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Loveland Baptist Church members return after fire destroys part of the building

Loveland Baptist Church members come together to continue daily activities at the church despite recent fire.

A section of Loveland Baptist Church in Northeast Knoxville caught fire Sunday while 100 members stood across the street in disbelief.

"I just saw everybody in panic and terror because we've had this church for a long time and it was our home. It was really scary at the moment," church member, Macy Hughes, said.

The fire rekindled not long after it was out, forcing fire crews to drench the church's old sanctuary, the building that was just set up for Vacation Bible School.

"We lost all our material and decorations and everything else," said Senior Pastor, Jonathan Grills.

Pastor Grills said the old sanctuary is where most of the youth activities take place and if the fire didn't destroy what was inside, the water did.

"This church has been here for 75 years," church member Tracie Boll said.

Boll was one of the members looking on as her childhood church was taken by flames.

"It's where I was saved and baptized, so it has a very special place in my heart," she said.

After the fire, the church's vacation bible school program was at risk. Members said they had discussions and prayed and came to the conclusion that they needed to figure out how to continue with the school.

Through the help of other local churches, Loveland was able to get all the supplies they need to continue with bible school which will now take place in the part of the church that wasn't damaged.

Church members echoed each other and said the building isn't what makes the church a church.

"We knew that we had not lost Loveland Baptist Church, we just lost the building that we meet in," Boll said.

"These are buildings and God gave us the buildings so we could meet, but the church is made up of individual members. We are the church," Jonathan Grills said.

Right now, they have a company drying the building out to see what's usable and salvageable.

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