Marshall firefighters will still extinguishing flames at the First Methodist Church sanctuary on Monday morning. (Alexander Gould/Marshall News Messenger)

MARSHALL — An East Texas church suffered severe damage in a fire early Monday morning. First Methodist Church in downtown Marshall was damaged by an overnight blaze.

The historic sanctuary was declared a total loss, the city fire marshal said. Fortunately, there were no injuries, responders learned after arriving on scene early to make sure everyone was safe. Fire officials were alerted of the fire shortly after 1 a.m. Monday.

“At 1:16 (a.m.), we got the call that the alarm system at the daycare had gone off and it called in. So, at the same time, a burglar alarm had dropped, which prompted a police officer down here. When he drove up, he saw smoke,” Marshall Fire Department Fire Marshal Scott Barmore said. “The battalion chief showed up. I was called at 1:20 a.m., and it went out for an all call, which means everybody needs to come in. ESDs started showing up right after my arrival.”

Emergency Services Districts and agencies that assisted in fighting the fire included ESD No. 3 in Scottsville, ESD No. 2 Station 3 in Nesbitt, West Harrison VFD, and the Longview Fire Department.

“The City of Longview brought one aerial fire truck, West Harrison brought an aerial, and we’re using two of our aerials. The main sanctuary appears to be completely destroyed,” he said.

Fortunately, no injuries were reported, as no one appeared to be in the structure at the time of the fire, the fire marshal said.

“To our knowledge, at this time, we are not aware of anybody being in the building,” said Barmore. “They told us sometime around six yesterday was the last time a group was in there using the chapel sanctuary, practicing.”

Barmore said, at this time, the cause of the fire is unknown, but state officials and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agency will help investigate.

“I’ve got the State of Texas fire marshal coming in to help. They’re going to bring a group,” he said, noting they’re strategically located throughout the region. “One is coming out of Nacogdoches and another on the other side of Tyler. And then I’ve got an ATF (agency) coming that’s local. Other than the fact that it’s very large scale (investigation) for me and one other person, we’re going to bring in an ATF because this is a church.”

The sanctuary of the church is a complete loss but some Sunday school classrooms appear to be unscathed, Barmore said as he continued to observe the site Monday morning.

“I haven’t been in yet, but the south Sunday school classrooms appear to be untouched,” he told the Marshall News Messenger. “I’m sure there’s smoke damage; and until I get in there and confirm, maybe the daycare and the gymnasium. I would be sure that there’s smoke damage but unburned. We’re going to be out here for days, just trying to find out possibly what it was.”

“They’re still working on it. There’s still fire,” he said as firefighters continued to assess and extinguish the blaze around 10 a.m. “We’re basically trying to knock out the big fire and they’re going to go around and do what we call a ‘mop up.’ It’s just clean up, picking up all the small fire. A lot of this is steam emergence; it’s water mixing with heat, causing the steam. There’s a lot of water damage to the basement, I’m sure.”

Uniting in Prayer

First Methodist church members were on the scene, uniting in prayer, along with lead Pastor David Luckert. Luckert said the church appreciates the outpour of concern and love they’ve received from the community since learning about the fire.

“We’ve had an (outpour of support), which is not surprising,” Luckert said. “Pastors have reached out to us; church members have reached out to us; the community has reached out to us. And right now, we do appreciate the prayers.”

And although a devastating loss, the congregation is remaining strong in prayer.

“There’s so much unknown right now. Obviously, the sanctuary is a total loss, which it’ll be a very emotional loss for a lot of people,” said Luckert.

“The sanctuary was built in 1861. This church has been a cornerstone in the City of Marshall since 1839,” Luckert said of its establishment. “The church will continue to be a cornerstone in Marshall. It’s just going to look different in the future. We don’t know how … there’s a lot we don’t know.”

Luckert reiterated his appreciation to fellow churches that have reached out to help in their time of need.

