Trinity Sanctuary - History & Rededication
The story of Trinity’s current sanctuary begins in the late 1950s as the congregation struggled with overcrowding. At this time, the congregation was worshiping in a building built in 1895 and located on the northeast corner of Monroe and McCarty Streets. The following excerpt from the 1961 Dedication Booklet tells the story of the development of the current sanctuary.
“The Hollis and Miller Architectural Firm of Overland Park, Kansas was commissioned as the Architect for Trinity in November, 1958; ground was broken for construction on November 8, 1959; the cornerstone was laid on November 13, 1960; the Dedication Day is April 23, 1961.
The site for Trinity was secured in 1955 from Henry Schmidt, and after several smaller lots were separated, the remaining tracts of 12 ½ acres was surveyed for the erection of the buildings.
After almost countless meetings of the Building Committee and its various subcommittees with architects, the final plans (were) approved by Trinity Congregation…
The upper level includes the church proper, chancel, narthex, and nave, in cruciform floor pattern, 120 feet long and 78 feet long at the transepts. A most traditional interior design, with exposed masonry beams, six step elevated chancel, choir and organ transept, clear glass North lighting, stained glass side lighting, all blends most harmoniously with the contemporary character of the higher walls and the roof. The roof is constructed of precast concrete slabs in a gabled fold-plate construction; windows the entire length of the church nave on both sides, just under and following the roof lines are in large chevron shaped panels. The entire chancel east wall is also windowed with stained glass as are all nave windows. Dominating the interior of the church is a mahogany cross, twenty feet high in the chancel, set to the left and front of the altar. Turquoise and beige walls, gold and rust beige carpeting, gray oak pewing with rose upholstering, light mahogany chancel furnishing, Baptismal font of imported Italian Mosaic-chip tile, wood and brass, with the rich hues of the large windows, altogether a majestic atmosphere for worship is created by design, color, and workmanship.”
Trinity’s sanctuary underwent numerous small renovation projects since its dedication in 1961. The flooring has been changed several times. The most recent renovation took place in 2013. This project was, perhaps, the largest sanctuary renovation project up to the present project. This project included painting, replacement of carpet and tile, and general cleanup work.
At approximately 12:30 in the morning on Saturday, April 15, 2023, the Jefferson City Fire Department was called to Trinity for an automated fire alarm. Firefighters found a fire burning in one of the kindergarten classrooms. This fire was extinguished quickly, but caused smoke damage throughout the building. The sanctuary, along with the entire building, required extensive work in order to be occupied again. School students, after a brief break, began classes using the facilities at Faith Lutheran Church and Concord Baptist Church. Until the new gym was cleaned and made available, church services were held at Calvary Lutheran High School and Faith Lutheran Church. Calvary also provided a space for our adult choir and our handbell choirs to meet for practice and served a place for meetings to be held.
Most of the church and school’s initial energy went into getting back into the school for the start of the 2023-2024 school year. This monumental task included painting of the entire second floor, the replacement of the entire ceiling grid system on all three floors of the building, cleaning the HVAC system, rebuilding the fire alarm system, and numerous other projects. Four months and 21 days after the fire, on September 5, 2023, students returned for the first day of school. Close to the end of the 2023-2024 school year, the kindergarten area was finished. This was the area most affected by the fire. The rebuilding effort resulted in a new kindergarten common area with new restrooms, two rebuilt classrooms, and a new school library. This task of rebuilding and reopening a school included thousands of hours of work by contractors, church volunteers, and staff.
Recognizing both the challenges and opportunities before the congregation, a small committee was formed to plan for the future of the sanctuary. This committee included Mr. Brent Fischer (Chairman), Mr. Matt Fife, Mr. Scott Homfeldt, Mrs. Ellen Sandhaus, Mr. David Schlichtmann, Mrs. Anne Schutt, Mr. Andrew Wachter, and Pastor Powell. Work began in late May of 2023 and initially focused on what would be required to re-enter the sanctuary for worship. Due to damage to the floor and pews from the cleaning process, and the need for the sanctuary to be painted, the committee initially focused on three areas: seating, painting, and flooring.
The congregation, through the sanctuary committee, began a conversation with Gunder Church Furniture of Humboldt, Iowa, a company that worked with many LCMS congregations in Missouri. Gunder made their liturgical designer available to the congregation to assist in developing a vision for a renovated and restored sanctuary. The committee functioned with the goal of respecting the original intent of the architect and congregation, while finding ways to bring the sanctuary into the 21st century. The committee ultimately worked with Gunder to design new pews, pew chairs, and chancel seating, a new pulpit and lectern, to update the baptismal font and altar, and to develop a design for the area around the baptismal font and the wall behind the altar.
