CARIBOU, Maine — Members of the Caribou Seventh-Day Adventist Church have settled in to their new home on Main Street after a long winter and are breathing new life into their surroundings.
Members of the SDA Fellowship purchased the church last November before leaving their space on Sweden Street, now home to The Cubby. The church’s members were cramped and prayed for a new place to grow and to worship.
“It was a direct answer to prayer,” Sidney Whiting, SDA church elder, said. “We now have plenty of room for sabbath school, an actual sanctuary and some elbow room.”
The sale of the church was finalized on November 20 of last year and they held their first bible study the following evening. The church was officially dedicated on January 24 of this year.
Before the big move they were studying Exodus, “We felt like we had been in the wilderness and now in the promised land. It’s so nice to be able to sit in a pew,” he said. It’s a church atmosphere that they weren’t able to experience before, “and that was a blessing for us.”
Recently the church received a paint job to rid unsightly rust run-off from the steeple bell. They’ve touched up the window trim, pressure washed the building, rearranged the pews, improved upfront seating, painted the interior walls, fixed the front steps, added flower beds thanks to Debbie Simpson, incorporated PA equipment in the sanctuary and even had a front door donated to them courtesy of Lowe’s in Presque Isle.
“It’s a much more reverent atmosphere, an actual church atmosphere,” Whiting said.
The SDA congregation has dealt with a broken elevator, massive heating bills, and critters living above the ceiling tiles, but have come out the otherside blessed and ready with big plans.
The church members intend to build a small-scale radio station to spread the gospel to local residents. Operating at low power, Whiting said they’re able to broadcast without a license.
The public is welcome to attend church services such as bible study on Friday evenings and worship on Saturday mornings. The church will hold a camp meeting at Baptist Park in Mapleton on August 25 through 29, which will includes speakers from outside the area.
For more information visit caribousdafellowship.org.