“We’re a great close-knit congregation, but it’s a close-knit community (too),” the pastor said. “I’ve had about six other pastors reach out to me already early this morning. We’ve been here since 3 (a.m.), and they started reaching out about 4:30 (a.m.) when they started hearing about it. I’m not surprised. That does speak volumes of our community — a community where people care about each other. We realized we’ve got a lot more in common than not.”

“My phone has been blowing up,” he said, sharing how grateful he is. “Right now, we’re trying to let the congregation know what’s happened and what’s going on.”

He said the congregation will need to discuss their future plans, but one thing for certain they will be together worshipping on Sunday.

“We won’t be here, but we will be worshipping Sunday,” Luckert said. “And, again, we’ve got churches in the area that have reached out and said you can use our facility. So we’ll take advantage of that.”

Just like the hymnal, “Blessed by the Tie That Binds,” Luckert shared the church is not particularly the physical structure, but the community of members that are bound in love and fellowship.

“… That’s not the church, this is the church,” he said, gazing at the faithful members who all gathered on a parking lot across the street of the scorched structure, building each other up in hugs and prayers.

The church thanked the community for also keeping the adjoining First Methodist Day School in their thoughts and prayers, as well, as the school has suffered a lot of water damage, and is also a beloved cornerstone in the community.

“Probably more people in the community have been to that day school than anything because that day school has literally reached out to probably every family in the community,” said Luckert. “It’s very well known. They’re not going to be able to get into there for a couple of days, and even then it’s water damage (and smoke damage). So, we’re just going to have to wait until all the inspectors — the people that know what they’re doing — get in there and figure it all out and let us know; and then we can move forward.”

Many local pastors, including Bishop Ricky Moore, pastor of New Vision @ Hillcrest and a fire department chaplain, offered prayers and support to the church.

As he led the pastor and congregation in prayer, Moore quoted the scripture Romans 8:28 — “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

As he prayed, Moore said he already knows the church will have a testimony from the devastation and can already envision God giving the pastor a powerful sermon titled: ‘When the Church Catches on Fire.’

“I stand with this pastor and this congregation to remind them that things happen that we don’t understand, but you already have a plan for us,” Moore said as he prayed.

“I already know that sometime in the future, that this pastor is going to preach about what happens when the church catches on fire,” he said to a rousing Amen.

“When the church catches on fire we unite; when the church catches on fire we forget about old grudges; when the church catches on fire people come back that we hadn’t seen in a long time; when the church catches on fire, we shed tears that are sincere,” Moore said in his prayer as Luckert shed a tear.

Continuing his prayer, Moore asked God to strengthen the pastor where he’s weak and build the congregation up when they’re down.

“We want to pray for this congregation, these deacons,” said Moore. “We pray for all these members who have been members here for years and years and generations to come.”

The prayer touched the congregation as they embraced with tears.

“We are family, and this is what it’s all about,” Moore said as he hugged the pastor and members. “We love people and this is what it’s all about. So, continue to be in prayer for First Methodist Church in Marshall, Texas.”

Church History

According to the Portal to Texas History, “First United Methodist Church of Marshall stands at 300 E. Houston Street one block from the downtown square. The congregation traces its roots to a circuit-riding preacher in 1839, although they were formally organized in 1845. The church building was finished in 1861, built slaves who hand-made brick and hand-hewed the beams. The bricks have been covered with stucco as a preservative.

“The Greek-Revival sanctuary is to the right with its steeple containing a working carillon. The portico with its four columns was once open. The central section was later enclosed and enhanced with a large stained-glass window. The wing at left contains a gymnasium. Between the two main structures is a landscaped courtyard enclosed by two arcaded walks. The large campus occupies most of a city block, and much of it cannot be seen in the picture. At the right edge of the picture, a portion of the Hotel Marshall is visible. The church building is a recorded Texas Historic Landmark and is also entered in the National Register of Historic Places.”