SAN ANTONIO -- The congregation at El Camino church found themselves praying outside on Thursday night because they say they were kicked out of the church at the last minute.
“You have until 3 o’clock today to take everything out because we will be locking the doors,” Edith Zapata said they were told by the building owner.
Zapata said for about a year the church has been renting space at 8308 Fredericksburg Road. Zapata and other members of the church were told they had to leave the building on Thursday due to a change in ownership, but they claim their landlord gave no advance notice.
For most of Thursday, church members were taking time to move their belongings.
“Everybody you see here stopped. They didn’t go to work, they came here to help out and gather our stuff because they said ‘at 3 o’clock we’re going to lock the doors,’” church member Jeny Medina said.
Former building owner Rabbi Roi Garcia said he gave the church 60 days notice and even offered the congregation a place to stay at a separate location for one month free of charge.
Zapata said they didn’t get that offer until minutes after KENS 5 contacted Garcia. Because of that, Zapata said the church was going to refuse his offer and focus on finding a new place to call home.
“We’re trying to be uplifting to the rest of the people and stay strong as a congregation as much as we can, but we need to look (at) the reality: We have no place to serve the lord right now,” Zapata said.
The building was used to serve as a charter school but was shut down the summer of 2011 after the Texas Education Agency alleges Garcia and others mismanaged money. Garcia denied those allegations.
