Beech Grove Church Holds Sunday Service After Friday Fire
BEECH GROVE, Ind. — Beech Grove Independent Nazarene Church held Sunday church service despite its building catching fire on Friday night.
More than 100 people were in attendance, including Beech Grove Mayor James Coffman.
“Just sadness,” Coffman said. “It’s sad to see a place of worship, a place of love, where people come to support each other as a family, it’s sad to see it up in flames.”
The Indianapolis Fire Department said it received a call at around 10:50 p.m. on Friday. Flames ran through the church’s attic on both ends, leading to a partial roof collapse.
It took 84 firefighters five hours to extinguish the flames. At one point, a vehicle ran over and severed a water supply line.
Thankfully, no one was injured.
Roger Bennett and his wife were the first to get married at the church over 50 years ago. He was horrified when he heard the news because the building held so many memories, but he said the church continues on.
“The church is not the building,” Bennet said. “The church is the people. You could see today we have a lot of good people and a lot of good memories, and we’ll cherish those memories, but we keep on moving on.”
The church’s pastor, Don Bates Jr., appeared teary-eyed during the interview. He said he was shocked and devastated, but they’ll continue with service every Sunday.
“We’re coming together like we’ve never seen us come together,” Bates Jr. said. “The community has come together in an incredible way.”
The fire is still under investigation. IFD said this is the 11th building fire in 2026.
