SHARON — Sharon’s Christ Church Episcopal (CCE) building was completed in 1819, almost 200 years ago.More than two years ago some tree work was being done on the property. A worker was high in the air in a lift bucket. While doing his work he noticed there was rot in the almost-200-year-old steeple.Cathy Casey, who is the clerk of the church, recalled that, “Based on what the tree worker saw, we decided it would be wise to take a closer look at the steeple and get some professionals involved.”Two years were spent inspecting the steeple, seeking professional advice, developing a restoration plan and planning fundraising to pay for the repairs. The inspections revealed significant rot on the steeple’s pillars and other significant related deterioration.Joseph Hajek, the senior warden of the church, said it wasn’t easy to decide if it should be replaced or restored.“At the beginning we changed our minds so many times as to how to approach this project,” Hajek said. “Some people wanted the steeple restored. Some wanted it torn down and a new steeple built. In the end we made the right decision: to restore it.” Casey also noted that, “Greg Farmer from the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation was called in to consult on the project. After his evaluation, he said the steeple is so historic and unique, it should be restored.”Once the extent of the damage to the steeple and the roof that surrounds it was ascertained, the church got an estimate of approximately $200,000 to remove the steeple; send it to Heritage Restoration in Providence R.I., which is a company specializing in restoration of historic buildings; bring it back to Sharon; and reinstall it. The church bell was also shipped to Heritage Restoration for refurbishment. The steeple had been removed from the belfry in November 2010. On Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, David Aracil and Justin Boesch of Heritage came down from Rhode Island to clean out debris from the steeple and lower roof of the church and load them on a flatbed truck. Sharon resident Nick Moore, a member of the church, called on his brother, David, to help with the work. “David is an architect who lives in southern Connecticut,” he said. “And David called Leland Torrence, a general contractor specializing in restorations whom he had worked with before.”Torrence was hired as the general contractor for the project; and he called Rob Cagnetta, owner of Heritage Restoration, with whom he had worked on other restoration projects. Moore noted that, “Now that we know the extent of damage to the steeple, we’re very lucky that we discovered the problem and took action to correct it before bad weather tore it down.”Casey and Hajek said the congregation is hopeful the restored steeple will be back in Sharon in June. In the spring a crew from Heritage Restoration will be in Sharon for about a month completing necessary repairs and modifications to the “doghouse” the steeple sits on. To pay for the restoration, the church began a capital campaign to raise $200,000.“To date, we’ve raised about three quarters of the money,” Casey said. “We are very happy the money not only came from church members but also from the general community.”Moore said, “The fundraising committee has done an excellent job. One bit of luck was an anonymous matching fund challenge grant from a foundation, which greatly helped.”Hajek said a general campaign mailing will go out soon to raise the remaining required money.Cased noted the church is in Sharon’s historic district and many residents who are not church members appreciate the historic value and beauty of the building and want to see it properly restored.Anyone wishing to make a contribution can send it to Christ Church Episcopal, Steeple Fund, PO Box 1778, Sharon, CT 06069.
Latest News
Greg Fricke and James Boehmer, co-owners of Peggy Mercury in Kent, recently launched their first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts.”
Provided
Fricke and Boehmer are not there to stock their shelves with the same products customers find at standard makeup retailers. They’re there to help customers find what works for them. That usually means asking customers about themselves and learning about their beauty habits, skin, style and the way they like to present themselves. Fricke and Boehmer believe it’s their job to help customers bring out the qualities that suit them and determine what works best for their look.
So much of the Peggy Mercury world is about emboldening people to become more creative, and possibly bolder, versions of themselves. Some of this comes through the store’s creative collaborations with artists, designers and stylists.
It’s part of an ethos that encourages them and their friends to use the shop as a kind of laboratory, trying out new creative experiments without knowing how they might turn out. Whether in fashion, painting, fiber arts or photography, the projects almost always turn out marvelously.
A line of sterling silver charms they sell started as a small project by their friend Nolan Percival. In the beginning, the pieces were for close friends and loved ones. But Boehmer and Fricke encouraged Percival to get a little more serious about the project and create a whole line for the store. Today, it’s one of their top-selling collections.
Classic styles, bold colors, and creative concerts make up the “Imaginary Concerts” line at Peggy Mercury.Provided
“Imaginary Concerts” has the duo taking their own advice.
The project started as a way for Boehmer to connect with his mother, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Taking old concert shirts from his own collection, Boehmer and his mother began cutting out the graphics with the idea that they would make a quilt together. Unfortunately, she died before they could complete the project in 2025. The pieces, which were ready for production, were put on the back burner as Boehmer and Fricke dealt with their loss and the whirlwind of projects that never seemed to cease at Peggy Mercury.
But the harsh winter of 2026 presented an opportunity to take some time and focus on themselves. Part of that meant revisiting and redefining the concert T-shirt project. This time, instead of looking to the warmth and comfort of a quilt, they turned to another passion — fashion.
Taking a page from their own book, they wanted to create something that felt comfortable to them. They took two disparate loves — one rooted in simple preppy style, with clean lines and classic silhouettes, and the other in the nitty gritty worlds of punk rock and pop — and blended them together to create something entirely new. Pulling from the staples of vintage Brooks Brothers and Charvet collections, they applied the graphic elements with bold stitching reminiscent of punk jackets of the ‘70s and ‘80s, but with a much more sophisticated air.
But the remixing isn’t just the pairing of prep and punk. The pieces are not canon. They take liberties with the realities of concert tours, combining one band’s dates with another band’s logos, mixing them all up until the reality is lost and imagination is the only truth.
Shirts from Peggy Mercury’s first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts,” hang on display.Provided
Adding to the mix is an element of perpetual creativity. Art can be messy, both figuratively and literally, and many of Fricke and Boehmer’s artist friends carry evidence of their work on them at all times. As a nod to these tireless creatives, the duo added haphazard splashes of bright color, giving the line an even more distinctive feel.
For them, “Imaginary Concerts” passes the “Peggy Test.” The mythical Peggy Mercury is a fictional figurehead for the company, a character who thrives on creativity and change. The name, much like the clothing line, is a mixture of interests: Mercury is a planet, a deity and an elusive, transformative element, while Peggy is the wonderfully stylish and boundary-pushing Peggy Guggenheim.
Everything Fricke and Boehmer put in their store has to pass this test: Would Peggy Mercury approve? For their first collection, the answer is a resounding yes.
Peggy Mercury is at 9 Maple St., Unit 2, Kent.
Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.
