General News
23 July, 2024
Old church now a new family haven
The limestone building that served as Warracknabeal Church of Christ from 1924 is now a holiday home.
And Melbourne couple George and Eva Youssef want the people of Warracknabeal to share the historic occasion of the building's centenary - so they are inviting them to share afternoon tea with them on Saturday August 17.
"The foundation stone of the church was laid on August 13, 1924," Mrs Youssef said. "So it's coming up to the 100th anniversary."
She said members of the town's historical society had tracked down a newspaper article of the laying of the foundation stone, and also one written about the opening of the church in February 1925.
The church was decommissioned in the 1990s.
It was a chance viewing of an advertisement in the Herald Sun newspaper calling for a buyer for a church building in Warracknabeal that led to the Youssefs' purchase.
"We had no idea where Warracknabeal was," Mrs Youssef said. "But when we went there we fell in love with the town."
After making a few changes, the Youssefs used the former church as a holiday home for about a decade.
"Then we got busy and didn't go there for about another 10 years," she said.
"We went back in late 2018 and discovered it was in a state of disrepair. The roof had rusted through and leaked, causing large pieces of the ceiling to fall in."
Also, rocks had been thrown through many windows.
"Neighbours had boarded up the windows with cement sheets to protect them so the interior was dark, dusty, and overgrown," Mrs Youssef said. "And generally it was in a big mess."
The Youssefs replaced the roof, then started a major clean-up.
"We also put out a call for information and heard from one lady from Brim who had been part of the congregation," she said.
"We would love to have some people speaking about its history if we can find them.
"We also hope to have a small jazz band playing music from that era if we can track one down."