By Barry Adams – Wisconsin State Journal –
The mission here is care and compassion.
And over the years, Madison’s oldest church congregation has lived up to its charge, behind and beyond the red doors that stand out amid the weathered sandstone at the corner of West Washington Avenue and Capitol Square.
Grace Episcopal Church hosted the city’s men’s homeless shelter from 1984 to 2020 and continues to minister to the homeless. The church has operated a food pantry for more than 50 years, offers free concerts and has undertaken mission trips to Haiti.
But caring for its own building is no easy or inexpensive task, especially when they’re dealing with a structure that’s 170 years old.
Repairs to the stonework have been ongoing for years, but the church’s slate roof is in dire need of replacement. Fundraising for the $1.5 million project has come up short and church leaders are looking for a way to cover the remaining $1 million in costs.