St. Paul A.M.E. to get new roof at no cost

When the Rev. Terrell L. Blair accepted the call last November to lead St. Paul A.M.E. Church, in Winter Garden, it was a full-circle moment for the pastor, who grew up in east Winter Garden and in the church.

The church has provided many memories for Blair through the years — but it also has given him a challenge in the last 10 months.

During the 2022 hurricane season, the church was severely damaged by rain and wind and has been closed for most of that time. The rain leaked into nearly every room in the church, forcing administrators to spread plastic sheets over the roof, tear out all the carpeting and remove large patches of the ceiling.

Church secretary Carlisa Davis said the insurance company denied the claim and canceled the policy.

“The insurance company has been giving the church the devil because, just before the hurricane happened, a general claim was submitted — and (the insurance company) said because there were two active claims, they couldn’t (process the claim),” Davis said. “The church has not been able to reopen because all the rain caused mold in the church and the congregation had very little money because the church was closed for a year during COVID then, soon after, the hurricane.”

When Blair arrived at the church last fall, he wanted to keep his congregation together, so he continued holding church services online.

“But that’s not church to me,” he said.

He opened up the sanctuary and invited people to return to church.

“We had people come and get rid of the smell, and we were doing church inside, and people were loving it — (but) a group of people were saying they were still smelling mold and mildew, so we went back to Zoom in the spring,” Blair said.

REACHING OUT

Blair and Davis started calling area roofing companies to get reroofing estimates. Davis reached out to West Orange Roofing because one of her high school friends, Jamie Nelson Swindle, is employed there.

“I was just reaching out to different people that I knew who were contractors and in the construction industry, and something in my spirit led me to reach out to Jamie,” Davis said. “When I first approached Jamie, I asked her to see if they would just donate their labor and we could prob do some fundraising to get the materials.”

West Orange Roofing is a family business that dates back several generations.

In the 1980s, Carolyn Anderson, Davis’ grandmother, handed out commodities at the Maxey Community Center to families in need.

“Jamie’s ex-husband (Bobby Swindle) used to pick up commodities with his dad, and (they just loved) my grandmother,” Davis said. “When Jamie told her ex-husband who my grandmother was and my family was, he remembered how she used to help his family when he was little. He volunteered to do the roof, as far as labor goes.”

ABC Roofing Supply agreed to provide the materials at no cost to the church.

Odis Mooty, of West Orange Roofing, did a walk-through of the church, noticed the damaged drywall, and reached out to some colleagues to make the repairs.

Mooty asked Blair how much money the church had in its building fund.

“I said, ‘We don’t have any building fund,’” Blair said. “We prayed in the parking lot. Odis Mooty called the next morning and said they’re going to put the roof on.”

The roof work comes to $40,000 — and it’s all being donated.

“This has been such a Godsend,” Davis said.

“West Orange Roofing wanted to invest in their local community and thought it was a great opportunity to be able to give back,” Mooty said.

The pastor said the work is expected to begin Sept. 14. Once the roof is replaced, the drywall work will start. Blair is hoping the drywall materials and labor can be donated.

He is ready to have his congregation back in the sanctuary for his weekly messages.

“It means a lot that God is still in the blessing business,” Blair said. “He proves it to us. … the Bible says, ‘Give and it shall be given until you.’”