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McKeesport, PA: External Renovations completed at Holy Dormition Church

Holy Dormition Church in McKeesport, PA – known to locals simply as St. Mary’s – recently completed an extensive renovation to the exterior of the church building as part of its ongoing preparations for the parish’s centennial celebrations in 2017. Constructed in 1975, the church was in need of major repairs. The project began in May 2016, shortly after Pascha, and ended three months later at the end of July.

The main features of the refurbishing included replacing broken bricks, rebuilding the chimney, patching major leaks in the roof, extensive painting of window frames and railings, and repainting stucco at the base of the church’s exterior. The concrete sidewalks all around the church were repaved.

While the renovation was all-encompassing, perhaps the most notable feature of the project was repainting the church’s three cupolas and gold-leafing the stars and crosses. The cupolas are not the church’s originals, but are made of fiberglass and were installed in 1999. The smallest cupola, which is perched atop the bell tower on the church’s façade, was removed and restored at the factory, while the larger domes over the nave and altar were wrapped in scaffolding and repaired in place. When the project reached completion, parish rector Archpriest Dimitri Ermakov blessed the golden crosses and was lifted up in a cherry-picker to bless the newly restored cupolas.

Fr. Dimitri spoke about the project: "Fortunately, we didn’t have too many challenges. It was especially good that we got all of this work done in time before the end of the year. It was critical that all of the work be done while the weather was behaving."

The rector also made note of two individuals whose participation was instrumental: parish warden John Mahalchak, and project leader Peter Kasich, whose daily check-ins allowed for constant oversight of the work. "Peter kept a meticulously detailed logbook of progress being made, as well as the daily temperature and humidity levels," Fr. Dimitri explained. "He was incredibly particular, and the workers would even complain when they saw him coming! But this recordkeeping was important, because the paint and sealant had to be applied at the right temperature and humidity in order to meet warranty requirements. In the past, the last company refused to repair peeling paint due to what they said was improper application. We were determined not to let that happen again."

The parish’s next project, which is already underway, is to complete internal repairs, mostly patching plaster and repairing water damage now that the outside leaks have been covered.

"This way, the church will be sparkling," said Fr. Dimitri. "In 2017, our parish will be celebrating its 100th anniversary, and with the blessing of Metropolitan Hilarion, we will be celebrating our centennial on Labor Day Weekend. Everybody is invited, and invitations and more details will be going out to all of our diocesan parishes early next year. We hope you can join us."

The total cost of the renovations thus far is $160,000. Donations can be made to the parish’s maintenance fund by PayPal here or by mail to: Holy Dormition Church, 330 Shaw Avenue, McKeesport, PA 15132.

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McKeesport, PA: External Renovations completed at Holy Dormition Church - 01/03/17

(23 images)


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Eastern American Diocese | Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia