Washington Cathedral Receives $5 Million Gift for Earthquake Repairs

The Washington National Cathedral is getting a $5 million cash infusion to help with the cost of repairs from the 5.8 magnitude earthquake that struck the Washington area a year ago. The money is from the Lilly Endowment, a foundation set up by the family that built the Eli Lilly Pharmaceutical company, The Washington Post reported.

Damage to the cathedral from the August 23, 2011 quake is estimated to be about $20 million and the repairs may take as long as a decade.

“The gift . . . makes an enormous amount of difference in our ability to restore this property,” Rev. Francis H. Wade, interim dean of the cathedral, told the Post. “The Lilly family has been an important part of this cathedral for a long time.”

The earthquake shook loose stone finials and gargoyles, sending them crashing to the earth, and did other damage to the cathedral that took 83 years to build. The Washington Monument also received extensive damage and remains closed.