Rev. Dr. Dietra Wise Baker doesn’t know how much it will cost to rebuild Centennial Christian Church, which suffered severe damage during the EF-3 tornado on May 16, 2025.
But she knows its resurrection won’t be quick or easy.
Wise Baker explained that insurance will cover some of the rebuilding expenses, but the church must raise most of the funds needed for the extensive demolition and reconstruction project that is expected to take at least four years.
Tragically, church volunteer Patricia Ann Penelton was killed when the church collapsed during the tornado. Three others were injured.
Still, Centennial Christian Church plans to stay in the Fountain Park neighborhood.
Wise Baker’s vision for a new multi-purpose church located at 4950 Fountain Ave. includes a co-working space, a space that can be rented out for events, and a medical and affordable housing unit. Partnerships with private donors and other organizations, she believes, can help make this vision a reality.
A goal of the rebuilding will be to address those who no longer have a place to live.
“Affordable housing is going to be a major need now more than ever,” Wise Baker said.
For over a century, the Fountain Park church has been a cornerstone in the community. The church has served the area by providing essential resources, including housing for seniors, healthcare assistance, and a preschool program.
Centennial is partnering with three regional and national organizations to help fund the rebuild. Disciples of Christ Pension Fund, National Benevolent Association, and the National Convocation of the Christian Church will each donate $10,000 to the church’s recovery fund.
In addition to these contributions, Metropolitan Congregations United (MCU) is donating $100,000 to support both the church and the residents of Fountain Park.
MCU activates congregation members to work on community concerns, and they identify and work on issues beginning in their neighborhoods, then expanding efforts to the larger community.
Since the storm, Centennial has held its services at North County Christian Church. Congregation leaders have been engaging with partners to ensure the services and programs they offer at the Fountain Park location can still be provided for residents in that neighborhood.
Centennial launched a GoFundMe campaign that has raised over $20,000. But money isn’t the only resource that’s needed – a helping hand goes a long way, too.
10th Ward Alderwoman Shameen Hubbard-Clark has helped provide that.
On that tragic day, the emergency call lines were so busy operators couldn’t answer all the incoming calls.
“911 in the city was not picking up the calls, kept getting switched to the county,” said Wise Baker. She remembers how her calls kept getting switched around only to end up with a busy signal on the other end of the phone. However, Hubbard-Clark was able to alert the fire department about the church to get help over there as soon as possible.
“The two survivors owe her their lives,” Wise Baker said. She said Hubbard-Clark is a “connector” who has been getting resources to the 10th Ward.
Blackarc, a local Black-owned design firm, recently presented a visual model to the community of what the new and improved Centennial Church could look like.
“We don’t want people in Fountain Park to think that we are leaving them,” Wise Baker said when speaking of her beloved community.
She has seen how devastation has caused some churches to pack up and leave.
“We are going to continue to do our ministries while we are rebuilding,” she said.
“We are definitely not closing.”
Dollar General is next ‘Target’
During a CNN OutFront interview on May 28, Rev. Jamal Bryant told host Erin Burnett that the “boycott against Target is the most successful boycott by Black people in 70 years, since the Montgomery bus boycott.”
“They’ve lost $1 billion in valuation. Their stock tumbled from $145 a share to $93 a share. The CEO’s salary was cut by 43%,” Bryant said, noting that it’s an example “of what happens when our community mobilizes and stays focused.”
Along with canceling Target, Bryant says Black America must now take on the Dollar General.
“Like other corporations, Dollar General has bowed to pressure from the Trump administration and rolled back their diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives,” Bryant told USA Today.
“Dollar General also must be held accountable for failing to invest in the very Black and low-income communities that make up the backbone of their customer base. This isn’t just a corporate retreat — it’s a betrayal of the people they profit from.”
Unlike the Target campaign, which encouraged consumers to stop shopping at the retailer, the Dollar General action is an electronic-based call-in and email campaign.
“Dollar General is a contributor to food deserts, not just in absence of food, but absence of fairness,” he said.
-Dorothy Boulware, Word in Black