The Wesley Methodist Church hall in Hastings was demolished last week. Photo / Warren Buckland
The Wesley Methodist Church hall in Hastings was demolished last week. Photo / Warren Buckland
The demolition of the Wesley Methodist Church hall in Hastings is being seen as a new beginning for the church, which also reflects how the congregation has evolved over more than 140 years in the city.
The hall was built in 1932, on the corner of Eastbourne and Hastings streets,a site associated with local Methodism since 1878.
Napier-based Reverend WC Oliver purchased it in 1878 and when Reverend JJ Lewis was appointed resident minister in 1883, planning for a church began.
A timber church was erected a year later, before capacity became an issue and a new building was built in 1910.
The 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake destroyed most of the church, but the parish were able to rebuild it in the Spanish Mission style within 12 months.
The Wesley Methodist Church hall stood from 1932 until it was demolished last week. Photo / Paul Taylor
Parish superintendent Reverend Iakopo Fa'afuata said everything comes to an end at some point, and they simply needed to build a new building.
"The place has been very useful, not only for the church people but also for the wider community," he said,
"Even though we feel a little bit sad because it's coming down, because of the history and its usefulness, we're glad that it's not going to be lost. We're going to build another new one and hopefully that lasts many, many years to come."
The first Samoans joined the congregation in 1972 as a small group who were looked after by the palagi (non-Samoan) parishioners.
Over time that demographic breakdown flipped to an almost entirely Samoan congregation – the Wesley Methodist Church had its last ever combined service featuring the English language late this year.
But the legacy and values that have been at the heart of the Hastings church since the beginning live on according to lay preacher and property manager Dennis Coon.
"I'm so grateful to the Samoan congregation, that they're able to carry on from where we've left off," he said.
Reverend Iakopo Fa'afuata, left, Olive Tanielu and Dennis Coon with all that remains of the Wesley Methodist Church hall. Photo / Thomas Airey
Parish steward Olive Tanielu, who also sits on the project committee with Coon, said they want to continue the legacy, mission, and service of the Wesley Methodist Church in the new building, which will hopefully be finished by the end of 2021.
A symbol of that is the retaining of a stained glass window from the demolished hall, which was dedicated to Corporal Ray Common, who was killed in action in World War II.
The window was dedicated to him, his mother Hilda and father John in 1953.
"It's keeping that memory going, and the legacy that was contributed and built up by our past members of Wesley," Tanielu said.
