America
Church building to pave way for gurdwara in US
Washington, July 30
In a historical moment for
the Sikh community in the US, a foreclosed building that used to be a
Baptist church will be renovated as the first Sikh temple in Rockford,
Illinois, media reported on Thursday.
The building on Kishwaukee Street and 3rd Avenue in the Forest City will be renamed as Nanaksar Sikh Temple.
"There
is no temple in Rockford. This will be the first one. Some people told
me that there are no Sikh temples here so we are doing this for the Sikh
community," Wrex.com quoted Nanaksar Sikh Temple supervisor Babaji as
saying.
There are nearly 100 Sikh families in the area. Right now, they drive all the way to Chicago, Milwaukee or Madison for worship.
However, the task of doing up the foreclosed building is daunting as $100,000 worth of renovation work needs to be done.
The
church pews will be removed and replaced by carpets. "Paint and
carpeting is a huge project in this 30,000 square-foot building," Babaji
said.
Any symbols of the Christian faith in the former church
like crosses or stained glass will be preserved during the renovation
work and will be donated to local churches or to the Salvation Army, the
report said.
The temple will have a grand opening in April next
year when renovations are completed but the Sikh leaders hope to start
worship services in September this year.