St. Luke鈥檚 Church on the Lake, originally built in 1916 by the early settlers who came to the shores of Francois Lake, is undergoing a restoration project.

The building鈥檚 foundation and roof have already been replaced, and work will continue in the spring to restore the windows and door.

鈥淭here will be more detail work done in the next few years, in efforts to maintain and preserve the style and beauty of the original building,鈥� explained Donna Fowler, member of the St. Luke鈥檚 Heritage Society, a non-profit organization that looks after the church. Over $30,000 has been donated by local government and agencies toward the restoration project.

The Northern Development Initiative Trust contributed $13,458; the Nechako-Kitamaat Development Fund Society contributed $8242; and the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako and the 亚洲天堂 Lake Community Forest donated $5000 each.

Fowler said the purpose of the restoration project is to strengthen the community, as well as support the economy by offering a historical tourist site. Throughout most of its existence, the building was operated by the Anglican Diocese of New Caledonia. When the Anglican Church no longer held church services at St. Luke鈥檚 in 2011, a small group of volunteers formed the St. Luke鈥檚 Heritage Society to manage the property and building.

Planning for restoration of the building began in 2012.

鈥淭his work will not only preserve the history of the area, it will allow the community to use the building for a variety of activities as happened in the past." Fowler explained that St. Luke鈥檚 has always been a community gathering place as well as a church, especially in the early days.

鈥淭his building has been used for community picnics, weddings, funerals, government presentations and meetings,鈥� she said. 鈥淪t. Luke鈥檚 was used as the first school house in 1920, as well as for seed storage when the old seed storage cleaning plant was overflowing in the 1950鈥檚.鈥�

In addition, she said there are numerous grave sites as well as many unmarked graves of early pioneers in the small cemetery.

鈥淚t is projects like this that not only secure our rich local history, but also make us proud to call the Lakes District our home.鈥