The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection is investigating the cause of an early-morning fire that heavily damaged a Yuba County foothills church June 7.

The fire gutted the central part of the Dobbins Seventh-day Adventist Church on the 10000 block of Marysville Road and caused US$300,000 in damages, according to Tina Rose, a spokeswoman for the Nevada-Yuba-Placer Unit of the CDF.

A passerby noticed the fire at around 5:15 a.m. and called authorities, she said.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation. "The good news is nobody was injured," said Jim Pappas, a Adventist church elder. "Most likely we'll be rebuilding. " The church has about 35 members.

Investigators from the federal Department of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms are assisting in the investigation to look into the possibility of a hate crime. But Rose said there is no immediate evidence pointing to a hate crime and that calling in the ATF is standard precaution with church fires. "There is going to be a lengthy investigation," the CDF spokeswoman said. "There's a lot of people to call. We have to find witnesses."

"There were flames shooting up out of the roof of the structure," she said.

Seven engines and a water tinder responded to the call and knocked down the flames within 20 minutes of arriving.

Some of the church's 35 members gathered June 7 to talk about the church's future.

The congregation has held services in the building since the mid-1970s. It purchased the church from a Methodist congregation, which built the structure in the 1960s, according to Pastor Albert Bierele. Despite the fire, members are hopeful they will overcome this setback.

"It's been a shock all day, but we're going to make it," said Lynn Johnson, a church member since 1986. "We work hard to keep the church going." "There's a pretty strong feeling that God is able to bring good things out of bad," said Pappas.

Pastor Bierele said it's important for the church to get re-established. "We want to keep a light in the community," Bierele told. "We believe we have a message for the community."

The congregation will meet at the elder Pappas residence, 9922 Marysville Road in Dobbins. Sabbath school will be held Saturday mornings at 9:30 a.m., followed by worship services at 11 a.m. Prayer meetings will be held Tuesdays at 5 p. m.

Pappas was grateful to the firefighters who prevented the fire from destroying the entire building. "They didn't have to give their lives, but they put their lives on the line," he said.

Firefighters noticed the sudden arrival of a white dove, who landed on the roof and observed them working. Church members said the dove was not a pet and not seen around the church before, according to Rose. "It came right to us," Rose said of the dove. "It was the oddest thing that the dove would not leave." [Editor: Daniel Witter for The Appeal-Democrat and APD]