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The Wainui community was taken by surprise when half the pews in its little historic church disappeared.
Parishioners Alan and Rae Penney unlocked the Wainui Settlers Church in Wainui Road on Sunday, March 28 to prepare it for a service that day.
Services are usually held monthly but because of lockdowns, there had been no service since January.
Imagine the Penneys’ surprise when they found four pews, and the squabs from all eight pews, missing. A note left on the floor said “will return”.
The pews are made of kauri and believed to be as old as the church – around 160 years.
Parishioners said the service was “quite cosy” that day, perched on just four pews.
The church is locked so the person responsible must have known where to find the key.
Ōrewa Police were advised, as parishioners were unsure whether the pews had been stolen or borrowed.
Early on Wednesday, March 31, the pews were discovered, left outside the church in the rain. The squabs were also returned. Locals hastily covered the pews to protect them.
Minister Werner Schroeder was pleased they were returned before the Easter service.
“It’s not the first time we’ve had things disappear,” he says. “Several years back the organ was removed and eventually found in a pub in Devonport.”
The mystery of who removed and returned the pews, and why, remains unsolved.
