Canadian military putting finishing touches on stone church renos

Members of the Canadian Forces are in Cape Breton this week to complete a mission that began last fall when about 500 soldiers came to the island on a training exercise called Nihilo Sapper 2017.

One of their projects was to repair the roof at St. Alphonsus Church, an historic stone church in Victoria Mines, just outside Sydney. Just two days after an event to officially unveil the completed roof, a windstorm lifted many of the shingles.

Six soldiers returned this week from New Brunswick's CFB Gagetown to finish the job.

"It's a matter of personal pride," said Maj. Chris Oldroyd. "We don't ever like to start a job that we don't finish.

"And so when we made an agreement with Melanie last fall, we wanted to make sure that we kept to our word and came back and finished what we started."

The head of the Stone Church Restoration Society, Melanie Sampson, said she's grateful for the military's help.

"It's fabulous for us. We've never feared for a moment," said Sampson.

"We're in the best hands of the country with the Canadian Armed Forces and if it wasn't for them and their assistance with the roof, it wouldn't be standing here today. It was in bad shape."

The volunteer society bought the building from the Diocese of Antigonish for $40,000, and is raising money to restore it as a wedding chapel and tourism attraction.

Sampson said the roof is a crucial step in preserving the rest of the structure.

The soldiers arrived Monday and have completed most of the repairs. They planned to spend the next couple of days ensuring that each shingle is securely fastened.

Winds were too strong Wednesday to allow a hoist to safely lift the soldiers to the peak of the roof, but they expect to wrap up their work Thursday or Friday.