Where there were once towering flames and blackened pews, a skeleton of steel and a wood frame now stand tall. For St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Baton Rouge, construction has never looked so hopeful.
On February 17, 2024, the original St. Luke’s Church building, Pope Hall and the church library were destroyed by a fire. Today, there’s a bright future going up day by day.
“It was a gut wrenching tragedy. Everybody was just in shock and grieving,” said the Rev. Bryan Owen, rector at St. Luke’s. “It was a tremendous loss and something that nobody had ever dreamed would happen. But in the immediate aftermath, everybody just really rallied and came together, and it was extraordinary.”
This spirit of resilience has continued two years later.
Connie Caldwell, a member since 1985 and a co-chair of the church’s Capital Campaign Committee to rebuild, says the fellowship that has blossomed after the fire has been a blessing…