A fund for the SS. Anargyroi church has been set up at a bank in Marlboro, Massachusetts. Donations may be sent to: Greek Orthodox Church Fire Relief Fund, St. Mary's Credit Union, 133 West Main Street, Marlboro, MA 01752. For more information, contact the Hellenic Communication Service.

SS. Anargyroi was badly damaged when fire destroyed an adjacent classroom wing on February 18th. Although firefighters protected the main building, a combination of heat, smoke, and water used in firefighting caused irrepairable damage to the interior. The church had just celebrated its 75th anniversary, and the membership was making plans for an addition to be built this spring. Instead, thanks to a faulty heating and cooling unit that sparked the blaze, parishioners face having to rebuild the entire church.

Especially for the older generation, many of whom remember their own parents and grandparents lugging stones to the property to build SS. Anargyroi, the blow is terrible. Greek immigrants who worked in Marlboro's shoe manufacturing factories saved money and bought the land for the church. "They themselves physically built the foundations," church treasurer Betty Peltekis said.

Until they went inside, parishioners who arrived at the scene believed the main building had been saved. Serious damage seemed limited to the wall facing the classrooms that had burned. Inside, though, blackened ceilings, murals, and icons told a bleaker story. "Basically, the building is totalled," Peltekis said.

Reconstruction is expected to take up to a year. Until the project is finished, services and other activities are being held at the St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, which was among many in the area that responded with expressions of support. The St. Mary's parish has made available not only the upper part of its church building, but also offices and Sunday School classrooms.