Press Release: Easter Sunday Service Celebrates Reopening of Historic Park Slope Church
Final repairs on the Old First ceiling, Feb 2019.
Easter celebration at Old First Reformed Church will feature Pastor Daniel Meeter, with the Accord Treble Choir and organist Aleeza Meir performing ancient and modern music
April 21, 2019 at 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
Old First Reformed Church, 7th Avenue at Carroll Street, Park Slope, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Contact: Alix Friedman, AlixCFriedman@gmail.com, 646-468-4269
BROOKLYN, NY: April 5, 2019 – Brooklyn’s oldest congregation, Old First Reformed Church, will reopen its historic sanctuary at 11:00 a.m. on Easter Sunday, April 21, 2019. Rev. Old Dr. Daniel Meeter will provide the sermon and there will be ancient and modern music featuring Aleeza Meir on the pipe organ and selections sung by the Accord Treble Choir. The service will be followed by the annual church Easter Egg Hunt in the garden, and prefaced with a free buffet breakfast beginning at 9:30 a.m.
Old First sanctuary. Photo by Jane Hively Barber
The Easter Sunday service celebrates the completion of Phase One of the church’s capital project: the repair and restoration of the sanctuary’s ceiling, floors, and pews, a $1.6 million effort. Phase Two—the restoration of the sanctuary’s walls, windows and organ— will cost $4 million, as will Phase Three, which includes the restoration of bathrooms and classrooms and the installation of accessibility aides. To date, Old First has raised $1.28 million.
The sanctuary’s noteworthy historic features include stained glass by Tiffany Studios, early William Willet designs, and a magnificent triptych grouping by Otto Heinigke, all noted window artists still celebrated today. Also of note is an 1891 Roosevelt pipe organ, a Virgilio Tojetti oil painting, and a 212-foot tall Neo-Gothic spire of Indiana limestone.
Old First sanctuary. Photo by Jane Hively Barber
The significance of the building’s art and architecture have qualified the church for capital funding from The National Fund for Sacred Places, a Philadelphia-based program of Partners for Sacred Places in collaboration with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which gives congregations access to hundreds of thousands of dollars to restore significant sacred places. Old First Reformed was one of only 13 congregations selected in 2018 from a field of 178 applicants.
Nearly eight years ago, Park Slope’s Old First Reformed Church suspended activity in its sanctuary over concerns of ceiling stability, an act that began a 10-year capital campaign to restore the 1891 church building designed by George L. Morse. The Easter service will mark the first public event held in the newly repaired sanctuary, and the first in the space since Fall 2011.
Milan Church Restoration beginning the ceiling repair work, Spring 2018. Photo by Vera Nieuwenhuis
Says Rev. Dr. Daniel Meeter, Pastor, Old First Reformed Church: “This Easter will be especially joyful, when even our building will share and symbolize the Resurrection story of life after death, rebirth after disaster, and rising out of collapse. This great space will live again with music and our voices, with color and light. On Easter, God opened up the world to a new and unexpected future, and so with great relief and greater hope we open up this space to God, our congregants, and our beloved Park Slope community. And everyone is welcome, unconditionally.”
“Congratulations to Old First on the Easter re-opening of its historic sanctuary almost eight years after the precariousness of its ceiling made the soaring space unsafe,” says City Councilmember Brad Lander. “The church is not only an architectural pillar of Park Slope, but has also been a welcoming place for neighborhood gatherings. Even when the sanctuary was off-limits, Pastor Meeter provided space for a homeless shelter, a Hurricane Sandy relief kitchen, and many local organizations. We’re so glad the congregation and the community can now enjoy the building’s heart again, too.”
Says Wayne Adams, Fundraising Chair: “The Easter service marks the culmination of the first phase of our fundraising efforts—getting us back into the sanctuary. What a joy to be able to open our sanctuary doors again to welcome the community into this amazing space. In the process of raising funds for this opening, we realized that the fundraising need for Old First was much greater. We need to raise funds to restore the windows, provide ADA accessibility, and increase the capacity to host the myriad of services and rentals that happen every day in this building. It is a true blessing to the community and we are blessed to re-open for this first chapter.”
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Old First’s historic Roosevelt pipe organ
About Old First Reformed Church: Founded in 1654 by Peter Stuyvesant, Old First Reformed Church is — along with Flatlands and Flatbush Reformed churches — the oldest congregation in Brooklyn. The current church building, completed in 1891, is a landmark of Park Slope and serves the neighborhood as a house of prayer, a homeless shelter, a day-care facility, a performance space, and a meeting place for countless community organizations. Please visit www.oldfirstbrooklyn.org for additional information about the church, its rich Brooklyn history, and how the greater Brooklyn community continues to be served within its walls.
About The National Fund for Sacred Places: The National Fund for Sacred Places is a Philadelphia-based grant-making program of Partners for Sacred Places in collaboration with the National Trust for Historic Preservation. www.fundforsacredplaces.org
The light-filled Sanctuary at Old First, where we will host Easter services on April 21. Photo by Jane Hively Barber