MainStreet Warner Kicks Off Capital Campaign to Restore The Lodge

On October 11, 2024, an hour before Warner’s 77th Fall Foliage Festival officially began with midway rides and a concert at the local amphitheater, MainStreet Warner kicked off its capital campaign to renovate the former Harris Masonic Lodge. Numerous volunteers, donors, Masons, and community members gathered to learn about the campaign and to celebrate the building’s brand new MainStreet Warner Lodge sign, designed and carved by longtime Warner resident Jim McLaughlin.

After Katharine Nevins’s heartfelt welcome to the event and expressions of gratitude for everything contributors have done so far, local landscape architect George Pellettieri shared thoughts about how the MainStreet Warner Lodge, after being renovated with a fully-equipped kitchen, meeting room and performance venue, would benefit the local community. The President of MainStreet Warner’s Board of Directors, Neil Nevins, then elaborated on the history of the building, offered an update on the renovation progress, and shared information about how people could donate to the campaign.

The building, built in 1833, was originally The First Baptist Church in Warner. In 1964, the Masons bought the building, noted for its beautiful stained glass windows and Hook & Hastings Concert Pipe Organ. The Masons sold the building to MainStreet Warner in September of 2020, with the assurance that the building would continue to provide a place for service to the community.

Through generous individual donations, along with grants from Community Development Finance Authority and Housing & Urban Development, MainStreet Warner has raised half of the expected one million dollar price tag required to renovate this historic building. DayStar Builders of Henniker has already combined the two buildings and started work on the community room and kitchen.

On a joyful weekend marking the 250th anniversary of Warner’s founding and Warner’s Fall Foliage Festival, the visible progress on the Lodge, the raising of the official sign on the building, and the well-attended capital campaign kick-off added cause for celebration.

For more information, to make a donation, or to request a tour of The MainStreet Warner Lodge, visit the website www.mainstreetwarnerinc.org.