Mount Calvary Baptist Church
After losing its sanctuary to fire, a congregation rebuilds with renewed purpose in a precision-engineered building — a resilient, modern worship space that restores vital community programs and positions the church for future growth.
Project
Overview
A devastating fire destroyed Mount Calvary’s 1960s-era sanctuary and severely damaged an adjoining multipurpose area used for Bible study and church events. No one was injured, and one defining element remained intact.
“The only part of the sanctuary left standing was the steeple and our cross," said The Rev. Leroy Franklin.
The church’s Life Center, built by JOSEPH Construction Company, Inc., a Knoxville design-build firm and Butler Builder®, escaped structural damage. It was protected by a firewall and by the fact that it was a Butler® building equipped with the MR-24® roof system.
“Basically, all the damage stopped at the firewall,” said Justin Hall of JOSEPH Construction.
When the time came to rebuild, Mount Calvary again turned to JOSEPH Construction and requested Butler® systems for the new sanctuary.
Construction began about 18 months after the fire. The church sought a modern sanctuary and gathering space with greater street presence. The previous structure sat atop a hill, limiting visibility despite the congregation’s activity and growth.
JOSEPH Construction, working with Brewer Ingram Fuller Architects Inc., recommended reorienting the sanctuary to face east, resulting in a shorter, wider building with improved exposure from the road. The change also created room for a larger choir stand and additional pews.
For the exterior, JOSEPH Construction proposed the StylWall® II flat wall system for its insulating performance and its compatibility with a range of interior finishes. The new sanctuary integrates brick and wood panel veneer; metal ceiling clouds arranged in a radius pattern and a falling water tile mosaic above the altar — elements selected to achieve the contemporary aesthetic Mount Calvary envisioned.
An end wall extension restored the eight classrooms lost in the fire and added three restrooms the former space lacked. The classrooms were critical to Howard Circle of Friends, the church’s senior adult day-care program serving individuals in the early stages of dementia.
“It was vital that we get the day care back up and running so we could continue to serve that important part of our church population,” Rev. Franklin said.
They gave us a sturdy, strong and beautiful place to worship. (The team) told us that we could do some unique things with a metal building that a lot of people think are only possible with a traditional building. And they were right.
Speed was essential once construction began. JOSEPH Construction credited systems construction with helping them maintain pace and cost control.
“By using systems construction, we got the main structure up and the roof installed quickly, enabling us to start tie-in work to connect the structures early,” Hall said. “It was a great help to our overall timeline.”
Butler and JOSEPH Construction also collaborated on resolving the structural connection between the new sanctuary, the classroom space and the Life Center. A single-story steeple open to the roofline was integrated into the Butler frame to unify the sanctuary, and a hallway built with Butler framing provided a direct connection to the Life Center.
“Butler provided technical expertise and solutions that minimized costs we might have incurred with conventional framing,” Hall said.
Mount Calvary dedicated its new sanctuary in July 2013 as part of its 100th anniversary.
“When constructing a church, you not only want to please church officials, but the entire congregation,” Hall said. “It sometimes can be challenging to get everyone’s blessing. The fact that it went so smoothly is a testament to the thought Mount Calvary put into the design up front, because they established a lot of agreement on what they wanted to do.”
Said Rev. Franklin: “They gave us a sturdy, strong and beautiful place to worship. (The team) told us that we could do some unique things with a metal building that a lot of people think are only possible with a traditional building. And they were right.”
