Windsor churches and synagogue get money for security amid thefts, vandalism

Three religious organizations in Windsor, Ont., have received a total of nearly $100,000 to improve security at their churches and synagogues.

Windsor-Tecumseh MP Irek Kusmierczyk announced funding on Friday for the following institutions:

• Gracanica Serbian Eastern Orthodox Church - $12,726

• St. Mary and St. Moses Coptic Orthodox Church - $82,446

• Congregation Beth El - $1,271

"It's really good," said Father Moses Sadik of St. Mary and St. Moses.

"We're living now in a very hard time … and sometimes we have people coming and breaking our glass and doing some vandalism around the church and [damaging] the property."

The church has been a victim of theft around a dozen times over the past decade, Sadik said.

"They demolish – they cut the sound system," he said. "And they make a lot of damage to the property in and out."

Some of the thieves and vandals appear to be petty criminals from among the city's population of unhoused people involved in drug use, he added, but the Egyptian Christian denomination to which the church belongs has also become a target for ISIS and similar groups. 

Church has to match government funds

At one point, Sadik said, congregation members caught people lighting a fire in front of one of the church's gates.

The congregation took advantage of the government's Security Infrastructure Program (SIP) once before to build a fence and install security cameras, Sadik said, and it helped reduce incidents significantly.

It's using the current funding to add more fencing and security cameras and to upgrade doors.

The church has to match the government contribution, putting the total cost of the measures at more than $160,000.

"The Government of Canada is steadfast in its commitment to making sure all Canadians feel safe – regardless of where they work, gather and pray," Kusmierczyk said in a news release announcing the funding. 

"Since 2019, our federal government has invested millions of dollars in Windsor and Essex County to prevent crime, reduce hate-motivated incidents and to create a safer Canada for all."

The federal government announced on Sept. 24 that it is planning to replace the SIP with a new Canada Community Security Program (CCSP), which it says will expand the number and type of eligible activities under the SIP. 

The Windsor Police Service received 32 reports of hate-motivated incidents in 2023, just over half involving race or ethnicity and nine involving religion.