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Community rallies to help Rosemount church after fire
The community is coming together to help the Minnesota Debre Bisrat St. Gabriel and Arsema Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Rosemount after it caught fire. FOX 9's Maury Glover has more.
ROSEMOUNT, Minn. (FOX 9) - A congregation in the south metro is leaning on faith and each other after a devastating fire left their church building heavily damaged.
Community rallies after fire at Ethiopian Orthodox church in Rosemount
What we know:
Members of the Debre Bisrat St. Gabriel and Arsema Ethiopian Orthodox Church have gathered daily at the park across the street to pray, grieve and comfort each other after their house of worship caught fire.
"It's like a really bad dream. That's how to explain it," said Bisrat Gebre, church deacon.
The fire broke out Monday morning, just three months after the congregation moved into their new home in Rosemount. Church leaders say they had only recently purchased the building for their roughly 200 members after outgrowing their previous space in St. Paul.
"I've never seen people here cry so much like in their life. It was one of the saddest things I ever seen," said Gebre.
'At first it felt like shell shock'
Timeline:
The congregation moved into the Rosemount building a few months ago. The fire happened Monday morning, and since then, the church has been unable to use the building.
"Shocking, still shock because we just moved in April 19. We haven't even gotten to enjoy the whole church, the whole space," said Gedam Azeze, church board member.
No one was hurt in the fire, but investigators have not yet determined what started it. The damage is so extensive that most of the building will need to be demolished.
Support from other churches and the wider community
The other side:
Other churches in the area have stepped in to support the congregation, including one that offered a place for Debre Bisrat to hold mass on Sundays for now.
"Very, very, painful just to talk about it. It's very hard. It is very hard," said Azeze.
'I couldn't believe it. It's gone.'
Why you should care:
The congregation, which has been together for eight years, is now relying on community support and their faith to get through this difficult time. A GoFundMe has been set up to help the church rebuild.
"Things like this can happen. You can't do anything about it. All you really have to do is just wait it out and just hope that, you know, God has his plan," said Gebre.
Church members say they hope to rebuild and are grateful for the support they have received so far.