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Aging building that's expensive to maintain and repair

LIMITATIONS

CURRENT SITUATION

St. Vasilios church is one of the oldest wooden Byzantine-style churches in America. Over the past decades, the parish has added additional buildings and undertaken numerous renovations, improvements, and maintenance projects. Last year, a professional architectural and preservation firm was hired to evaluate all our facilities and recommend improvements to address critical needs:

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  • Both buildings have multiple levels of staircases, and accessibility is challenging, especially for the elderly and people with mobility needs.

  • The church building is not connected to the education center, making movement between facilities difficult, especially during inclement weather. 

  • The electrical and HVAC infrastructure is outdated and inefficient. 

  • The bathrooms that are used during ministry activities and for major events, such as the festival, are in disrepair and need to be renovated.

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MESSAGE FROM FR. CHRISTOPHER  

Over 100 years ago, our early immigrant founders raised $35,000 to construct a building that would be the center of religious, social, and ethnic life of the Greek Orthodox community in Peabody. Our beloved St. Vasilios parish is a place of treasured memories. It is our spiritual home where we have baptized and raised our children and grandchildren, celebrated weddings, and laid our loved ones to rest. 

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St. Vasilios exists to bring the fullness of the Orthodox Christian Faith to the community of Peabody so that we all may know Jesus Christ and attain His Salvation. The ministries we offer focus on providing a rich spiritual life, education and development of our young people, service to the poor and needy, and healthy engagement with those in the world around us. 

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Our Church and Greek Schools, Women’s Study Group, Orthodox Life and Bible Study groups, and our well-known Scholarship Program underpin our values of heritage and education. Our youth programs including Panagia’s Garden, Little Lambs, JOY, GOYA, Altar Boys, and Greek Dance Group educate and edify the young members of our church. The Philoptochos, Men’s Club, and St. Basil’s Kitchen fulfill our important obligation to reach out to the wider community and to offer fellowship through charitable service.

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To continue fulfilling our mission, we have launched a Parish Advancement Campaign with the goal of updating our facilities, improving accessibility, installing an elevator, and investing even more in our ministries, so that we can extend our legacy as a thriving congregation for the next 100 years. 

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Each one of you, all those who came before us, and all who will come after us, are essential bricks in God’s building and community that is St. Vasilios parish. Please see the information in this booklet and thank you for your generous support.    

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With much love in Christ,

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Fr. Chris Foustoukos

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