Although we have only been able to hold a few virtual events in recent months due to the pandemic situation, the Apostolic History Network has made good use of this time. Already since 2019, there have been considerations to buy the Brockhagen archive, which we have rented so far, from the New Apostolic Church Western Germany in order to keep it permanently as an archive and event location. We now want to bring these considerations to a good end, thanks to the support of many networkers, donors, and friends.
A building purchase means high costs for an association on a one-time and permanent basis, and also means an organizational effort that is significantly greater compared to the purchase of a private property. For example, in the case of financing by a bank, it must be demonstrated that a loan is not only secured by an equivalent value, but also that regular income from contributions and donations can be expected, and this over the entire term of a loan.
On the other hand, the past almost ten years have shown that the archive is important and valuable to many in the network and far beyond as an independent forum and neutral storage location for archival materials. A building purchase provides the permanent foundation for this work, and also creates the opportunity to make changes and expansions to the infrastructure if the necessary funds are available.
These considerations led to a member survey in the spring of 2020, which showed a clear majority in favor of buying the building. This was followed by initial talks with the New Apostolic Church Western Germany, whose church leadership signaled its willingness to sell the building to us.
A subsequently prepared pollutant report indicated that there are a few contaminated parts of the building (asbestos fibers in the roof shingles, contaminated tile adhesive…), which do not pose any acute health hazards, but must be taken into account when the building is refurbished. This expert opinion was taken into account in the pricing and resulted in an offer price of 150,000 euros plus incidental purchase costs for the network (see our report from September, 2020).
In September 2020, we started our largest and most successful fundraising campaign to date, which we were able to conclude a few days ago. We were able to raise well over 60,000 euros in donations for the purchase, plus the promise of a grant of 15,000 euros from the political municipality of Steinhagen.
This leaves a financing requirement of (rounded up) 100,000 euros, for which we have a loan calculation from a local bank. We want to cover the resulting loan installments with monthly special donations, which were promised to us by the networkers in the 2020 member survey. The loan will run for ten years and be fully repayable, i.e. it will be completely paid off afterwards.
On May 23, we were able to present the negotiated documents in the network, and today, May 31, the circulation vote of all members on the purchase agreement and the borrowing begins . Until June 30, the now 145 members from five countries can cast their votes and comment on the project.
We would like to thank all of our donors and those who have advised and otherwise helped us for their support in this campaign, and look forward to completing it soon!
Even now we are happy about one-time or even regular financial support! Our bank details are available here: https://www.apostolische-geschichte.de/en/make-a-donation/
