From ashes to new life, church scarred by fire rises as The Chapel

When Tony Erickson walked into the fire-damaged church on Dakota Avenue in 2023, a lone ray of light was shining through a boarded-up window.

It reminded him of a Bible verse, from John 1:5: And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

Erickson took it as a sign. It wasn’t the only one he encountered during the months when, with thousands of hours of help from family, friends and others who caught his vision for the nine-decade-old building, he brought the building back from the edge of destruction.

Now, days away from the official opening of The Chapel, a short-term rental that serves as both an intimate gathering space and a place of respite, Erickson thinks it can inspire others.

A stained-glass window, original to the building, now hangs inside what was once the sanctuary. Electric lighting has replaced the sunlight that once made it glow.

“That window has survived 91 years, and it’s still here,” Erickson said. “Hopefully, a lot of people can relate that we all go through challenging and dark times in our life and just keep the faith that the sun will shine again.”

Erickson also views The Chapel as a place where people can set aside their divisions and come together, whether it’s to celebrate a wedding, anniversary or graduation or to mourn the loss of a loved one. It’s a place of gathering and a place to slumber, he said.

The building at 610 S. Dakota Ave. also has roots in Sioux Falls’ history — and sometimes in Erickson’s own. Curious about the site’s origins, he researched the property just off 14th Street. When he pulled up the original deed, he discovered early settler Artemus Gale had recorded it on May 20, 1881. Erickson was born on May 20 in Sioux Falls, the son of Dale and Betty Erickson.

His parents made an impact on Sioux Falls through the careers they chose, their son said. Dale Erickson worked in the Sioux Falls School District for more than 25 years, serving as the first principal of Oscar Howe Elementary. Dale, who died in 1987 when he was 49 and Tony was 10, was both parent and principal to his son.

Betty Erickson worked for the city of Sioux Falls in its human resources department, also for 25 years. “They gave a lot back to the city,” their son said.

Childhood connections also resurfaced when Erickson began restoring The Chapel. Mike Thurman brought his decades of craftsmanship and attention to detail to the building. He also brought a history of compassion.

“After my father passed away, he was the first one sitting by my bedside,” Erickson said. “He was my softball coach as well. But I’ll never forget that, him sitting by my bedside saying everything is going to be OK.”

Twenty-three years ago, Thurman also helped Erickson start his career as a real estate agent. Thurman shared listings for some of his new-home construction with the younger man.

Also invaluable: Mike Schmidt, who guided Erickson in determining which walls could go and which needed to stay. Schmidt, whose brother is engaged to Erickson’s sister, describes Erickson as family. When treatment from cancer prevented Schmidt from assisting, he brought in another experienced carpenter, Troy Van Hull.

Schmidt remembers his first trip to the fire-damaged building. He recognized right away that the fire had done minor damage to the original wood. In the end, the crew replaced only about 30 pieces of wood, two-by-fours and two-by-sixes.

The fire had started on March 5, 2022, after members of St. Michael’s Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church had concluded their Sunday service and retreated to the basement for a time to socialize.

Jon Dewitz, whose house is south of the church, had just returned home. Sundays were a time when the congregation filled the building and parking lot, offering vibrancy and excitement to the All Saints neighborhood.

“All of a sudden, a window blew out, and a giant fireball came out,” Dewitz recalls. “People started rolling out, and I thought for sure someone was dead. But thank God, everybody was in the basement. They came upstairs, and everybody got out. It was amazing. It was a miracle.”

The congregation had moved into the building about 20 years earlier, restoring it to its original function as a place of worship.

The Sons of Israel Orthodox Jewish congregation had dedicated the new building on Aug. 12, 1934. It was the first building constructed specifically as a synagogue in South Dakota. In the 1920s, the congregation had met in different buildings on North Minnesota Avenue.

Speakers included the mayor, a school principal and a cantor and musicians from Sioux City. A house for the rabbi and his family once stood to the synagogue’s east. A garage has replaced it. In the 1970s, Mount Zion, a Reformed congregation, absorbed Sons of Israel.

The congregation’s move to its own building in a time of economic hardship showed faith in the future, Erickson said.

“For me, it had a lot of symbolism,” he said. “It was built in the middle of the Great Depression, one of the darkest times in our nation’s history. It was also the same decade that both my mom and dad were born. And for the congregation, when it caught fire, it was one of their darkest times as well.

“Personally, I had been going through one of the most challenging times in my life when I started rebuilding the church. It became a powerful symbol of my own healing–transforming darkness into light.”

