the church’s sanctuary. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh

“That’s when we realized the real problem was the steeple,” said Pastor Kristina Hansen, former religious leader of St. Paul’s. “The steeple was the culprit all along.”

The leak gradually limited the church’s activities, according to Edwards-Bourdrez, restricting use of the balcony for seating and preventing performances of its bell choir during inclement weather. St. Paul’s launched a successful capital campaign in October 2017 that exceeded its original goal of raising $300,000, according to Polli, to make much-needed structural repairs that included the steeple, securing its aging stained-glass windows and upgrading its bathrooms to be handicapped accessible.

“Before we began the formal capital campaign, we communicated to our congregation what we wanted to do, asked what they wanted to do and what our priorities should be,” he said. “The steeple was the top priority.”

Polli said the church has received a preliminary estimate of $150,000 to repair the structure and hopes to start work in the early spring of 2019. Some interior projects, like the renovations of the womens bathroom, have already been completed.

St. Paul's United Methodist Church in Northport. Photo by Sara-Megan Walsh

A Northport congregation is now turning to the public for one last needed push, or “Hail Mary,” to restore and modernize a local landmark.

St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, located at 270 Main St., has launched the second phase of its capital campaign in hopes of raising $300,000 to restore and make structural repairs to its steeple and facilities. With more than $200,000 pledged, it’s now in the final race to fully fund these projects by June 30.

“We’re somewhere around 70 percent of the way there, but the last 30 percent is always the hardest,” said Charlie MacLeod, the campaign’s chairman and a member of the church for 30 years. “We’re working very hard to obtain the last 30 percent.”

We’re somewhere around 70 percent of the way there, but the last 30 percent is always the hardest.”
– Charlie MacLeod

The church’s original steeple, built in 1873, began leaking rainwater into the church’s sanctuary more than a decade ago, according to Pastor Kristina Hansen. While churchgoers have dealt creatively with the problem using pots and pans, the damage has become progressively worse over time and needs to be addressed.

St. Paul’s has had a number of construction firms come to review the damage, receiving estimates ranging from $125,000 to $150,000 to repair the iconic steeple off Main Street. That cost could increase once scaffolding is built and a closer inspection made of the two- to three-story high structure, according to Hansen.

The church is also seeking funding to preserve the sanctuary’s turn-of-the-century stained glass windows. The leading between sections of the glass has started to deteriorate, leaving the weight of the stained glass unsupported and prone to possible collapse. The estimated cost of repairing a single window can run more than $20,000, according to Hansen.

The pastor would also like the community’s support in upgrading its bathrooms to be handicapped accessible. The facilities are used frequently by residents for athletic events, artist performances and local organizations like the Boy Scouts.


Large Corporate and Charitable Contributors
– $25,000 from John W. Engemen Theater
– $25,000 Charles and Helen Reichert Family Foundation

The first donation to the church’s capital campaign came from Kevin O`Neill, owner of the John W. Engeman Theater in Northport, located down the street. It was matched by a charitable $25,000 donation from the Charles and Helen Reichert Family Foundation, a nonprofit organization created by the Fort
Salonga family that owns and operates five IGA Supermarket locations.

Proceeds from the parish’s annual golf outing held in April, which raised $25,000, will go toward construction costs. Work is slated to begin this summer.

The parish’s board of trustees is currently in the process of submitting an application for a historic preservation grant, which is pending according to MacLeod, that may provide an additional $5,000 up to $20,000.

“If we raise more, we have plenty of projects it could go toward,” he said.

Some of the campaign’s stretch goals are to make the entire church handicapped accessible and improve the kitchens.

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Above, St. Paul’s Pastor Kristina Hansen, left, receives a check from theater owner Kevin J. O’Neill. Photo by Michael DeCristofaro

Northport — On July 31 co-owners of the John W. Engeman Theater Richard T. Dolce and Kevin J. O’Neill presented a check to St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, kicking off a capital campaign to rebuild the church bell tower, restore several stained glass windows and repair some of the building’s restrooms.

The goal of the capital campaign is to raise a total of $250,000 to $300,000 to support the costs of the repairs and restorations.

“Everything that we take in we use in some way, shape or form to support the community, to support ministries and missions out into the world, and to provide a facility,” said Pastor Kristina Hansen. “We are more than just a facility; our church is a home to Northport groups and organizations as well as our worshipping community.”

Since the first church was built at its current location in 1852, it has undergone several changes, including the construction of a new sanctuary in 1873 and the addition of a large education building in 1931-32.

Theater owners Dolce and O’Neill feel that the church is a landmark on Main Street. “It’s a beautiful structure,” said O’Neill, “And it’s part of what I think makes Main Street, Main Street.”

The John W. Engeman Theater has committed to donating a total of $25,000 in support of the capital campaign, which will be paid to the church over a period of three years.

“Our affinity for the arts naturally led us to come to the Engeman first, and we’re really overwhelmed with how generous and how immediate the response has been, “said Pastor Hansen. “It just continues to affirm that sense of community that Northport offers.”

In its 10 years of operation, the Engeman has raised funds for a wide variety of causes, including the American Red Cross and the Hurricane Sandy Relief effort, the First Presbyterian Church of Northport, the Ecumenical Lay Council Food Pantry of Northport and the Huntington Light House Preservation Society. The donation to St. Paul’s capital campaign fulfills the theater’s ongoing commitment to supporting local organizations and the community.

“We feel very, very strongly that this community is our home, and we want to do everything we can to strengthen it,” said O’Neill. “We hope that others within the village will participate to support this grand structure and contribute to the campaign.” To learn how to contribute to the capital campaign, visit www.EngemanTheater.com/Donate.