The Inglesia ni Crist (INC) of Manila will begin church services in the ghost town it purchased at auction in 2011.
INC bought the ghost town of Scenic, South Dakota for the purchase price of 30.8-million pesos, or $700,000.
The first American INC was set up in Honolulu in 1968, where a large number of Filipinos live. South Dakota is not an area meant to house Filipinos, so the purchase of the ghost town was a mystery until now.
The 46-acre town already has a gas station, museum, bar and post office. INC plans to build one of their cathedral churches in the city and open services. This according to pastor Jose Ventilacion who will perform the church services in the town.
Ventilacion, the minister assigned to Scenic, told the Rapid City Journal: “We have started services in the Scenic Community Hall on Thursdays and Sundays. We thought it would be best to start by reaching out to people and build from there.”
Inglesia Ni Cristo’s American headquaters is located in Daly City, California and has not given a full statement on the town and it’s plans just yet.
According to the paper, interest in buying the town began when Filipino American soldiers who were based in Rapid City were looking for a place to worship.