Crews successfully raise church steeple in Norfolk after 3 years

Dozens gathered at the Church of Christ Congregational in Norfolk on Thursday, not inside but outside.

Community members watched as crews carefully put the church's steeple back into place.

"Going up was about 17,000 [pounds]. Coming down was about 19,300 [pounds]," lead contractor Paul Bastiaance said.

Bastiaance and his crew at Valley Restoration, LLC removed the heavy structure in December 2020 because of rotting wood and safety reasons.

"You see those a lot around. If preventative maintenance hasn't been happening, you know, it just rots, pieces fall down," Bastiaance said.

The steeple stayed on the ground beside the church for a little more than three years while it was being repaired.

Basitaance said some of the improvements include the removal of several coats of paint, rotted wood and putting in steel beams. He said the old ones dated back to the early 1800s.

"The scale of this operation is magnificent. It's an incredibly unique moment," Pastor Erik Olsen said.

Olsen was out in the cold all morning. At times, he was helping the crew. At one point, Thursday's cold weather froze parts of the structure, but eventually they managed to raise it.

Community members say this was an exciting day. Some were there when the steeple came down three years ago and made a point to see it go back up. That was true for Sue Frisch of Norfolk.

"This church has been around since Norfolk's beginnings. It's part of its history, it's part of its spirit, and it's very much part of the community," Frisch said.

Pastor Olsen said the project cost about half a million dollars, which came from grants and donations from the community.

Not only was the town determined to restore the steeple, Bastiaance was as well. He comes from a family of steeplejacks and said he felt like he made his late father proud.

"Every one we do like this, we always think about him," Bastiaance said.