Historic Mother Bethel AME Church suffers at least $15K in damages after vandalism
A local event in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, helped to raise funds for the historic Mother Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, which recently suffered what could amount to tens of thousands of dollars in vandalism damages.
CADO Market worked with Legacy Reclaimed 7th Ward Tribute to host an event on Saturday seeking to aid the historically black church, which traces its roots to the 18th century.
"CADO Market is an all-black marketplace experience that takes place at various historical black locations," explained market founder Debora Charmelus to local ABC affiliate WPVI-TV.
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"Mother Bethel is the oldest piece of land continuously owned by African-Americans in the United States."
Event organizers planned to host a fundraiser for the church before the vandalism took place, according to WPVI, but the desire to raise money became more important.
Last week, between the end of Sunday worship services and Monday morning, an individual threw rocks at the windows of Mother Bethel, causing thousands of dollars in damages.
"Rocks were thrown into several lower level windows at the church," wrote Mother Bethel AME Church Pastor Mark Kelly Tyler in an email to congregants, as reported by NBC Philadelphia. "The incident has been reported to law enforcement."
Three of the church's stained-glass windows were shattered. Although authorities estimate the damage to cost $15,000, The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that the church estimates repairs could cost upwards of $30,000 because of the craftsmanship required to fix the stained glass.
The vandalism was determined to not be a hate crime, and 39-year-old Haneef Cooper was arrested on Thursday and charged with vandalizing multiple buildings, including Mother Bethel and The National Shrine of St. John Neumann.
AME Church founder Richard Allen established Mother Bethel in the 1790s. There have been multiple church buildings on the Philadelphia property since its founding. The current sanctuary was built in 1890.
In January, Mother Bethel announced it had been granted $90,000 for preservation funds from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, making it one of several black congregations receiving such funds this year.
"Mother Bethel is honored to be awarded such a generous grant to assist with vital preservation efforts on our 134 year old building! The $90,000 grant will make raising additional preservation dollars a much easier lift," stated Mother Bethel on Facebook.
"A special thank you to the National Historic Trust's African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund and their Preserving Black Churches grant. Thank you to the funders of the grant."
The NTHP's African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund bestowed $4 million to 31 different historically black congregations.
"We created the Preserving Black Churches program to ensure the historic Black church's legacy is told and secured. That these cultural assets can continue to foster community resilience and drive meaningful change in our society," said Brent Leggs, executive director of the AACHA Fund, in a statement.
"We couldn't be more excited to honor our second round of grantees and ensure that African Americans — and our entire nation — can enjoy an empowered future built on the inspiring foundations of our past."
