On July 7, 2015, CBC News reported that the small church of St. Sixte, just north of Thurso, Quebec had been burned down.
The church was 130 years old, and had been newly renovated. The official year of establishment was in 1885. Not only did the church provide services, but also doubled as a municipal office.
A man who lives next to the church, Roch Lafortune, stated that no one was hurt and that the fire originated in a house adjacent to the church, which ultimately spread to the church.
Another man who lived nearby the church, Clifford Unger, stated that the church was centre of the community. The loss of the church affects everyone.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
An update: 3 years later, according to the Ottawa Citizen, the little church of St. Sixte was rebuilt. The archives which date back to the 1800s were miraculously saved from the flames and the bell tower which had been partially ruined was now set to rights.
Inside the church, a piece of wood can be found with the names of the volunteers who put forward dedication to rebuilding the church. The first mass was held in celebration and blessing of the new church, with the Archbishop, Paul-Andre Durocher of Gatineau to celebrate.
Nearly 100 people squeezed into the church, barely fitting past capacity and a tent had been assembled outside the church to accommodate for the overflow of nearly 250-300 people.
Pauline Larouche, 73 years-old and her husband, listened in while sitting outside their home. The presbytery where they lived was the building that had an electrical fire which ultimately destroyed the church.
Larouche explained that even with poor attendance before the fire, the people of the community needed a church. She claimed that while attending another church is possible, it is not the same as attending your own church.
While some people were opposed to the building of a new church, money it seemed was not an issue for the rebuilding. There had been insurance, private donors and fundraisers to help with the cost. Without the generosity of the people, along with the insurance, a church surely never would have been built.
Now the church has a new priest, with people coming to the church to visit and the people in the community who have invested their time and money feel a sense of ownership and partnership in the future of the church.