Seeing a church building getting desecrated in this manner is heartbreaking and sickening.

This is where I went to to grade school and church. It's so heartbreaking to see all of the damage like this. Both were closed due to financial issues and lack of attendance. I have so many memories of this place.

@nachoher5107

2 жыл бұрын

Shannon Im Sorry...

@eekism

2 жыл бұрын

Where shannon

@lisamendez5051

11 ай бұрын

I attended school and church there also back early 1980s

@Mozart822

7 ай бұрын

@@lisamendez5051 do you know what the church is called?

It is very sad to see this beautiful church and school in such terrible condition. To tear the organ pipes out like that is just awful!

This was my school from the late 80's to early 90's. Really like seeing. The inside again, just sad it's in this condition. Thanks for sharing this!

@momarroyo

2 жыл бұрын

Mine too! I was in kindergarten there in 1991-92 school year and first grade 92-93. Then for second grade we went to public school. My brother was three grades above me. And my sister was in 7th and 8th grade those years. It’s a blast from the past!! Seeing the stage in the basement where we rehearsed and had our kindergarten graduation 👩🏻‍🎓 really brought it all back! Hot lunch on Wednesday’s……recess in the back school yard…….chapel……..I was young but I remember so much! Do you remember Ms. Weiss? Or Mrs. Geers?

@robertharris95

2 жыл бұрын

Both. I remember all my teachers and Mrs. Pugh (my 3rd-4th grade teacher) is a family friend still. Have a lot of fun memories of the place myself.

@sspur2034

2 жыл бұрын

@@momarroyo Again. Not a school, ever. People actually lie to feel important or to prove their ignorance. Hot lunches, recesses, and pray tell where are all of the scores of bathrooms? I saw one.

@sspur2034

2 жыл бұрын

@@momarroyo Remember Mrs. Elvis? Mrs. Freddie Mercury? That's how you sound.

You are literally walking through my childhood lol. I have so many memories in that place.

@jenniferfive-6570

2 жыл бұрын

Same! 💔

While this church was LCMS Lutheran (as indicated by another comment) and I'm personally have been a lifelong ELCA Lutheran, I'm impressed even with the graffiti that this church is in a decent shape. There's also a sense of sadness for another Lutheran congregation that has closed. Thank you for posting!

I grew up here. Baptized and confirmed here. Went to kindergarten through 8th grade here. I graduated in 1973. My grandfather donated the library. My mother was the volunteer school secretary. I’m heartbroken that it closed. And devastated at the condition it is in now. Why couldn’t this huge church and school be repurposed to something the community could use. So many homeless people could be housed here. Missouri Synod you should be ashamed at how you let this property be destroyed instead of used for God’s work to the community.

@dgaunt9861

2 жыл бұрын

I think the exact location is kept under wraps so more vandals don’t go there and do worse damage. If you went here you’ll know where it was. Sad to say the public doesn’t always have the best of interests at heart.

@sspur2034

2 жыл бұрын

Missouri Synod has nothing to do with the regular Lutheran churches you know nothing person.

@mikechap2021

11 ай бұрын

It burned down last night!

@someguy9293

4 ай бұрын

This Church should have been reused. Maybe a homeless shelter? Or perhaps use the school for something.

@jackkircher1755

14 күн бұрын

I know this building was the center of your spiritual life and how it pains you to see it in such a sorry state. The woodwork itself is gorgeous. I can't believe they left the organ behind. Have you made an effort to make this suggested to the synod about this building? I agree with you on this! Vandals can't even respect a house of worship! As the son of an evangelical missionary, this breaks my heart as Much as it does yours, except for you it hits you in a Much more PERSONAL way! I hope this hasn't affected your worshiping our God.

How dare people trash a church

@gaylesteffel2167

2 жыл бұрын

I’m 70 went there married there had wedding shower there I’m sick to see what happened my girls were baptized there every inch brought memories there was one person watching them above I’m heart broken

Wow!! This was my school from 4th to 8th grade & my husband’s school from pre k to 6th. This is heartbreaking to see it like this! I can’t believe people trashed it like this!! Just horrible!!! 😢 I passed by it and wanted to see inside so bad! Thank you for doing this. Glad you guys were ok. Kinda scary lol.

@sspur2034

2 жыл бұрын

WOW! (Oh brother.) This is not a school! It's a church! There are so many obvious clues. You never went here. If it was your ''school'' for years, why'd you want to see it so bad? The world should see what the tough gangs did.

@myluvs2931

2 жыл бұрын

@@sspur2034 yes it’s a church but it was a school too. This was my school from 4th-8th grade. So sad to see it like this.

@myluvs2931

2 жыл бұрын

@@sspur2034 lol. Ok. I obviously don’t know where I went to grade school 😂. Be real! I do know what I’m talking about. This my school and I’m sad to see what they did to it! My husband , his brothers, his sister, his cousins, and my sister all went here for grade school too. We were not hallucinating lol.

It's very unfortunate that this church just burned down today. :(

@lisamendez5051

11 ай бұрын

😢just found out today too ...former Lutheran student

This is the elementary school I went to. I still have the year books. Sooooo many great memories. The room that you guys think was a closet( and maybe it was at one point) but my time going there it was the printer room for teachers. And the room you guys went into that had pictures of children, that was the kindergarten room.

