Page 150 - History of UB Church in Hburg Region
P. 150
History of U.B. Churches in Harrisonburg-Staunton Region December 26, 2024
Restoration of the Dayton Church Building,
2013.32 The more than century-old red-brick church in
Dayton, known colloquially as the “Old EUB Church,”
according to Rev. Ted Schulz, has sentimental value for
more than just the 20-some people who now fill its pews
Sundays as Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church. “My
heart is in this church,” said Anne Hill, a Dayton resident
who graduated from the Shenandoah College and
Conservatory of Music, a school that used to hold classes
and events in the building but has since moved to
Winchester and become Shenandoah University. “I’d love
to see it restored,” she said of the historic building, which
now houses the Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church
congregation. “There are so many wonderful memories
from this church.” She shared one: “I graduated in this
room,” Hill added, motioning to the sanctuary, where the
walls seem to head north for miles before they reach the
cherry oak ceiling. The church has seen its share of wear
and tear since Hill’s 1954 graduation ceremony.
Now, aluminum containers are bunched in areas
around the sanctuary, placed strategically to catch dripping
water from the dilapidating roof. The oldest part of the
church, where the pulpit sits today, was built in 1904, a year after a fire swept through downtown
Dayton and ravaged the original building. Over the years, various congregations have added on to the
building. The piecemeal construction has created “peaks and valleys” in the roof, according to Schulz,
who leads Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church. “That’s where we’re having all the problems with
the leaks,” he explained. Schulz’s nearly 90-year-old mother, Carrie Pitsenbarger Schulz, has to avoid
some of the keys on the circa-1927 Möller four-manual pipe organ—a rare find—because the dripping
has ruined them. Shepherd of the Valley purchased the church in 2003 “as is,” leaky roof and all.
The congregation has completed several
renovation projects so far, such as restoration of the
building’s stained-glass windows, installation of a
bathroom on the main floor and a kitchenette, as well
as some minor painting jobs. But with such a tiny
congregation, costs become overwhelming. A decade
after purchasing the historic building, the congregation
has finally been able to scrounge up the funds for a
roof replacement, although the job will not be as all-
inclusive as originally hoped. Church members hired
roofers to replace the slate roof that covers the oldest
section of the church, but they would love to include the newer metal roof that covers one-third of the
32 Candace Sipos, “Slated for Repair, Daily News Record. Harrisonburg: September 21, 2024 (text and pictures). ©2013,
Byrd Newspapers. Used with permission.
II.B.14 Dayton U.B. Church and SCI 136
Restoration of the Dayton Church Building,
2013.32 The more than century-old red-brick church in
Dayton, known colloquially as the “Old EUB Church,”
according to Rev. Ted Schulz, has sentimental value for
more than just the 20-some people who now fill its pews
Sundays as Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church. “My
heart is in this church,” said Anne Hill, a Dayton resident
who graduated from the Shenandoah College and
Conservatory of Music, a school that used to hold classes
and events in the building but has since moved to
Winchester and become Shenandoah University. “I’d love
to see it restored,” she said of the historic building, which
now houses the Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church
congregation. “There are so many wonderful memories
from this church.” She shared one: “I graduated in this
room,” Hill added, motioning to the sanctuary, where the
walls seem to head north for miles before they reach the
cherry oak ceiling. The church has seen its share of wear
and tear since Hill’s 1954 graduation ceremony.
Now, aluminum containers are bunched in areas
around the sanctuary, placed strategically to catch dripping
water from the dilapidating roof. The oldest part of the
church, where the pulpit sits today, was built in 1904, a year after a fire swept through downtown
Dayton and ravaged the original building. Over the years, various congregations have added on to the
building. The piecemeal construction has created “peaks and valleys” in the roof, according to Schulz,
who leads Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church. “That’s where we’re having all the problems with
the leaks,” he explained. Schulz’s nearly 90-year-old mother, Carrie Pitsenbarger Schulz, has to avoid
some of the keys on the circa-1927 Möller four-manual pipe organ—a rare find—because the dripping
has ruined them. Shepherd of the Valley purchased the church in 2003 “as is,” leaky roof and all.
The congregation has completed several
renovation projects so far, such as restoration of the
building’s stained-glass windows, installation of a
bathroom on the main floor and a kitchenette, as well
as some minor painting jobs. But with such a tiny
congregation, costs become overwhelming. A decade
after purchasing the historic building, the congregation
has finally been able to scrounge up the funds for a
roof replacement, although the job will not be as all-
inclusive as originally hoped. Church members hired
roofers to replace the slate roof that covers the oldest
section of the church, but they would love to include the newer metal roof that covers one-third of the
32 Candace Sipos, “Slated for Repair, Daily News Record. Harrisonburg: September 21, 2024 (text and pictures). ©2013,
Byrd Newspapers. Used with permission.
II.B.14 Dayton U.B. Church and SCI 136