St. Michael’s now meets on North Summit Avenue, in the former Knights of Columbus Hall. Congregation member Lemma Symegn said the congregation hated leaving its original home but felt it had no alternative. Funding the renovations would be too expensive for a small church, which draws about 100 people on Sunday and 250 to special celebrations, Symegn said.

“We are pleased it’s going to be used,” he said. “We are full of emotion to see it alive again.”

Joe Batcheller is The Chapel’s neighbor to the east. He enjoyed being outside on Sundays when St. Michael’s congregation gathered, observing daylong activities, hearing the music and savoring the aroma of food.

“It had a very festive feel to it,” Batcheller said. “It will be nice to get a little bit of that vibe back in that corner of the block. I think all in all it’s going to be a positive thing for the All Saints neighborhood.”

Neighbors have watched as Erickson and his crew have resurrected the building. It looked catastrophic in the fire’s aftermath, Dewitz said, but the fire didn’t damage the building’s bones.

“It would have been so easy to bulldoze the church and turn it into maybe tasteful condos,” he said. “I’m very happy they’re holding on to the character.”

Batcheller, too, is pleased that the building still stands.

“I think that with it being a bed-and-breakfast event type of space will bring good exposure to the neighborhood and downtown, for outside visitors looking for a different experience.”

That “different experience” is the result of multiple hours of work. Erickson gave his sons, Anthony, 20, Braylon, 16, and Charlie, 14, sledgehammers and allowed them to knock down plaster and drywall. Erickson, who describes himself as “not the handiest guy in the world,” took a wire-brush to the rafters by hand to remove the soot from the fire.

His brother, Steve, who now lives in Minneapolis, had been exploring the idea of a secondary home and office space in Sioux Falls. He, too, was intrigued by the building but realized that managing a project of that scale, especially one requiring significant restoration, would be too challenging from a distance.

“With his support and encouragement, I made the decision to move forward with the project on my own,” Erickson said.

Thurman said his first visit to the damaged building was “almost depressing.” Thurman Construction almost exclusively works with new buildings, and if not for his relationship with Erickson, he wouldn’t have been interested.

A close inspection, however, reassured Thurman.

“The fist thing I looked at was the foundation,” he said. “A house or a building is only as good as it starts out to be. This was a good foundation, solid, not cracks. Then, I started looking at the walls, and the majority were in pretty good shape.”

The wooden floors and stairs were salvaged, and Erickson discarded an early plan to paint the rafters. He also considered painting the interior brick chimney but took the advice of his girlfriend, Lisa Romkema, and Amanda Buell, an interior designer with Coteau Design.

“When I come into a space, one of my guiding principles is what can we keep, what can we preserve,” Buell said.

She first saw the building after the cleanup, after 17 Dumpsters filled with debris had been hauled away, when it was an empty shell. Buell gave Erickson and Romkema input on finishes and layout, disguising a half-bath on the main floor with overhead storage space and choosing countertops, flooring and wall colors.

Buell sees the concept of The Chapel as a great alternative to a hotel for people who want to be close to downtown.

“That large of a gathering space with a place to sleep is super-unique,” she said. “I can’t think of any other place, unless you were to stay at a hotel.”

The Chapel offers sleeping space for 10, including four bedrooms. It will open officially on May 4. Erickson chose that date because it is the anniversary of his father’s death and is meaningful to him. He already has booked a wedding in June.

It was designed so the furniture can be moved easily, depending on what the event needs. The large sofas, chairs and end tables can be relocated and rearranged, like a Tetris game, into an alcove. Even some of the furnishings have special meanings to Erickson.

He purchased the dining table from Dorothy Brook, who sold her home through Erickson after the death of her husband, Dick. Erickson knew Dick Brook through his years with high school track and cross-country teams.

“I wanted to bring a piece in that was special for the table where everyone gathers around,” Erickson said. “I couldn’t have thought of a more perfect fit than a table coming from somebody who meant so much to me.”

Erickson will not require those who book The Chapel to hire specific caterers or photographers but to choose their own.

A ramp will be installed to the building’s north, and landscaping will be done this spring. Then, Erickson, who also owns Sioux Falls Furnished Rentals and serves people who need places to stay from 30 days to six months, will start answering the demand for short-term rentals for gathering and relaxing. The Chapel will be available to rent for a minimum of one to two nights, based on the day.

He already knows how pleased one group is with The Chapel’s restoration. In March, Erickson invited the St. Michael’s congregation to tour The Chapel. At the conclusion, the congregation and Erickson gathered in a circle in the former sanctuary, and St. Michael’s priest offered a blessing on the building.

“It was very amazing; the restoration was beautiful,” Symegn said. “We miss that place very much, but we didn’t have any options. He took us back to the old days when we look at that (stained glass) window.”