Sacred Heart To Rebuild After Church Destroyed By Storms

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A western Minnesota community is working to rebuild after a fire destroyed a historic church.

A lightning strike hit Hawk Creek Lutheran Church in Sacred Heart and sparked a fire at about 9 a.m. Saturday. No one was hurt, but the church is a total loss.

Jim and Sue Gustafson's family has been going to the church every Sunday for the last 17 years.

"It was really strange, like a bad dream yesterday," Jim Gustafson said.

The couple described watching the church burn as they worked to rebuild on Sunday.

"A lot of families have been coming here for five generation," Jim Gustafson said.

Built in the 1880s, the rich history of Hawk Creek Lutheran church can never be fully restored. But members of the 100-person congregation rushed to help in any way they could on Saturday.

"I was standing way back at the tree line and you could feel the heat and you realized it is more than just the steeple that's going to go," Sue Gustafson said. "It was heartbreaking to watch."

Church members were able to salvage some pieces of the past, like a decades-old bible and records of members' names. Fire crews from around the region stopped the flames just short of the church's altar.

Within hours, a fundraising page was set up to help rebuild.

"We will come back from the ashes a lot stronger," Sue Gustafson said.

There was no official service on Sunday, yet church members still gathered there and held on to faith.

"This is just the building and the walls," Jim Gustafson said. "The people make up the church."

Church members will attend a neighboring town's church services for the time being.