Renovation continues at Soap Lake church

SOAP LAKE - The Soap Lake First Baptist Church congregation is getting closer to being able to worship in a brand new building.

The church's old auditorium was torn down in April, Pastor Andrew Schopf said Friday. A bigger version of the auditorium, complete with a foyer, nursery and bathrooms, is currently being built, he said.

The new building is about 11,000 square feet. After everything is done, the church will have grown by about 3,500 square feet, Schopf said.

"The auditorium will be about one-third bigger than it is right now, and that's just talking floor space," he said. "The ceiling will be a lot higher too."

Crews should have the shell of the new auditorium finished within the next couple of months. Once that's done, the interior work can begin, he said.

"We'll do the inside as we have the funding and the help," Schopf said. However, he isn't too worried about having enough helping hands, he said.

Church members have been involved with the renovations, helping clean up and move things around, Schopf said.

"It's been neat to see the Lord providing along the way, but it's also been neat to see people get excited and see them help out," he said. "We're looking forward to having it done but we're enjoying the process as well."

Schopf said it was about time the church, which has been in Soap Lake for almost 60 years, to get a facelift.

"The way our auditorium was situated, things were getting tight and it didn't really facilitate wheelchairs," he said. "This will update a lot of things and make it more accessible and more user friendly in a sense."

Schopf said the renovation is a good way to make sure the church remains a good place for Soap Lake residents to come and worship. 

"We see God has a ministry for us in Soap Lake," he said. "If we're going to have a continued ministry here, then we should look at doing some things to facilitate that more and this project is a way to do that."

Schopf has served as pastor for the past eight years. His grandfather, Jake Schopf, was the pastor before him.

"My grandparents were missionaries and this was one of the churches that supported them," he said. "He retired and eventually came over as their pastor."

When his grandfather died, Schopf and his wife Hannah moved to the Basin to help out at the church.

Weekly services are currently held in another building on the church's property, next to where the new building is being constructed. Once the new auditorium is complete, the current building will mainly be used for social events, Schopf said.

The basement also has classrooms for Sunday School and the church's Character Kids Club program, he said.

To view pictures as construction continues and follow the church's progress, visit www.soaplakefbc.com.