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By Melissa Lauber
UMConnection Staff

It?s not easy dismantling a church, even when a brighter future beckons. But when that church is wrapped in lifetimes of memories, moving forward requires special thought and attention.

Mount Vernon Place UMC in Washington will soon demolish its two education buildings to make room for a high-rise residential and commercial facility.

The money earned in this transaction will allow the church to completely renovate its historic sanctuary and begin innovative urban ministries in partnership with Wesley Theological Seminary.

But first the buildings must come down. To honor the spirit of those who built them, the church held a garage sale July 8, donating the proceeds to the Baltimore-Washington Conference Hope Fund, which will benefit people living with AIDS, the Zimbabwe partnership and churches destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

Before the demolition in September, local groups that provide housing for the needy will be invited to glean fixtures, electrical work, pipes, and other items from the buildings.

But perhaps the most meaningful aspect of the transition will be moving the entire contents of the Shure Chapel ? lock, stock and pews and pipe organ ? to a church near the Gulf Coast that lost its worship space in Hurricane Katrina.

Tears filled the eyes of some of the members whose parents had helped build the education buildings when the church, in its heyday, drew several thousand people to worship.

Today, fewer than 60 attend worship. But the future is bright with possibilities of a new church start in an historic setting.

'After death, comes resurrection,' said the Rev. Donna Claycomb. 'We are a resurrection people.'