Holley church makes repairs to century-old stained-glass window
Photos by Tom Rivers
HOLLEY – Valerie O’Hara (right), president of Pike Stained Glass, and Chris Grooms set a repaired stained glass window into place at the Holley Presbyterian Church today.
Pike Stained Glass Studios of Rochester was hired to repair two sections of the “Come Unto Me” window, a centerpiece of the church.
The window is believed to have been installed in 1907 when the sanctuary was built. The window is dedicated in memory of George and Sarah Garfield, who were residents of Holley in the late 19th century. The picture of Jesus is based on the “Come Unto Me” painting by Heinrich Hoffman.
Valerie O’Hara sets the window in place. Pike Stained Glass Studios needed to replace broken pieces of the two windows and create a new frame with rebar. The two windows had bulged and there were broken sections of glass.
Pike made new pieces of glass that needed to be painted and reset. The company put in new lead to hold the glass pieces together and created a new frame. Pike also cleaned the larger window depicting Jesus.
The church in 2019 celebrated its 200th anniversary in Holley. Tom Gardner, the church pastor, said the congregation values the stained glass window. It was about a $25,000 project.
“We looked very close at it and we could see it had problems,” Gardner said about the window. “The congregation wanted it to be right and be here for future generations.”
The church this year also expects to complete a $40,000 project on part of the roof.
