Letter from the Wardens

Dear Holy Innocents Members and Friends,

Greetings to you in this season of giving, and celebration of family, friends and community.
As you know, our church suffered serious damage as a result of the flood event on July 9th of this year and the subsequent rains; we are still impacted by this disaster. Both the rectory and parish hall basements were flooded, and required the purchase of sump pumps, electrical rewiring, and many volunteer hours for removal of ruined goods, walls, and flooring in the parish hall basement thrift shop. After testing for subsequent mold and asbestos release from broken floor tiles and walls, we find that we must hire costly, professional mold and asbestos removal services before the space can be used again.

The tower and church structures were also dangerously affected by the storms. The church tower developed a crack in the stone work, and it seems to be growing. Water also leaked through the tower wall into the sanctuary, causing a large plaster decoration to crash to the floor near the altar. We have roped off these areas with caution tape as directed by professional engineer evaluators. Our thrift shop is now located in the church rectory, but early in the new year, we expect to call a new priest who will live in the rectory. The thrift shop must be returned to its proper location in the parish hall basement. Consequently, we need to repair the thrift shop space as soon as possible.

Holy Innocents is not just an architecturally beautiful worship space; we are an integral and important part of our Highland Falls/ Ft. Montgomery/West Point community.
• We are an assigned community disaster shelter space and the election polling site for Highland Falls and Ft. Montgomery.
• Our food pantry has existed for over 20 years, currently serving over 150 families each month (300 families during COVID).
• Our thrift shop has served the community for over 60 years, recycling clothing and household goods. Clothing is fifty cents for children’s clothing and $1.00-5.00 for adult clothing. It is here to serve the community.
• We sponsor the only Boy Scout troop in the Highland Fall/Ft. Montgomery/West Point area, and they meet in our parish hall. Girl Scouts also frequently have met here.
• We have been a community meeting space for Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous and the Senior Lunch program. We are a site for The Highland Falls Winter Market, The Thanksgiving Community Dinner, a young people’s career academy, and many other community gatherings too numerous to list.
• Our church provides spiritual counseling and services to USMA cadets through our chaplaincy here at the church as well as on post. We also give them opportunities to get involved with our local community.

In short, we are dedicated to being part of our community, and serving our community, but that continued service is now in jeopardy because of the severe rain and flood event. Ron Kort, Buildings and Grounds Warden and Carla Burns, Warden, have been working on a FEMA application in hopes of getting funding reimbursement for these repairs. If those funds come at all, it will not cover current costs. We have already spent about $10,000.00 for services needed to correctly evaluate the damage. We are currently evaluating bids for the needed work which could reach $600,000. We will gratefully accept donations via check, given in person or mailed to PO Box 116, Highland Falls, NY 10928, or donations made electronically via Venmo or PayPal on the "Give" tab above. Any contributions to this effort or information about funding sources will be gratefully accepted.

Faithfully,

Carla Burns,
Warden

Ron Kort,
Warden