Centre County church community mourns after fire engulfs building

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (WTAJ) — One Patton Township community looks to rebuild after their church was on fire early Saturday morning.

Woodycrest United Methodist Church laid its foundation in Centre County on the heels of the Great Depression in 1936. However, neighbors of the church saw the sanctuary go up in flames, prompting calls to action from local first responders.

Crews were dispatched to the scene just after midnight with heavy fire from the rooftop. Traffic cameras saw the flames overmounting the pine trees across the street.

After 30 minutes of putting the fire out, neighbors arrived to see if they could help the firefighters at the scene. Only one injury resulted from the fire, with the firefighter getting stitches.

“I couldn’t get here fast enough to see what we could do to help,” Debra Romig, a church member said.

What remained was ash, charred wood and rubble. The sanctuary got the brunt of the fire damage, with the roof collapsing inward on the burnt pews and railings.

“The folks from Woodycrest United Methodist Church will have to find somewhere else to worship until they get this repaired,” Shawn Kauffman, the fire director of the Centre Region Fire Protection Program said.

“My hope was maybe it was just some small fire,” Renee Ford, the pastor at Woodycrest United said. “When it was clear how serious it was, my heart broke.”

Currently, the cause of the fire is still under investigation. As the church members walk through the ruins, they are grateful that no one was severely injured but know that the memories went away with the building.

“A lot of weddings, baptisms, you know, a lot of good, good memories,” Romig said.

“I’ve been the pastor at this church for 21 years,” Ford added. “I was married at this church.”

Kauffman gave the community the okay to walk into the building to salvage any valuables they had to have as keepsakes. The items will aid the church congregation in the grieving process.

“We’ll navigate the grief journey and the waves of grief as they come,” Ford said.

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Others from the area have given a hand of support to the Woodycrest United community during their struggle. Ford welcomes them with open arms.

“People are asking how they can help,” Ford added. “I don’t know the answers to that question entirely right now. I know that there’s going to be a lot of work done.”

Woodycrest United Methodist is not letting the loss of their church get to their service. They plan to hold their usual 10 a.m. service in the parking lot of their church.

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