After standing for nearly 150 years, Brooker Baptist Church on County Road 27 in Cottam is closing.
Attendance at the church has fallen to just ten or fifteen people in recent years, but at one time it had 150 congregants.
"Like many small, rural churches, our congregation is dwindling," said Mary Birch, who has attended the church since she was a child.
Instead of selling the building outright, the congregation has issued an Expression of Interest for interested charities or non-profits to take it over.
Mary Birch at the church says submissions will be vetted.
"We would get to choose, have some say in the future of what that facility would be, rather than putting it on the market, and it could be torn down," she said.
Submissions are due on September 5. Already, some groups have come forward.
"Just by word of mouth, there are some private schools, Christian schools looking for a facility," said Birch.
She hopes more groups will express interest now that it's on the 211 app.
Birch has fond memories growing up in the church.
"When it was a thriving church, we used to have a lot of community dinners. They would put on a Christmas concert. Those were always fun for the kids. We would do little skits and plays. We had costume parties at Halloween," she recalled.
