Historic Methodist Church demoed in Dresden due to tornado
DRESDEN, Tenn. — A local town is mourning the loss of a historical place of worship.
Almost a month ago, Dresden First United Methodist Church was ready for prayer and fellowship. But three weeks later, it is gone due to the Dec. 10 tornadoes.
This past weekend, construction crews were forced to fully demolish what was left after the structural damage was determined un-repairable.
“It’s a sad day for Dresden to see the work that’s being done at the Methodist Church. Certainly understandable. They’ve got to do something, and the damage that the tornado did was now at a point where the church can’t be repaired,” said Weakley County Mayor Jake Bynum. “Now we look at what does the church do as far as replacement.”
What was left of the church dates back as early as the 1800s. For the town of Dresden, it has lost a piece of its history.
“Obviously any structure in Dresden that’s having to be torn down is heartbreaking, but especially when you think about the age and the beauty of this facility,” Bynum said. “But on top of that, the impact that a church has on a community.”
Bynum says he has faith this will not keep the people from worshiping one way or another. He says it will be exciting to see where they go from here.
“The church is not the building. It’s the people. And so we know that we’ve got a great Methodist Church community here, and so we know that they are actively having conversations about how do they rebuild. What does that look like? Where will they be when we get through this recovery phase, and we’re excited about that,” Bynum said.
Church leaders and members have partnered with other churches in the community to hold service in a temporary location in the meantime.
Church leaders have not yet decided when or where their new church will be built.
If you’d like to donate to the community of Dresden, you can visit weakleycountytn.gov and click on the tornado relief tab.
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