100-year-old Whitesboro church reopens its doors

WHITESBORO, TX -- After months of hard work, the renovation of a century old church in Whitesboro is now complete.

What was once called First Christian Church in Whitesboro has been around since 1906 and it's still standing today, primarily because of one family.

When John and Ann Paty moved to Whitesboro 7 years ago, they were drawn to the Old Church on Main Street.

Co-owner, Ann Paty, says the church had been abandoned since the 70's and saw the opportunity to bring it back to life.

"It was boarded up for 40 years and we just couldn't see it being demolished," Paty said. "It was set for demolition a couple of times and we're a ministry family, and we felt we need to restore this church."

Paty says they got right to work after buying the church in April of last year. She says they renovated the church from top to bottom and even searched for the original companies that played a role in the building's construction.

"We sent all the glass to Burnet, Texas to have it redone -- the stained glass," Paty said. "And we found the original tin company that had done this building in 1906 for the ceiling tin."

Paty says they gave the church a major face lift, but wanted to preserve it's originality.

They worked for 10 straight months until completion this February, just in time to hold their first wedding.

"They just walked in and said this is where I'm getting married," said co-owner, Alicia Parker.

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100-year-old Whitesboro church reopens its doors