Don't let 'churches go without fight,' historian pleads

Many churches are for sale on P.E.I., and with the Catholic Church about to amalgamate 50 parishes into 17, many more will soon be looking for new uses.

Historian Catherine Hennessey would prefer to see those churches remain churches, but she says the most important thing is they remain standing.

"Are we going to let the churches go without a fight, for God's sake?" Hennessey said this week.

The Catholic Church is not the first on P.E.I. to amalgamate parishes. Many United Church congregationshave already been closed. Some have been sold and converted to cottages. One in Bonshaw is now an antique shop. But others have been torn down and their materials salvaged.

Kris and Melanie Taylor bought the old United Church in Hunter River, in central P.E.I., and are currently renovating it to convert it into a theatre and concert hall.

"This place actually meant a lot to us. We had been married here," Melanie Taylor said.

"It was just part of our life basically, so we wanted to kind of hold on to that."

They're going to call it Harmony House. Melanie will run it whileKris, a singer-songwriter, will occasionally perform.He's alsodoing much of the renovation himself.

Melanie Taylor said she hopes Harmony House will become a central part of the community, giving people something to do, especially young people.

Her husband said with the internet and other technology able to bring so much into people's homes, the sense of community has diminished in recent years.

"It's dispersed it a lot," he said.

"I think the next generations coming along will hopefully notice that change, and will change it for the better, and I think this is one example of how we can do that."

Hennessey said it can be difficult to see new uses for a building.

"But once we have done it, and we've done a few around the country Once it's done, everybody sits back and says, 'Isn't that wonderful. Now isn't that the right thing,' " she said.

Hennessey would like all P.E.I. churches to meet to discuss what should be done with their historic buildings.