Community organizers are raising money for repairs and updates to the former St. John’s Episcopal Church in Dresden, photographed Saturday. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal

DRESDEN — A brass band concert at a sprawling riverside farm on a sunny Sunday helped fund plans to expand the use of a former church as a cultural center — to host more such events locally and indoors throughout the year.

The concert by Downeast Brass, a quintet of well-known area musicians who donated their performance, was free, though donations were encouraged. The gathering was a fundraiser for plans to offer more arts and cultural events at the former St. John’s Church and Meetinghouse in Dresden.

The former Episcopal church building, built in the early 1800s and located on Route 27 next to the Dresden Town Office, is already used for occasional special events, including an annual Christmas concert which, for decades, has featured the Downeast Brass band.

Peter Walsh, an organizer of the concert and member of the Friends of St. John’s Church/Meetinghouse, said those special events will continue. But he and others hope to expand the former church’s use to become a full-fledged cultural center, hosting arts, music, lectures, religious gatherings, weddings and other community events.

The sign on St. John’s Episcopal Church in Dresden, a historic landmark in the Lincoln County town. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal

He said some in town may find it too pricey to travel out of town for such cultural events, or difficult due to a lack of transportation, so it would be great to offer them right in Dresden.

“We have a lot of people in town who can’t afford to go to big concerts, and people, like seniors and others, who may not have transportation, who can’t get there,” Walsh said. “We want to bring art to people who can’t afford, or don’t have the means, to go other places.”

Last year the church held an historic sermon, with the Rev. Paul Tunkle portraying the late Rev. Jacob Bailey, who served parishioners in the area from 1761 to 1778.

And, Walsh said, other religious ceremonies could return there, too.

The building hasn’t been an active church since the 1980s or 1990s. In the 1990s a group of area residents raised funds to restore the building, which is overseen by a board of trustees. At the time the group that restored the building hoped it would be used regularly for a range of activities, but not many materialized other than the annual holiday concert.

Now the building is in need of some additional restoration and updating, including an already-underway replacement of its spires, some of which blew off in a storm in recent years. An area carpenter, John Young, built new spires for the building.

Walsh said the acoustics of the building are remarkable, so it’s a great place for music.

Loren Fields, French horn player for Downeast Brass, said at Sunday’s concert that the Dresden holiday concert and Windsor Fair are the band’s two favorite gigs. He said playing in St. John’s Church is special for them.

Organizers are raising money to repair and repurpose the former St. John’s Episcopal Church in Dresden as a community cultural center. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal

“We love playing Christmas in that little sanctuary there,” Fields told the roughly 50 people on hand for the benefit concert. “So dig deep, it’s a great place.”

Kathy Moran, whom Walsh said will serve as chairperson of the Friends of St. John’s Church/Meetinghouse, said the group also plans to host movie nights for kids, speakers, lectures and arts events. And she said they’re open to ideas for other events, as well.

“The first time you walk through those doors you recognize what a magical place it is,” Moran said of the building. “We have a lot of ideas for it, but it takes the community to do that with us.”

Improvements needed for the building include ramps to allow it to be accessible to everyone, and bathrooms.

Sunday’s concert came about after band member Dwight Tibbetts told Walsh they’d love to do a concert to benefit the Friends group because they’ve had such a good experience playing in Dresden. The band, which also includes Mike Peterson, Adam Newton, and Andy Forster, played a variety of tunes, ranging from songs made famous by Frank Sinatra and Led Zeppelin.

Sunday’s concert was at the Eastern River lavender farm of Margo and Barry Clifford, of Rhode Island, who offered the use of the spacious farm for the fundraiser.

Walsh said similar activities are happening at other former church buildings in Maine.

“It’s wonderful to take these beautiful buildings that used to be the center of a community, and bring them back and bring art, music, and culture to the people,” he said.