On Friday, November 17th, a smattering of folks braved the brisk morning temperatures in Ridgeville, Wisconsin, to witness the raising of the new steeple, at Saint John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church. Their collective energies centered around the raising of that new steeple, adorned with a cross, which would stand 108 feet above the earth, when pieced together and bolted down by Cody Connelly and his crew, from Ultimate Precision LLC, based out of La Crosse.
The Monroe County Herald was counted amongst the scattered eclectic showing of attendees, in what was to be a six-hour-long event, from the arrival of Connelly and crew to the Herald pulling out of the church parking lot. Pastor Bob Gerke was there, although he claimed to be retired. Dorothy Gerke, Pastor Bob’s wife, was busy annotating the event, through video and photos. She was marking memories, from the three sections of the steeple, before it went up, to the moment the fiberglass cross was securely at the tippy-top of its 108-foot destination. At the end of the event, Dorothy would be the one who got the most steps in, while Cody Connelly easily won the highest point reached.
History
The original Saint John’s church was a 20x32 log cabin, built in 1862, on the current piece of land where the church stands today. The land was purchased by the congregation, which included half a lot and three acres, for a church and a parsonage, in Ridgeville. Six acres was also purchased at the same time, for use as a cemetery.
Anyone living in Ridgeville can confirm that high winds frequent the area and always have. These habitual offenders of calm caused the first steeple to surrender to its mighty blows, around 1947. Within a few years of the knockout punch, a wooden cross reached the highest heights of Saint John’s, serving as a proxy go-between for steeple time periods. The wooden cross was placed atop the belltower, and it had a solid 70-year run, before a rotting base caused it to flip-flop with the wind direction. The visual flip-flopping caused it to be taken down, for safety reasons.
The Decision and the Call
When pressed by the Herald on how the wheels were set in motion on the steeple decision, Dorothy said, “Many of the congregation who have been with the church for many years wanted to see a steeple up there again. The council talked about it [putting up a new steeple] and they agreed to bring it before the entire congregation for a vote, where it was officially approved.”
Also speaking on the matter was Greg Kortbein. “If we [Saint John’s council members] were buying a water heater, we would just go ahead and buy it,” Kortbein stated. “But the steeple, well - we needed a full vote on that one.” The steeple price tag came in at $40,000.
Once the idea was ratified by an enthusiastic congregation, Kortbein said that they found the right company for the job, the same way most people find out information in our modern age — Google. “We Googled it and we came up with a company called Piedmont, out of North Carolina.”
Also, in attendance on November 17th, was Ron Pingel and his dog, Phoebe. “We had talked about getting the steeple for a number of years, trying to get the old-style original steeple, and we found out that they don’t make them anymore,” Pingel informed the Herald. “So, fiberglass was what we went with, in a different, more modern style, as it seems the top choice by many.”
Filling in the Spaces
There was quite a bit of waiting around, while Cody Connelly and his crew professionally checked, double-checked and triple checked the assembly of the three pieces: the base, the middle square and then the top pointy piece — complete with the cross. The steeple raising had been scheduled for the previous day, but extremely high winds thwarted those plans.
Keith Waege, chairman of the church council, was the person who had called the Herald on Thursday and informed them that the Steeple raising would take place on Friday, due to the high winds. On Friday morning, Keith told the Herald, “Yesterday the winds were so strong that they didn’t dare do it [put up the steeple]. You could hardly even stand up when those winds were whipping through.”
The delay of a day took the higher temperatures away, causing the steeple-raising-thrill-seekers to bundle up, or just pull up in their vehicles and watch the process, as if they were at a drive-in silent movie.
Story Time
While everyone stood around, stories were shared with the Herald, about the amazing history of Saint John’s. “This will be the third replacement since 1862,” Waege started out. “The cross we had stood for a long time, but it got damaged by a high-wind storm. After it was fixed, another storm came in, two weeks later, and wrecked it again. Then a tornado came through.” Waege went on to inform the Herald that Saint John’s is the mother church of the WELS [Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod]. “This was the first church in Monroe County, of all the churches, even Tomah, Sparta, South Ridge, and Kendall.”
Waege then talked about when the brick church was built, replacing the log cabin. “This church was constructed with brick, horses, and block & tackle. Construction started on June 11th, 1900, by volunteers from the congregation. They built this 26-foot-high structure, with a 75-foot tower, brick by brick, together.” A news article in the Tomah Herald, dated March 14, 1900, stated that 150,000 bricks were hauled from the Tomah Railroad depot to Saint John’s.
Cody Connelly and Crew
Cody Connelly, owner/operator of Ultimate Precision LLC, took time out to chat with the Herald. Although his company started back in 2011, his love for the business all started at age 8, when he would go to work with his father, Chuck Connelly, and was run lifts. Cody said of his father, “My dad really paved the way for me, and I am so grateful for him. To have someone in your family who works tirelessly, and their efforts not only bring them success, but it provides such an avenue of success for their children and grandchildren as well … he sowed the seeds and I embrace the passion for the business, continuing to reap the fruits of our family’s efforts.”
When pressed by the Herald on how often his company raises steeples, Connelly said, “Honestly, setting a steeple is uncommon, but I have personally worked on a lot of them. I started at 16 [years old]. I have put up the Portland steeple, the steeple in Saint Mary’s Ridge, Fish Creek, and we also did the steeple in La Crosse, at Saint Paul’s Cathedral.” The steeple at Saint Paul’s was 216 feet tall, double the Saint John’s steeple height.
When asked about the incredible heights which he and his crew work at, Connelly said, “The first time going up, every time, the nerves are shaky. But after I get to the top and start working, I am fine. If your lift is level and the winds are not strong, you will be good.”
On the day’s happenings, Connelly explained, “When pastor Bob Gerke called me, he said that they were having a meeting about the steeple, and he would like me to attend. At the time of the call, I was working on a church, down in Olin, Iowa. I did not get home from that job until 4 o’clock in the morning. The meeting here was at 11 a.m.” That meeting involved the entire congregation, and three days later the entire project was a go.
Cody Connelly was not the only company that Saint John’s approached, but they were the only company willing to come in immediately and handle the project. “Personally, I think this intimidated some of the other companies, but not us,” Connelly boasted. “On a bigger job, you put your other jobs aside, and get the big job done.” Connelly informed the Herald that most everything he does, has a three-year warranty. “I put it in the paperwork, but I also verbally give them my word, which is a stronger bond for me. I stick by my promise, even if they need some help after the warranty expires.”
When asked what his company does during the winter months, Connelly stated that he has another company, La Crosse Painter’s, that does interior, exterior and property preservation. “We do both commercial and residential, and I like it because it is warmer inside,” Connelly quipped. To reach either of Cody Connelly’s businesses, call 608-461-4104. You may also go to their detailed website, at https://www.ultimateprecisionbuildingrestoration.com
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