Despite America’s reputation for the wrecking ball, we’re actually pretty good at second acts. All across the country, old buildings quietly slip into new roles. Some transformations are so seamless you’d never suspect a thing. Others practically shout their former lives from the rooftop. New Castle has a perfect example in Victory Church. It used to be a Marsh Supermarket!
The Marsh Supermarket in New Castle’s Payne Village shopping center was built in 19581. It appears as though the building was remodeled into its “Happy Medium2” appearance around 19803. Unfortunately, the store closed in 2016 after its lease expired4.
The shuttered supermarket was purchased by Turning Point Life Center in 20205. The congregation remodeled the building into its present configuration and changed its name to Victory Church in 20226.
Sources Cited
1 Parcel 030-83997-00 (2026). Office of the Assessor. Henry County [New Castle]. Web. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
2 Lasting Values: the First Half-Century of Marsh Supermarkets, Inc. (1984). Marsh Supermarkets [Yorktown]. Book. p. 27.
3 (See footnote 1).
4 Kirby, A.J. (2016, July 29). New Castle Marsh set to close next week. The Muncie Star Press. p. A3.
5 (See footnote 1).
6 About Victory (n.d.). Victory Church. Web. Retrieved January 31, 2026.
Lesser-known churches seem to repurpose buildings quite frequently. In my town a former restaurant is now a Pentecostal church and in the town to the east a church now occupies the former Decoy Bar and Grill. I hope the church was smart and got the bar’s hamburger recipe as part of the deal.
Sunday service hits different with a side of onion rings.
Given the general decline in church attendance these days, you might be on to something.
Another one for you. The old Scott’s/Eavey’s is now City Church. The cornucopia has been removed and supposedly stored for use elsewhere.
I’d been wondering about that! I’m cooking something up about Scott’s soon. Not sure when though.
I am thinking that the former Marsh store at 62nd and Keystone in Indianapolis has become a church too.
I think you’re right!
I’m not sure if my comment registered when I tried to leave it yesterday. There’s another very similar church in Fort Wayne. The former Scott’s/Eavey’s Supermarket is not City Church. The famous cornucopia has been removed and supposedly stored for a future display.
Ok, I see it did register but I didn’t get your reply.