The story below is from our December/November 2015 issue. For the DIGITALLY ENHANCED VERSION, download our FREE iOS app or view our digital edition for FREE today!
The former 19th-century Baptist Church in Fincastle is now the home of Bob and Wendy Jones and the inspiration behind their annual holiday charity benefitting children and families in Botetourt County.
David Hungate
Driving—or better yet, walking through downtown Fincastle, you will see many historic buildings: the Botetourt County Court House, the Hayth Hotel, the Crowder House and the Old Saddler Shop, to name a few. Over the years, these structures have been repurposed as office spaces, museums and, in the case of the former Bolton Store, a popular wedding venue.
And right across the street is the old Fincastle Baptist Church, with its original bell tower and stained glass windows. Only it is no longer a working church. It is the private home of Wendy Jones and her husband Bob.
“Bob and I had been looking for a small church for weekend getaways that was located far enough away that if you forgot something you would not go back to retrieve it, but not so far away that you would never use it,” says Jones.
In 2006, when the congregation of Fincastle Baptist Church had outgrown its sanctuary, the historic building went up for auction. That’s when Jones learned that her husband was looking for more than just a weekend getaway.
“He told me he had always wanted to live in a church,” she says. “I thought to myself, we will put a bid in, get outbid, and I would not have dashed his dream.”
Fifteen minutes after putting in his bid, however, they received a phone call: They’d won the bid.
“Bob kissed me on the forehead and left the house,” she says. “It was a couple of weeks before things calmed down and I became resigned to the idea.”
They moved in April 2007, just in time to host their daughter’s wedding a month later.
Keeping the Peace
Converting a historic church into a functional family home was not without its challenges.
“Being your own contractor was a new experience for us,” says Jones. “We did not really know what Botetourt County Zoning wanted, but then again, we were converting a church to a home, so maybe they did not really either.”
It took three months for the couple to get the building permit, and they obtained the Certificate of Occupancy at the very last minute—the day they moved in. Paperwork and construction aside, one of the biggest challenges was deciding how exactly they would tackle turning the church into a home.
“I am lacking in the ability to visualize,” says Jones. “Going from Sunday School classrooms to home took a lot of graph paper and time.”
The classroom space behind the sanctuary, which was added to the building in the 1920s, is where the family did the most work. On the main floor, they created two bedrooms and an office, and gutted the original multi-stall bathroom into a full bath. In the basement are their kitchen and dining room space, and they converted the top floor into an open-concept master suite.
“With the top floor opened up, all the great light and the beautiful tile bathroom, it is hard to beat the level of relaxation achieved in the master bedroom suite,” says Jones.
Many of the church’s original features remain intact, including the hardwood floors and radiators. They also collected unique pieces from around the region to accentuate the building’s history and character. A wooden archway in their master bedroom was originally the entryway to an old home in Salem; an altar from a Catholic church in the basement is staged to be used in the future as a wet bar or a cooktop.
“Bob also collects historical paperwork, maps, postcards and the like,” says Jones. “Included in that collection is a Land Grant from the early 1800s, a postcard of the church taken in 1904 before the Sunday school classroom addition was built, a 1945 Fincastle High School yearbook and bills from the Botetourt and Bank of Fincastle circa 1860s.”
Among the unique pieces in the home is the master headboard, which they created out of a piece they found at Rockledge on Mill Mountain, what they believe to be part of an old European merry-go-round.
A Tradition of Joy
Not much about the sanctuary has changed since the congregation moved out and the Joneses moved in. Instead, the homeowners kept the space very much the same, pews and all. It may not be something you find in the average home, but the sanctuary is Wendy Jones’ favorite part of the house.
“The stained glass gives the room a different personality every time the light changes,” she says. “It is a wonderful place to relax, celebrate and listen to the rain on the copper roof.”
Like the rest of the home, the sanctuary is full of history and stories, and none so special and dear to the Joneses as the Christmas tree, a reminder of the annual pageants that began around 1955. Each year, children would come to the church, admire the 12-foot-tall Christmas tree and meet Santa, who would pass out toys, hard candy and oranges.
Bob and Wendy Jones were inspired by the church’s holiday history and established Operation Christmas Cheer, now in its eighth year.
“We bring the history of the church to life in our sanctuary every Christmas,” says Jones.
The mission of Operation Christmas Cheer is to provide Christmas for children and families in Botetourt County. Each child receives a toy, a new outfit, a coat, a hat, mittens, a blanket and a stuffed stocking, as well as hard candy and an orange. The families also receive a complete Christmas dinner and a basket of food staples.
“All of this is done by volunteers,” says Jones. “The donations, the wrapping, everything.”
Home Sweet Fincastle
Fincastle Baptist Church is a landmark in the community. Though it is now a private residence, it continues to participate in community life, such as the annual New Year’s Eve ringing of the bells. This, according to Wendy Jones, is what she likes best about living in Fincastle.
“We live in a walkable town that has a touch of what many might describe as ‘Mayberry,’” says Jones. “Fincastle has an abundance of fascinating stories and characters. We are awestruck to think that during the Revolutionary War there were British Regulars in the same town in which we live today and that Lewis and Clark made a portion of their journey through this area (one of them finding not one but two wives here). To know that there are still buildings standing here today that were here then is amazing.”
They took a leap of faith when they chose to call the old Fincastle Baptist Church home. More importantly, they feel blessed to be a part of the church’s history and to be able to share that history, as well as the history of the town of Fincastle, with others.
For more information about Operation Christmas Cheer and to find out how you can donate and/or volunteer, visit OperationChristmasCheer.org.