Keishauna Banks, who has been part of the St. Bernardine’s congregation for more than a decade, understood the grief.

"We want to open the church up, filling it with people," he said. All proceeds raised from the sale of the pews will go back into church funds, he added. Ms Charnock did not know about the plans ...

she heard of many potential new uses for former churches, from climbing gyms to skateboard facilities. Removing the pews and building an even floor space at St. Brigid’s will be no simple matter.

There is no word on a price tag to remove the pews and turn the church into an event space. In 2022, the historic church was put up for sale, and a deal to sell the church to the “United People ...