St. Joseph Church getting new roof

St. Joseph Catholic church is currently under construction as damage to the structure’s rafters required installation of a new roof.

The problem was originally identified when it was noticed that the north wall was bowed and leaning out a bit. It was found that multiple rafters were broken. A new roof was put on about 10 years ago, and the insurance adjuster recently found there were three layers of shingles on the building.

An engineer was hired to determine the cause of the breaks in the rafters, some of which were new and some old. It must be determined whether the cause of the broken rafters was the weight of the layers of roofing material or whether it was due to some weather event (wind, snow, etc.)

The current repair job, being done by William (Bill) Bell, contractor, includes putting in newly designed trusses to better support the weight of the roof and to accommodate the arch of the church ceiling.

According to the book, “Lincoln County, A Lasting Legacy”, published in 1998 by former publisher of The Record, Don Walter, “Odessa’s Roman Catholics built St. Joseph Church in 1905. Before then, since 1901 Mass had been celebrated in a rented warehouse by the Rev. H. P. Van de Ven, who came to Odessa every six weeks from Sprague. The Catholic following consisted largely of Bohemian settlers. A resident priest was assigned to Odessa in 1910. St. Joseph’s church building, at the corner of May Avenue and Alder Street, little changed in its appearance from the time it was built, today is the oldest house of worship in Odessa.”