<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0NnmvG_0mqnCncN00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0NnmvG_0mqnCncN00" width="1250" height="703" >SPENCER, Mass. - All that is left of the First Congregational Church in Spencer is pictures, videos and memories. Mary Baker-Wood is the town historian in Spencer. Part of her job is identifying what historic buildings in town are at-risk."That church was never on the radar, because the congregation, although it was smaller, were conscientious stewards of that building," she said. That's why it was so shocking when the church erupted in flames a week ago following a lightning strike. The church today is a total loss. The fire took down the iconic white building and almost everything inside with it. "Among the things they lost, was a very beautiful pipe organ," Baker-Wood said. "One of the first people to contact me that Friday night was someone from a national organ database."Baker-Wood, a life-long Spencer resident, will tell you this church was much more than just a building. It meant something to almost everyone in town. "Buildings aren't just physical presences, they live in people's hearts," she said. "Even if people didn't attend the church, people still feel it is part of their town and we've lost it."The church was used for more than just religious services. They sponsored town-wide clean up days, held weddings, funerals and Girl Scout meetings. It was a place where everyone was welcome. "To the congregation, it was their home, they treasured it," Baker-Wood said. "The people's whose hearts are most touched by this are the people who lost their church, but the community lost it too."Baker-Wood said you can never recreate a building with that much history, but she hopes the plan is to remember and honor the church in some way. "You can never replicate that," she said. "As a historian, it needs to be remembered in some way. Whether the congregation choses to use that to rebuild in some form, or to create some sort of town facility. I have confidence that they will engage people and this is a congregation that is listening to people in town"The original building was built in 1743, before Spencer was even its own town. It was still a part of Leicester at that point. A new building was built in 1863, after a fire destroyed it the year before.</div></body>

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Spencer First Congregational Church leaves lasting legacy despite devastating fire

SPENCER, Mass. - All that is left of the First Congregational Church in Spencer is pictures, videos and memories. Mary Baker-Wood is the town historian in Spencer. Part of her job is identifying what historic buildings in town are at-risk. \"That church was never on the radar, because the congregation,...

SPENCER, Mass. - All that is left of the First Congregational Church in Spencer is pictures, videos and memories. Mary Baker-Wood is the town historian in Spencer. Part of her job is identifying what historic buildings in town are at-risk. "That church was never on the radar, because the congregation,...