RATHDRUM - What has been a rock for worshippers since 1905 will now be The ROC for youth in Rathdrum.

The stately Rathdrum Community Methodist Church behind Granny's at McCartney and Post streets will be The ROC (Rathdrum Outreach Center), a faith-based place for youth and others to gather.

"We'd like to provide an environment and refuge where youth or anybody in the community needs to find some joy or a place to come after school to do their homework and have a snack," said Brenden Biggs, who recently bought the building with his wife, Tomika.

Biggs said the vision is to eventually have the building open 24-7 and staffed by volunteers.

"If God has given us this building, we want to use it to its fullest potential," Biggs said. "We don't want to be just open on Sundays."

Structural work is needed, so it's unclear when the outreach center will open, he said. However, it's possible that the center could be open during repairs.

The building is one of the oldest in Rathdrum and was the city's first Protestant church.

Many of the church's historical features - including the stained-glass windows, a bell, curved pews, wood floors and a pulley system once used to lower a candelabra to the sanctuary from the second floor - are still intact. The building is wheelchair-accessible.

"It's not as if the place is going to fall down, but it needs extensive work and we really believe the right people and finances will come along," Biggs said. "God has laid this on my heart to do ministry out of this building."

Services and events haven't been held inside the church for more than a year since the Methodist congregation became too small to maintain the building, said Beth Holcomb, who attended the church for 24 years.

At its peak, hundreds of Methodists from throughout the region came to the church to worship.

Holcomb said she's relieved the building won't be destroyed and will continue to be used for a faith-based purpose.

"We loved the building, but it just got to be too much so we sold it," Holcomb said. "We didn't want to see it disappear. It's a neat old building. I was concerned somebody was going to buy it just for the stained-glass windows."

Ellen Larsen of the Rathdrum/Westwood Historical Society said the building is "warm and inviting."

"If it would have been torn town, my heart would have cried," she said. "(The outreach center) is a nice idea that shows community spirit, and the fact that it was a community church speaks to a lot of people."

Holcomb said it was a Presbyterian church until 1925 when it changed to Methodist.

"There were more Methodists in this area and more Presbyterians in Post Falls, so they swapped churches," Holcomb said.

The Methodist Conference in Spokane sold the Rathdrum building about five years ago to a developer who planned to turn it into a community meeting hall. But when he couldn't make the payments, Kootenai County took ownership.

The building went to a tax sale last September for $12,500, the amount owed in unpaid property taxes, but it did not sell.

It then went to auction in October and was bought by Bob and Jeanette Delauter of Post Falls for $10,200.

"As soon as we went inside, we felt that it needed to stay a church and not be torn apart," said Bob, adding that he didn't go inside before purchasing the building.

While Delauter said he believed he got a bargain on the building, he wasn't up to restoring it as he has with other structures.

"When Brenden came to me with what he had in mind, I thought it was a great idea," Delauter said. "If you can help people in life, that's a good thing."

Delauter said he won't make a profit on his investment, but as it turns out, it wasn't about the money, he said.

"I could've sold it to someone else and made some money," he said, adding that he had other offers. "All I did was hold it over until someone came along to keep it as a church. If God is telling (Biggs) what to do, it's going to happen. If the community wants to keep the building, then it should stand behind him."

The Biggses plan to open a benefit account at a bank for people to support the ministry and they plan to raise funds through their worship band called First Love.

Brenden has a construction background and Tomika has been involved in a women's ministry. Together, they've assisted residents in need with home repairs. The Biggses have six kids and four are attending school in the Lakeland School District.

Brenden said The ROC could resemble the Boys and Girls Club, which offers youth after-school and summer programs. Music will be a focus.

"We want to be a force that affects the community in a positive way," he said. "Our minds are swimming with possibilities for this, but we're going under His guidance."