Pilgrim’s Rest Church shows the best of our region

A fire in 2019 left Pilgrim’s Rest Church in Fairdealing with nothing left except the still-standing front cross.

Pastor Ron Payne told the Daily American Republic at the time, “The church there is just full of good people.”

Payne lost a battle Nov. 2 against COVID-19, just five days before the church planned to hold a groundbreaking for their new building.

This coming Sunday, church members will break ground on a new building and we feel like Payne’s words today would be the same ­— “The church there is just full of good people.”

A congregation, and a community, of good people came together to rebuild. They did not let an arsonist, who was unfortunately never caught, dim their spirits.

They continued to meet, missing only one Sunday, at a neighboring Baptist church, and they continued to move forward.

The new building will be raised with the help of many hands and hearts. Funds were collected with the help of fall festivals, the sale of homemade desserts and the gifts of people who gave what they could, whether it was a few dollars or American Kennel Club standard canines, the sale of which brought in a significant amount of rebuilding money.

We celebrate with the congregation as they approach a fresh start and mourn with them what has been lost since 2019.

The good news, we feel, is the congregation of Pilgrim’s Rest Church is not terribly unique. Our region is filled with many warm hearts, no matter the chill that may surround us.