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Rebuilding continues at Northwood Appold UMC

Posted at 6:00 PM, Dec 30, 2015
and last updated 2015-12-31 09:18:55-05
At the corner of Cold Spring Lane and Loch Raven Boulevard, the church that has been there for decades is returning to its former glory. It has been two years, but the days of the boarded-up windows and debris are numbered. 
 
"It's starting to look good. It's starting to - you know, you got to crawl before you walk so it's getting there." Tiffanie Conaway said. 
 
Conaway said she knows how much Northwood Appold United Methodist Church means to the community, even for people who aren't members.
 
"It was at night. It was like right after Christmas. It was a ball of fire," Michael Ross, who often passes the church getting to and from his house, said. 

 
It was the middle of the night on Dec. 27, 2013. Church leaders said the cause of the fire has never been determined.
 
 
"To see it go up in flames like that it was like it took a part of the community, a part of us away," Conaway said. 
 
Even with all of the fire, smoke, and water damage, almost untouched was the cross atop the wooden steeple. 
Crews were able to bring it down, and save it.
 
"We're going to make a historical section inside and we're going to display that. Each person got a little piece of the burned wood from the church. I have mine at home," Veris Lee, Lay leader and trustee at the church, said. 
 
Lee said construction started around September 2015. She said the process of getting to this point has been difficult. She mentioned the challenges of figuring out what would work best financially and screening contractors.
 
 
"I learned a lot. I think I could build a skyscraper by now. I learned a whole lot that I never knew about buildings," Lee joked. 
 
Now the building continues with a goal of getting out of their temporary education center space across the street for Sunday service by springtime.
 
"We stayed together. Very few people left and we are just waiting for the day that we can rejoice and thank God for the blessing," Lee said. 
 

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