@shannonroche4587

2 жыл бұрын

This was so hard to see 😔

@momarroyo

2 жыл бұрын

What years were you there?

@jenniferfive-6570

2 жыл бұрын

julia_gulia95 The “closet” was where Ms Ghears went to smoke Her cigarettes, & where She printed everything & made Her phone calls, She was My 7th & 8th grade Teacher/Principal. . I went there from 4th grade to Graduation 👩‍🎓 late 80’s, early 90’s. . This is Tragic & Totally Heartbreaking 💔❤️‍🩹

@79juliam

2 жыл бұрын

@@momarroyo I went to school from 2001- fall of 2009. Fall of 2009 the school closed.

I went to school and church here in the 60's and 70's. They both closed as many moved away and the few elderly left could not support the church. The school closed a few years earlier due to such a low number of students. So very sad to see this.

@joanie5853

2 жыл бұрын

I graduated from Bethlehm as did my brothers and sister. EXTREMELY HEARTBREAKING!! :( Kristen, were your parents Bob and Elaine? I'm Shirley's sister!!

I remember going to school here for a few years. Was indeed a beautiful chapel, and fun memories.

Cool find! Nice exploration 🙂

@decayingmidwest

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you!

Your videos keep getting better and better! The only suggestion I have, is repeat for the camera what your partner says, since her voice wasn't picked up most of the time.

@decayingmidwest

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks I’ll keep that in mind!

I wish there was a way to form a nonprofit trust organization to buy these abandoned churches and clean them up and renovate them and repurpose them as multipurpose community events spaces while maintaining the church configuration.

😢 so sad to see how people could vandalized a church tearing up multiple Bibles & burning inside the church. This is terrible-what is the point of doing this.

As a 4th generation Lutheran from Papua New Guinea, sorry....the family has been Lutheran since the first white man stepped on the land. Didn't expect to see such...and advised my kids and grandkids to support our churches that such should not befall our churches..breaks my heart.

It's gone now! Burned down last night! ... they succeeded!

The synod and district do not "own" church structures nor land. It was up to the congregation. We tried to give things away.

Nice church...I hope there are more

This was so cool to see I used to go to a culinary class in here in the bottom floor classroom portion, so many memories. I remember exploring it just like you when I was a teen but it was a lot less interesting without the burnt bibles and graffiti.

That is such a beautiful church...I hope they didn't demolish it because it's so pretty we have a church similar to that in our state new jersey

@eileenb485

11 ай бұрын

It burned down yesterday, June 25, 2023

This was my childhood church. So sad !

@sspur2034

2 жыл бұрын

I was going to answer Luke, but why?

@mikechap2021

11 ай бұрын

It burned down last night

Just found your video because this church burned down last night! They claimed it was lightning...

@lisamendez5051

11 ай бұрын

Omygosh lighting did this ? 😢

Pastor Last 1980s do you know church burned down today 06-25-23

Wow I went to school here

18:50 my classroom was never that colorful

I hope city saved the church...its a beautiful church....

@mikechap2021

11 ай бұрын

It burned down last night

20:20 principals office

The papers are music sheets.

I remember running into you 😂

@decayingmidwest

2 жыл бұрын

you did?

@VlkKurly

2 жыл бұрын

@@decayingmidwest yes, when you barely went in

kids robes for choir 16:20

spray paint is not sold in chicago

The church burned down last night.

Please ask me questions.

As a 4th generation Lutheran from Papua New Guinea, sorry....

Doing that in God's house is a big no no 😮

Everybody's talking about they went to school. WTF is this place?

@rossharris5228

2 жыл бұрын

It used to be a Lutheran School and church.

@sspur2034

2 жыл бұрын

@@rossharris5228 Nope. It was a Lutheran church. The only thing they taught was Sunday school.

@rossharris5228

2 жыл бұрын

@@sspur2034 It was connected to a school that was K-8. I used to go there.

@ryanravencaller

2 жыл бұрын

@@sspur2034 did you not watch the whole video? There were dead ass full blown classrooms in another building

@sspur2034

2 жыл бұрын

@@ryanravencaller "Another building!" They were IN the church as they said it. NOT the school!

Terrible to see all the graphiti... Some have no respect...

@decayingmidwest

2 жыл бұрын

I think the fires are even worse 😢

@DeadDave666

2 жыл бұрын

@@decayingmidwest agreed. I love seeing KZreadrs explore these beautiful places. But leave it to shitty humans to come along and destroy things. I hate people.

That place is so beautiful. Why are they abandoned???🥲

@decayingmidwest

2 жыл бұрын

Usually it’s due to low attendance and low donations so they can’t afford to repair the building or keep it open

@dgaunt9861

2 жыл бұрын

The neighborhood changed. People couldn’t afford to keep it open so the synod closed it. It’s awful that it couldn’t be repurposed for something the community could use.

@joanie5853

2 жыл бұрын

@@dgaunt9861 My husband and I and they rest of our family were there November 1, 2015, that was the CLOSING of our Church! SO SAD!! And I can't believe that Missouri Synod could let this happen to their Church that was built in 1919!!! :(

@theelightbearer4254

2 жыл бұрын

@@dgaunt9861 gentrification?

@sspur2034

2 жыл бұрын

@@decayingmidwest correct, and thank you for showing what horrifying pigs do to an innocent church.