ZELIENOPLE — Members of Park United Presbyterian Church have come back home after 18 months.

The church’s sanctuary opened to worshippers last weekend for the first time since July 2014 when a runaway dump truck crashed into the building at 115 E. Grandview Ave.

Since then, churchgoers have been attending services in the adjacent Park Hall.

“Everybody is excited to be back in the building,” said the Rev. Paul Merrill, pastor. “We’ve had visitors and babies who have never even worshipped in that building, so it was kind of weird for them to come in and say ‘What is this?’”

The church obtained a temporary permit to occupy the sanctuary since repairs are still unfinished.

The sanctuary was secured with support beams in its basement. Repairs have taken place since last summer.

The sanctuary holds about 160 people, although services usually see an average of 105 people.

Merrill said the church expected a “huge” decrease in people attending once services were moved to Park Hall. However, that has not been the case.

Membership has been steady, and the median age of churchgoers has decreased.

Merrill also said the services in Park Hall have given churchgoers the opportunity to be more social with one another.

“It was more condensed. We were closer together,” he said. “I think you’ll see some of that carry over into the sanctuary.”

Services were originally scheduled to return to the sanctuary by Christmas. However, the set of stairs leading to the main entrance collapsed, delaying the reopening.

“By the end, we were tired of not being able to get back in (the sanctuary) yet,” Merrill said. “It was starting to wear on us.”

Other churchgoers echoed Merrill’s excitement to be back in the sanctuary.

“I think everyone is glad to be back in our old stomping grounds,” said churchgoer Marietta Reeb. “However, I think it was a good experience to be out back (Park Hall). It made us closer as a congregation.”

“Everybody just ooh’d and aah’d when they came in (the sanctuary),” Reeb continued.

Churchgoer Larry Meeder said the church is “the people, not the building.”

“I don’t think it was a burden at all. I think it was a challenging task,” Meeder said. “The church stayed strong. The church stayed faithful.”

Despite the reopening, some features have not been fully repaired.

The new stained-glass windows have not been installed, and the stairs leading to the sanctuary that collapsed in December are not repaired. An updated sound system will also be installed, as will new paint and carpeting.

Merrill said a dedication ceremony will be sometime after Easter. A date has not been set.

“It’s a gradual process for us,” he said.

This is not the first adversity the church has been through in its 118-year history.

A fire burned the interior of the sanctuary in 1910. It took six months for repairs to be made, and services were conducted in the basement during that time.

The church also faced economic hardships during the Great Depression. However, attendance increased after World War II and financial troubles faded.

“I think we’re very resilient and flexible,” Merrill said. “The people here tend to respond in the time of need as God calls. It’s been a very wonderful response.”