Great Barrington — Prayers for the Clinton A.M.E. Zion Church are that much closer to being answered.
Ever since a call went out last week to save the deteriorating, historic, 1880s-built Clinton African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, people showed up at a Saturday meeting with ideas and a generous outpouring of support and gave the organizers enough confidence to make an offer to purchase the $119,000 building on Elm Street.
“It was one of the best days of my life,” said Ed Abrahams, who, with local activist Beth Carlson, is spearheading a campaign to buy the church, seal it up for the winter, then renovate it to preserve its legacy as the first African-American church in Berkshire County.
The congregation came together in the mid-1800s and the church was built as a place of worship for African-Americans streaming into the area from the South. W.E.B. Du Bois attended the church as a child.
The church is an Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage site as well as on the National Register of Historic Places.
The building is being ravaged by water from leaks in the roof and general neglect.
“The people in the room convinced each other that we could do this and that there was enough enthusiasm and enough resources,” Abrahams said.
Dan Bolognani, executive director of Housatonic Heritage, was at Saturday’s meeting at the Mason Library. He told The Edge that he is waiting for approval from the board of trustees for the organization to act as a fiduciary agent for the church. He said he should know more by the end of the week.
“I know there’s an urgency to get this done,” he added. “We’re working on it, and we hope to be a tool to facilitate this.”
Abrahams said a potential buyer had put an offer on the church. He didn’t know who it was and he would not disclose the offer made by the Save the Church group.
He said Rep. William “Smitty” Pignatelli, D-Lenox, attended the meeting, as did several members of the original congregation.
Others came and offered up their volunteer services, Abrahams said. Kim Wilder at Barnbrook Realty is handling the real estate aspect; attorney Michael Citrin is giving legal help; local activist Maia Conty got contractors to look at the roof —they offered to patch it up for free before winter sets in.
“Then we’ll have to raise money quickly – that’s the hard part,” Abrahams said.
