Use Candles Cautiously to Prevent Fire Damage in Chicago’s Places of Worship
Sam Simon
October 7, 2015The pleasing glow from burning candles adds a feeling of great solemnity and celebration to religious services throughout the greater Chicago area. After all, who hasn’t shed a tear of joy as a just-married couple lit the unity candle as part of their wedding ceremony?
However, when lit candles are used in churches, temples, mosques, meeting houses, and other places of worship in the Chicago neighborhoods of Wicker Park and West Town, there’s a chance that extensive
fire damage
can occur. Unfortunately, fire from lit candles is among the top five causes of fire damage in places of worship in this country. Arson and faulty wiring are also top causes of fire damage in many places of worship, according to the U. S. Fire Administration.
If your church or other spiritual home is damaged from fire, you and your fellow congregants can look to ServiceMaster Restoration by Simons for compassionate and capable fire damage restoration. Our fire restoration system includes emergency pre-cleaning, content salvage and cleaning, packing out of the contents, and ceiling and wall cleaning and deodorization. The fire and smoke restoration professionals at ServiceMaster Restoration by Simons also have the highly skilled expertise to restore especially sacred items to places of worship. These include antique texts, ornate vestments, altar cloths, statuary, paintings, and more.
To avoid having to place an urgent call to ServiceMaster Restoration by Simons for smoke, fire, and water restoration, review these candle safety tips with your church leadership and facilities manager:
- Consider using battery-powered flameless candles.
- Store matches and lighters out of reach from children and preferably in a locked cabinet.
- Place all candles in sturdy holders and place them on stable surfaces.
- If a candle must burn around the clock, be sure it is enclosed in a glass container and placed in a sink, a metal tray, or in a deep bowl or basin filled with water.
- Lit candles should never be placed in windows where the blinds, drapes, or curtains could touch the flames.
- Handheld candles should not be passed from one worshipper to another at any time.
- When lighting candles during a candle lighting service—a common occurrence during wedding ceremonies—the person holding the unlit candle should dip his or her candle into the flame of the lit candle.
If you require fire damage, smoke damage, or water damage restoration in 18 of Chicago’s finest neighborhoods,
call
773-376-1110 immediately.
Sam Simon
Sam Simon is the Co-Owner and Managing Director of ServiceMaster Restoration By Simons, a certified MBE/WBE disaster restoration and specialty cleaning firm proudly serving Cook, Lake, and DuPage Counties in Illinois. With over 30 years of experience in restoration project management, field operations, and emergency response, Sam plays a vital leadership role in overseeing service execution, technician development, reconstruction, and subcontractor coordination.
He holds the IICRC’s highest technical designation as a Master Fire & Water Restorer, a distinction achieved by fewer than 1% of professionals in the restoration industry. His technical scope includes water and flood damage restoration, fire and smoke recovery, mold remediation, and post-disaster reconstruction across both residential and commercial sectors.
Sam has demonstrated a long-standing commitment to helping communities in crisis. He has participated in large-scale disaster recovery efforts across the U.S., providing boots-on-the-ground leadership during Hurricanes Katrina, Sandy, and Harvey, as well as catastrophic floods, wildfires, and deep freeze events throughout Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, Texas, and beyond. His dedication to serving distressed families and businesses in the wake of national catastrophes reflects both his personal values and ServiceMaster’s mission of restoring peace of mind.
In 2019, Sam was selected for the HACIA Contractor Training Program, a competitive six-month construction management cohort offered by the Hispanic American Construction Industry Association. The program delivers intensive instruction in blueprint reading, estimating, project management, and construction law—skills that support the company’s continued growth in emergency build-back and general contracting services.
Before co-founding ServiceMaster Restoration By Simons, Sam built a successful creative career, contributing to notable film and television productions including Chicago Fire (2012), Juvies (2007), and Image Union (1978). His media and videography background continues to shape ServiceMaster’s marketing strategy, digital training resources, and brand storytelling.
→ IMDb Profile
Sam is also the co-author of RESTORE: A Complete Guide to Protecting Your Home As Your Most Valuable Asset—a practical guidebook for homeowners navigating the challenges of water, fire, and mold damage.
Under the direction of majority owner and President & CEO Nasutsa Mabwa, and with Sam’s operational leadership, ServiceMaster Restoration By Simons has earned numerous regional and national accolades, including:
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