COLONY — Church leaders plan to rebuild after the Colony Community Church was destroyed by fire last week.
Pastor Alex Cochrane said the church will be rebuilt on the same property, and church officials are looking at options for services in the meantime.
“We’re working with our insurance so we can rebuild and hopefully be back better than ever,” he said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Kansas Fire Marshal’s office.
Cochrane has been the pastor for about a year and lives just down the street. He also works in law enforcement and will soon take on the role as undersheriff for Anderson County.
Immediately after the fire was reported at about 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 26, firefighters called Cochrane. He was one of the first on the scene. By the time he arrived, flames were visible through the roof.
Firefighters battled the blaze throughout the evening but it reignited Friday morning. In the end, little remained of the building. Nothing could be salvaged, Cochrane said.
A large crowd gathered Friday evening for a prayer vigil at the Crest school parking lot across the street from the church property. Members of at least four other area churches attended.
“Just to see how one small town can band together really gives me so much hope and inspiration for the future,” Cochrane said.
Cochrane shared Bible verses to explain how he reassured his congregation after the fire.
“In Matthew 18:20, Jesus tells his disciples, ‘Where two or more gather in my name, that’s where I am.’ The church isn’t gone. The building is,” he said. “We know from Romans that God works all things out for the good of those who believe. We’re lucky enough to have a great community and we’ve had support from everywhere.”
THE BUILDING that served as a church actually began as a one-room schoolhouse. According to an Iola Register article from Nov. 30, 1957, the Colony Community Church purchased the Rising Star Schoolhouse near Mildred and moved it to a new location at Garfield and Broad streets in Colony. The site featured a basement. They added a vestibule soon after the move. Other buildings came later, including a large addition to the south around the year 2000 for children’s services and programs.
Because the church is across the street from the Crest school, students often would come directly after school for the Good News Club.
“It’s a very lively church,” Cochrane said. “There’s a lot of history there.”
He estimated church membership is likely around 100, but it’s difficult to count because different groups attend an assortment of activities. Another church leader estimated between 40 and 50 regularly attend Sunday services.
