It was at Holes for Heroes back in 2016 that Brad Carlson and me got to interview Greg Thomas, a man in Montgomery, MN who, when given a terminal diagnosis and mere weeks to live, decided to restore a crumbling country church.
His story was spellbinding – it was one of the most interesting interviews I’ve ever done. And it chronicled a quest that had gone on (if I recall correctly) for seven years, at that time.
Which isn’t bad for a guy who’d been given, as I recall, three months to live.
As we parted ways, I told him to come by next year and update us. He said he hoped he could – but he’d just gotten more bad news about his prognosis, and would be lucky to be around in months, rather than a full year.
He was finally right.
Greg Thomas, a cancer patient who inspired millions with restoration of crumbling country church, has died: https://t.co/VdbXCeFzta pic.twitter.com/rbSuWEOZFI
— Boyd Huppert (@BoydHuppert) July 16, 2017
But then we all are, eventually.
Thanks for the amazing story, Greg, RIP.
I’d say click through to the link and you’ll realize, yet again, that lawyers ruin everything. The Church couldn’t open/run the church due to liability concerns and it and Greg had a falling out over that.
Could be liability concerns, or it could be falling population, fewer priests, and not enough money to keep the church maintained. My great aunt and uncle supported the church she’d grown up in for many years, and when they died, the trustees were forced to sell the building to a historical park. And that was a Methodist church–no issue of “not enough men willing to be celibate” and all that. Just issues of fewer farmers who wanted a small church within five miles of home.
Montgomery suffers this especially badly, as the main things going there are farming and a cannery. Development went north to New Prague, really.
For those interested here is the audio of our chat with Greg back in February 2016:
https://soundcloud.com/northern-alliance-radio/2-6-16-narn-mitch-berg-hr1#t=33:25