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Dec. 10--The banquet hall at Elks Lodge 860 in North Tonawanda looked picture-perfect Friday night.
Jenni Jordan, her mother, her soon-to-be husband's mother and bridesmaids spent five hours decorating the room for Jordan's wedding reception, which was to be held Saturday night.
The bridal party had handcrafted holiday-themed centerpieces for the tables: centerpieces made with pine cones and Christmas ornaments. The bride's mother and the groom's mother meticulously ironed cloth seat covers a relative had brought for the event. Jordan's handmade party favors for the guests -- little twin boxes of candy, one representing the bride and the other the group -- were laid out on a table.
Then early Saturday morning, Jordan got a text message from her future mother-in-law to call.
Jordan couldn't believe what she heard.
A ferocious fire had gutted the 90-year-old lodge, a landmark in the historic canalside district of North Tonawanda where countless wedding receptions, community functions and other happy memories have been made since 1921.
Amazingly, no one was hurt in the early morning blaze, but the building and all of its contents were destroyed.
"I was, like, devastated," Jordan told The Buffalo News.
She broke down in tears.
"Why does this have to happen to me?" she recalled thinking.
The blaze also was a heartbreaking loss for the members of Elks Lodge 860.
Leaders from the lodge huddled inside a van parked across the scene Saturday morning, watching firefighters from volunteer companies in North Tonawanda and the City of Tonawanda douse stubborn hot spots from aerial ladders.
"There's just so many memories in that building," said James Sutton, chairman of the lodge's trustees.
The three-story building was built in 1921 as an Elks Lodge. While some parts of the building had been repaired over the years, much of the original building was intact, including handcrafted oak woodwork and stained-glass windows.
Sutton pointed out that the lodge room in the building was one of two in all of New York State still in its original condition.
"Now, there's only one left," he said.
The cause of the fire was under investigation late Saturday.
The fire department received a call shortly before 6 a.m. about smoke coming from the roof of the 14,000-square-foot building, Assistant Fire Chief Joseph Sikora said
"When we got here, there was no visible sign of fire from the outside of the building," Sikora said.
He and other firefighters made their way to the third floor, where they saw flames and smoke.
The firefighters went back outside, and moments later, flames were shooting through the roof, Sikora said.
Freezing temperatures caused some problems for the firefighters, Sikora said. Two suffered minor injuries because of the ice, but otherwise, no one was hurt, he said.
North Tonawanda Mayor Robert G. Ortt was at the scene to assess the damage Saturday morning.
"Architecturally, this is a huge loss," he said. "This is a historic building, a very beautiful building."
Plans are under way to tear down the structure, Ortt said. There was a possibility that one of the building's facades could be saved, he said.
The wedding wasn't the only event scheduled Saturday evening. A holiday party to raise gifts for disadvantaged children was also to be held.
After a flurry of frantic phone calls, arrangements were made to relocate both events.
Jordan's wedding reception was moved to the North Tonawanda Fire Department Rescue Fire Company 5's fire hall on Strad Avenue.
By 11 a.m., Cal Nuff, fire hall chairman, and Earl Cottrell, president of the fire hall, were arranging banquet tables and calling around to find bartenders and kitchen help.
The caterer, Jim Fingerlow of Say Cheesecake, unfurled white and silver table cloths.
"The chairs are blue," he pointed out, which matched the colors for the party at the Elks Lodge.
Luckily, he said, he hadn't brought over any of the food for the buffet dinner or the wedding cake to the lodge.
"They're at the bakery," he said with a sigh of relief.
Jordan's bridesmaids were preparing to recreate the pine cone/ornament centerpieces.
"I have a really great bridal party," Jordan said midday Saturday.
Jordan spent the late morning and afternoon trying to keep calm. "I'm trying not to think about it," she said.
But she was grateful to her family and friends and all the people who were working hard to make her wedding to Dan Berry possible.
"It's more about our love for each other," Jordan said.
In addition to the wedding, the blaze threw a wrench into Rockin' with Santa, a holiday gift collection concert. Guests were asked to bring an unwrapped gift to the party. The following day, the gifts are given to about 140 families preselected by the local YWCA and St. Vincent de Paul Society.
Like the wedding, Rockin' with Santa found a new location. It was moved to Post 264, American Legion, 60 Main St., City of Tonawanda.
"Someone woke me up at five to 6 a.m. and said: 'We have a problem,'" said John White, who has been organizing the Rockin' with Santa event with his wife and friends for about 15 years now. He went to the scene and saw the building was "totally engulfed."
White received several offers from nearby venues to relocate.
The party was set to start at 7 p.m. at the American Legion building with three bands to entertain the crowd.
About 100 gifts had been brought to the Elks Lodge ahead of Saturday's party and were lost in the fire. White put out a plea, asking people to bring an unwrapped gift to the party.
"Our city is not rich, but it has so much heart," he said, thankful for all the help he received in relocating the holiday party.
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