New life stained glass windows from closed church

Art, beauty, and most importantly, the message of Jesus Christ shine through on stained glass windows. The colors and panes of glass weave together a story of God’s love and redemption of our sins.

For many churches, the stained glass live at the heart of their church and act as a centerpiece for their congregation. So, when the announcement of a closure happens, it can be heartbreaking to not know what will happen to these wonderful pieces of art.

On Dec. 27, 2020, Trinity Lutheran Church in Evansville, Ind., held its final service as a congregation and closed their doors forever. But, their story did not end there.

Through the work of many hands to move and restore the windows, the stained glass windows that once lined their sanctuary have found a new home at Worship Anew.

“These are the windows that are not just decorative and beautiful, but also carry a Christian message,” said Laureen Baggett, a member at Trinity to helped to coordinate the move of the windows to Worship Anew. “When we learned they would be able to carry that message to millions on a regular basis, we were overjoyed.”

Trinity had a long, near 180-year history in Evansville. It was the first Lutheran church in the area, and was formed as the settlers in the area—many German settlers—who wanted to build a church. The first meeting in that church was Jan. 17, 1841.

“Trinity was the mother church to at least five other area Lutheran churches and was known as ‘the church of the mayors’ as many important political and industrial figures were among her members,” Baggett said of the 400-member capacity church. “Our architecture, organ, and windows were known far and wide to be among the best and most beautiful in the area.”

As it has happened with other Lutheran churches across the nation, the latter part of the 20th century brought a decline in their membership and their ability to continue at Trinity.

“God’s Word marches on, and God’s children, but not so much brick and mortar structures,” Baggett said.

As discussions began to sell the sanctuary, Baggett began reaching out to organizations that may be interested in the stained glass windows.

“I really had a heart for the process that they were going through,” said Matthew Leighty, executive director of Worship Anew.

Through continued discussions, Baggett and the Worship Anew team began to work on the 300-mile trek that the stained glass windows were going to take to their new home in the Wolf Chapel Studio.

In order for the windows to be placed in Fort Wayne, Ind., at Worship Anew, the windows had to be extracted from the church, taken apart piece by piece, cleaned, repaired, and then put back together for the installation. For this, the team called on the experts.

Through the work of stained glass restoration artist, Jules Mominee out of Evansville, as well as the team at Window Creations out of Ottoville, Ohio, four of the original Trinity stained glass windows now adorn the walls at Worship Anew.

“It was truly an amazing process that they went through in order to properly clean and restore the windows practically to the condition that they would have been originally over 100 years ago,” Leighty said.

The windows will be seen on the Worship Anew program starting on June 23, and are used as a backdrop for the various choirs who share their gifts each week.

“As (the choirs) walk into the studio, they’re going to see not only Tiffany-stained glass windows, but they’re going to see the story and be able to share with the viewers as they’re singing,” said Paul Melin, Worship Anew’s director of video production and accessibility. “They'll be able to reflect on the history of those stained glass windows.”

For those that visit the studio, the stained glass window that depicts Martin Luther is shown in the main atrium of the building.

“These stained glass windows are able to bring to life what we know in God’s word,” Leighty said. “They are able to bring tremendous encouragement and comfort to so many people as they tune into this program on Worship Anew.”

The stained glass windows will officially be dedicated during a special ceremony at 2 p.m. Sept. 29 at Worship Anew.

“We appreciate the opportunity through these stained glass windows to be able to carry on that legacy that Trinity in Evansville has been able to instill in us through the work of this ministry,” Leighty said. “We are so blessed to be able to carry out the work that we do in preaching God’s word, and we will continue to do that until the day that the Lord returns.”