Watertown Church Celebrating Rebirth This Weekend

If you've travelled on Main Street in Watertown lately, you may have noticed a flurry of activity at the Community Church of Watertown. This weekend, the church will celebrate the grand opening as Grace Chapel Watertown.

Earlier this year, the members of the church gifted the building, located at 525 Main Street, to Grace Chapel of Lexington. With a dwindling congregation, the remaining members felt strongly that the building should remain a church for the community.

“We had seen other Watertown churches sold for commercial or residential development, and we really wanted the Christian heritage of our church, which began in 1917, to continue. Our partnership with Grace Chapel was the best way to see a Christian community remain active on Main Street,” said Judy Holmes, an active member of the board of the Community Church of Watertown. 

Work began in July, and construction crews have been busy completing a top-to-bottom refresh on the inside.

The expanded welcome area leads into a rejuvenated sanctuary. Wooden pews have been replaced with comfortable chairs, and the organ was moved to make way for an expanded worship area. New carpeting, a fresh coat of paint and some distinctly new technology round out the list of updates. The church has maintained the beautiful, decades-old stained glass windows, many of which were given in memory of former members. 

The changes are most noticeable on the lower level, which is home to the Watertown Cooperative Nursery School. From the beginning, Grace Chapel understood what an important resource the Nursery School is to the community of Watertown

On Sunday, Oct. 27, the church will celebrate its grand opening as Grace Chapel Watertown. The services, held at 9:30 a.m. and 11:10 a.m., will include live worship music and a relevant and inspiring message broadcast in high definition to a large screen in the Watertown sanctuary from Grace Chapel in Lexington.

Grace Chapel has been meeting for services in the renovated building since Sept. 29 to “tune up” the technology and train volunteers. About 200 people are already attending, but there is plenty of room as the church is only half full.

“We hope this historic Christian church will continue to meet the needs of the greater Watertown community. We welcome all to come experience church in a fresh, new way," said Pastor Robert Frazier.