Latest arson final blow to Point Douglas church

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This article was published 14/06/2024 (452 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Greek Orthodox church in Point Douglas is being forced to move after a string of break-ins, thefts and fires, including a suspected arson this week.

Fire crews extinguished a blaze inside the Holy Ascension Greek Orthodox Church at 197 Euclid Ave. Tuesday afternoon. It caused extensive damage to the basement and banquet area, said secretary Stephanie Sarlakis.

“We are not too sure what the future is for our church yet, but it won’t be in its current location,” she said, adding members of the small congregation are heartbroken.

The Winnipeg police the major crimes unit is treating the fire as an arson.

Sarlakis is unsure about the damage estimate, and she believes the congregation cannot afford to fix everything based on previous quotes for repairs.

The main floor of the church had minimal damage but the electrical system, boiler area and water system are “unlikely repairable.”

There have been seven break-ins in the last year — four of which occurred since June 8 when someone set a small fire inside the church, which was quickly put out.

Sarlakis said holy items that were to be taken away were in a pile near the back of the building.

The church had another “devastating” theft in June 2023, when thieves stole many irreplaceable items, including church paperwork and banking information.

“It’s exhausting and challenging,” said Sarlakis through an online messaging app, because she isn’t in the country. “It has been a constant battle to keep it going.”

Sarlakis, a first-time mom, said it’s been extremely difficult to take care of a newborn and keep the church running.

Three days before her daughter’s baptism in November, a nearby vacant property caught fire and damaged the outside of the historic building, constructed in 1938. A similar fire occurred in 2021.

The church holds short reader services for five to 10 members, but can’t hold regular services since their priest died suddenly in 2020. They occasionally fly someone in from Toronto, which brings in up to 25 parishioners.

There has been an increase in similar incidents in Point Douglas, said Sel Burrows, co-ordinator of Point Powerline, a community group that works on crime prevention in the area.

He calls the crimes against the church “hurtful and disrespectful,” adding he knows the congregation has been suffering for a while.

Burrows wants to know what the government plans to do with vacant buildings. He also wants to see political leaders support groups that are unable to support themselves or make necessary improvements to their buildings to prevent them from the same fate as the church.

“We’re in hope that… there might be another church group that will take (the building) on,” said Burrows.

Multiple additional items have been stolen since Tuesday, Sarlakis said.

“Sadly, we’re not surprised that this is where we’re at,” Sarlakis said. “We have known that it was only a matter of time before it was us or our luck ran out.”

jura.mcilraith@freepress.mb.ca