2 Indiana churches received national grants for historic preservation efforts

INDIANAPOLIS — Two Indiana churches, including one in Indianapolis and another in Greencastle, have received grants to help support historic preservation efforts, community engagement and enhanced fundraising.

According to a news release, Gobin Memorial United Methodist Church in Greencastle and Irvington Presbyterian Church in Indianapolis have received grants from the National Fund for Sacred Places.

Throughout the United States, 30 houses of worship, including 29 churches and one synagogue, were selected to receive grants for up to $500,000. The total grant award from the organization is $8.73 million.

This comes after Indiana Landmarks announced $2.4 million in grants to 14 church congregations across the state to help address “significant capital needs at their historic houses of worship.”

The release said the National Fund for Sacred Places provides financial and professional resources to help congregations “remain strong faith communities while they steward some of the nation’s most important and architecturally significant houses of worship.”

“Each of the congregations welcomed into the National Fund this year represents a unique story of resilience, history, and service,” said Bob Jaeger, the president of partners for Sacred Places, said in the release. “These sacred places are not only architectural treasures – they are vital centers of congregational life and community anchors offering meals, education, cultural enrichment, and refuge. We are honored to support their preservation and their continued role in public life.” 

The 2025 grantees for the national fund also include the following regional congregations:

• First Church of Deliverance – Chicago
• Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral – Louisville, Kentucky
• First Baptist Church of Greater Cleveland – Cleveland
• Our Lady of Lourdes Parish – Cleveland
• Trinity Episcopal Church on Capitol Square – Columbus, Ohio
• Belmont United Methodist Church – Nashville, Tennessee

For more information about the National Fund for Sacred Places, click here.