This fall St. Thomas Chilliwack refinished its sanctuary.
St. Thomas was built of local wood away back in 1896. Since then our sanctuary floors have not been refinished. Years ago a large square opening in the centre of the sanctuary was boarded over and covered with carpet. Another cover, out of plywood, was cobbled into the floor when the high altar was removed a couple decades ago (the plywood was hidden behind choir pews). The original sanctuary floors were Douglas Fir. Some time before 1950, the upper floor around the high altar was refinished with inlaid oak, over the original Douglas Fir. Cherryhill Floors, our prime contractor were able to repair the damages to both the Douglas Fir areas and the oak areas.Our church’s interior is high, and complicated. It is all wood, designed to resemble the bow and hull of a great ark resting overhead. Dust from sanding was a real concern for us. Darekfloors, a subcontractor of Cherryhill, were able to bring in specialized sanding equipment that reduced clean up to a light dusting. We did not have to dust high up on the walls at all, in fact there was virtually no dust created. Darekfloors applied four coats of a clear water based floor finish. Lower sanctuary walls were touched up with stain by our altar guild, hiding 115 years of bumps and abrasions.
In 1951 a pulpit and altar were dedicated at St. Thomas. These include a
good deal of hand carving by a Vancouver artist named “Mr. Robson.” They needed cleaning and repairs. We commissioned TaylorMade Wood Products, a local cabinet maker, to clean, repair and refinish them.
Other needed furnishings have recently been made for St. Thomas, including a new table (now used for signing wedding registers, and for our Advent candles), dedicated December of last year in memory of Birch and Mary van Horne. Four new flower stands are awaiting dedication. These new furnishings were made by Walter Heier, and are solid oak.
Refinishing the floors included removal of choir pews which had been perched behind the altar for the past 20 years. We are not rushing to reinstall them there, nor in their historic place between the altar and congregation. Our options are open until we settle on the “right” place. At the moment our altar sits well forward on the original raised floor - with credence and other furnishings neatly placed around it.
Sanctuary floor refinishing was completed in memory of Norma Watson’s mother Dorothy Price, and the refinishing of the altar, pulpit and altar mantel were completed in memory of Jackie Tubbs’ husband Edward (Ted) Tubbs.