National Cathedral Raises $10 Million in Two Years Since Earthquake

Two years and $10 million later, the Washington National Cathedral is still working to recover from the Aug. 23, 2011 magnitude 5.8 earthquake that caused $26 million in damage to the historic structure. 

“In the two years since the 2011 earthquake damaged the Cathedral, we have made progress toward the restoration of our building.  Much of this progress has been behind-the-scenes planning, as the work is very complex and requires tremendous coordination,” said the Cathedral’s Senior Director of Finance and Administration Andrew Hullinger in a press release.

When the quake first hit, the cathedral's team of stone masons and engineers estimated that repairs could take a decade. Two years later they are wrapping up the complex assessment of the scope of repairs and are just beginning a portion of the work to restore the interior vaulting.

"When you look at all that's left to repair, it can be overwhelming," Sean Callahan, one of two stone masons who has been working on the cathedral since the quake, told Patch in an interview six months after the quake. 

Through donors and public contributions as well as a $5 million grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc., the Cathedral has raised $10 million and has another $26 million to go.

The cathedral won a $100,000 grant through the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s “Partners in Preservation” competition. According to a  press release, "Those funds will help to install the first phase of scaffolding in the west balcony and the first two bays of the nave, inspect the vaulted ceiling in these areas, and make the repairs which will allow for the removal of the black debris netting that currently obscures stone carvings and stained glass windows."

Upon the second anniversary of the earthquake, the Washington National Cathedral hopes to raise $50,000 from supporters.

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