Sunday, February 5, 2023
Since 1854 — News from Montcalm County and Ionia County, Michigan
The approximately 60-member congregation of Zion United Methodist Church are continuing to pick up the pieces after their 138-year-old church was extensively damaged in a fire.
Six fire departments responded to the blaze that started on the southeast side of the building at 423 W. Washington St. around 5:30 p.m. on Jan. 5, during the church’s weekly soup kitchen event.
When the 137-year-old Zion United Methodist Church in Ionia caught fire on Jan. 5, more than a historic worship building was lost.
Nobody was injured in the blaze, but the Zion Community Food Pantry — an essential source of groceries for many families and individuals — was destroyed.
A 137-year-old church continues to stand in downtown Ionia after six fire departments responded to and successfully extinguished a structure fire Thursday evening.