The committee worked with Ms. Julie Lale from Major Interiors to develop a comprehensive color palette for the sanctuary. The committee worked to build off the original color palette from the sanctuary dedication in 1961.
At a November 2023 voters meeting, the congregation voted to move forward with the project. Mr. Jake Hunget and GBH Builders were engaged to serve as project manager and general contractor for the project, with Mr. Josh Voss serving as site supervisor. Mr. James Gooch, Jr. and Mr. James Gooch, Sr. led the team from Gooch Electric serving as our electrical contractor. Mr. Scott Homfeldt of Freedom Wood Products provided nearly every piece of hardwood used in the sanctuary, outside of the seating pieces. Mr. James Bond and Bond Painting painted the sanctuary. Mr. Ross Allen from Ross Allen Flooring assisted the committee with flooring choices and installation. Ross Allen Flooring was assisted by Alex Valenzuela from Mid-Mo Floors and More. HVAC work was done by Mr. Thomas Senter.
The original altar and font were both remodeled using a two-tone approach in the wood stain. The altar top was repaired and the corners modified to incorporate more of the dark wood. The original baptismal font bowl and stem were mounted on a new base built by Gunder. The new base ties in the two-tone look and the vertical stiles present throughout the sanctuary. The font sits on eight pieces of tile that form an octagon. For Christians, the number eight is tied to new birth and the new creation. The eight sides remind us of the six days of creation, the day of rest, and then the new birth and the new creation that comes on the eighth day.
The pulpit and lectern are new and were built by Gunder. They tie in many familiar themes present in the sanctuary. The altar was moved back approximately to allow for easier foot traffic during communion distribution.
The cross was restained and refinished by Schulers Furniture Services in St. Louis. The cross retains the light wood, as it is the most distinctive piece of our sanctuary. However, the refinishing process brought out the wood grain that was hidden by previous stains. The metal cross insert was originally brass plated steel. The brass had worn away in many spots and, due to its size, was difficult to have replated. The committee worked with Theiss Plating in St Louis to replace the original steel cross with a long-lasting brass cross. The communion rail was also refinished by Schulers and the kneelers were repadded and reupholstered by Schulers as well.
The wall structure, or reredos, immediately behind the altar was designed to be reminiscent of the original dossal curtain in the sanctuary. It is nearly identical in width to the curtain and has different elevations, similar to the way a curtain lays across an opening. The committee recognized that one of the most dominant features of our sanctuary is the vertical space. The reredos emphasize and builds on the height of our sanctuary. The purpose of it is to draw the eye up toward the heavens through the worship of the Triune God.
The lighting was designed by Reed Burkett Lighting Design and installed by Gooch Electric. The two driving principles behind the lighting design were the functionality of the system and the aesthetics of the light fixtures. Our old light fixtures did not work well with modern LED bulbs and the control system did not appropriately send power to these lights, often causing flickering and other issues. The committee strove to remove from view any piece of lighting hardware such as conduits or cables, especially focusing on removing the conduits and sconces from the side of the church. The taller hanging fixtures are designed to accentuate the height of the sanctuary, building on the themes described in the previous paragraph.
The doors of the sanctuary, both the entry doors and the sliding doors between the sanctuary and the fellowship hall, were designed and built by Freedom Wood Products. The main doors and the fellowship hall sliding door system both feature a stained cross.
The organ was cleaned and reinstalled by Mr. Patrick Ryan of Oldham Organ. The removal of the unused pipes in the old organ chamber allowed for the organ to better speak into Trinity’s space. The sound system was reinstalled and tuned by Mr. Luke Johnson. Several upgrades were made to the system, including the installation of hanging choir and congregational microphones.
The choir loft was rebuilt to better space the steps and to incorporate new privacy frontals. Electrical and sound wiring were upgraded to allow for better use and to eliminate previous issues.
After the dedication service, work will continue on the sanctuary, including the purchase and installation of permanent seating and other smaller tasks throughout the room. We thank everyone for your patience and prayers as we planned and implemented this project to set aside a beautiful space for Christ to give his gifts to Trinity.
Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table. And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.” But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. (Matt 26 6-10)
