First brought together by faith, the parishoners of St. Paul's Roman Catholic Church are finding their bonds strengthened by tragedy -- the loss of their church in a suspected arson six months ago.
Plans for their new church will be revealed sometime in the spring, but in the meantime, the churchgoers say they miss their previous home.
"It was such a sad event, and I think the whole community wanted to be close together," says Francoise Delage, a part of the church's choir and a parish member for six years.
The Alymer-area church burned down in June and police, who say it is an arson, have not tracked down any suspects in relation to the fire.
A lawsuit and a parish's renewed faith
Just a few weeks ago, the insurance company overseeing a church sued the City of Gatineau for $3.8 million, alleging a fire hydrant nearby the church was not working when the fire broke out.
For the parishoners, the first concern is remaining together. At first they moved their services to a nearby movie theatre. Now, they gather in the back of monastery.
"I guess it's more appropriate, in a way," says church warden Richard Begin. "It's still not a church, but it's pretty comfortable."
The residents say they have faith their newfound fellowship will continue, no matter where they will attend services.
"The vast majority of the whole community of Aylmer would like something to come up," says Begin. "We've got a lot of support."
