I have the best job in the world! I have the privilege of serving a Presbyterian congregation that is GROWING in membership and mission and BUILDING an addition to our facility. This blog is my attempt to put pictures and words to use to tell the story of our building project. It's a spiritual discipline, of sorts, begun in the season of Lent 2011. I hope everyone who visits is blessed by what they encounter. Pastor Lisa Webb
There have been so many blessings that have taken place during - and because of - this building project. People have come together to share their gifts and skills in such a way that God's kingdom here has been enhanced and furthered. It's a project that was clearly part of God's plan for our congregation at this time. Isn't it wonderful to be doing what God wants us to do?
The blessings of this elegant and Spirit-led project constantly humble me. Take my office, for example. I am so pleased that the old barn has been recycled into a gracious space for me to work. My pleasure truly goes beyond words.
Last Friday Jerry, John, Barry and Ken laid the wormy chestnut floor; and yesterday Ted Miller and his two guys installed the crown moulding. I couldn't help but marvel that what once felt like a rather tall and cavernous space now has a homey, comfortable feel about it. There's nothing like real wood to put comfort in a place!
Enjoy these pics from the work to my office. More to come!
They even let me get in on the action!
Setting up shop in the Fellowship Hall.
Masterminds at work....I think.
Ken and John on their knees...such a holy posture, don't you think?
Writing on the floor through the sawdust...
Not exactly "mene mene teckle en parson" but close...
Is Ken sweeping dust or stirring it up?
Doesn't it take your breath away? It does mine!
How often does Jerry dress like this for work?
Ted Miller (left) in the doorway with workers putting up the moulding he made.
Looks like a picture frame, doesn't it? It's beautiful moulding high up at the ceiling!
At 55 degrees outside, it's not exactly beginning to look an awful lot like Christmas.....BUT our building project is surely beginning to look a lot like an elegant Fellowship Hall and facility!
We're still hoping that by year's end the majority of work will be completed and soon into the new year we can begin enjoying this gorgeous space! God has been so good to us!
I have come to a new appreciation of the workers God has used throughout this project. Especially Clayton Hinegardner, our project manager. Clayton is a gifted builder. He takes great pride in his work and likes to embellish the "ordinary" into something very special. Take the windows in the Conference Room (beside the Foyer). The arched windows were lovely enough, but Clayton wanted them to really *pop* so, as a gift to us, he made rounded window moulding and added special caps. Isn't that wonderful? Here's a pic of the one of the windows, sans paint, mind you.
Like Clayton, every worker goes above and beyond to add a personal touch to their work. This project has become intensely personal to the men working. They have built relationships with each other (some had not worked together before this project), and we have been blessed by their good naturedness (is that a word?)
I have a deep appreciation for things that people make...from children's Christmas crafts that get pulled out each holiday season to decorate the house to the wood that's going into my office (that's another story for another blog...) Each building project worker is a true craftsman. This project has become personal for them. They know that they are building something that will be used for God's kingdom, something that will last for generations to come.
At WPC, we've done a good job of decking our halls this Advent season. Won't it be terrific next Advent/Christmas to decorate our new facility!?
Here are a few more pics from work being done today:
It's always time for giving thanks, but this year we are all so thankful for the beautiful new facility that the "thanks" rolls off our tongues easily! God has been with us every step of this project. We are grateful for that. We are grateful for the Holy Spirit's guidance and the presence of the living Christ as we've built relationships with our work crew. Many wonderful people have crossed our path through this project. We say "thank you" to them. And "thank you" to God for bringing them into our lives.
We say "thank you" to the congregation who answered the call to step out in faith and support this project, especially in "these economic times" (my favorite new phrase). People gave sacrificially and joyfully, and for that we are grateful. Your generosity will never be forgotten; rather, it will live on as future generations are blessed by this amazing facility.
What are you thankful for this year? I'm especially thankful for the joy-filled purpose this project has brought to so many people. To see men and women, boys and girls, working together on the old barn, delivering wood to persons in need, pulling nails, painting the outside of the ed wing, boxing up books and supplies to be stored, taking tours of the new space, enjoying fundraising tenderloin dinners....the joy all this brings truly makes me thankful. Our purpose is clear; we are living into the mission God has for us.
Today's pics show how far we've come with the interior work. It's really taking shape! And it's beautiful! Great skill has been used to choose trimwork, paint colors, textures and tiles. Our workers will enjoy a well-deserved Thanksgiving break. But, rest assured, they'll be back bright and early Monday morning!
Some of the lovely trimwork on the west wall.
The tray ceiling will be spectacular!
Clayton (right) and two of our wonderful workers.
God has blesed us with a great crew!
Electrical panel boxes in the new space.
The skylights - the amount of light is amazing, especially on cloudy, rainy days!
Looking in to Linda's office from the Fellowship Hall.
Isn't the trim work beautiful?!
Clayton has moved his office to the new Conference Room
just off of the foyer.
One of our Latino workers caulking up the trim work.
He was excited that we offer ESL classes and he offered to teach me Spanish!
Muchas Gracias!
Yes, we have so much to be thankful for ~ this year and every year. Today and every day. Let's be like the Psalmist who said, "I will sing of the Lord's great love forever; with my mouth I will make God's faithfulness known through all generations!" (Psalm 89)
I've been focusing so much on what's happening with the building project outside of my office that I was taken by surprise this week when my own space became the focus of attention. First thing Monday morning John and Ray had moved my chairs and a table to the center of the room to remove the three windows that looked out onto, well, nothing. Unless, of course, you consider the backside of the new Fellowship Hall wall worth visual interest.
I did. I'm grieving the loss of windows.
Monday afternoon Harman's guys were carrying in drywall to put in place of the windows. They moved even more stuff in my office to get the heavy sheets of drywall securely in place.
Tuesday, while I was at presbytery meeting in Winchester, the drywall was mudded up. Apparently that's a technical term. Mudded up. Sounds like the mud pies I used to make as a kid after a light rain storm. I mixed mud with a decaying walnut tree by the spring house to make organic-looking mud pies. But that's clearly another story for another blog. The "what life was like in the olden days" blog that my children talk about.
Anyway, Wednesday morning I entered my formerly bright, cheerful, homey office to discover that I would be working in what felt like a closet. A big closet, I grant you, but a closet nonetheless. No windows (whether they look out on anything or not), drywall with patches of white mud exposed, furniture scattered, a bit of dust on everything.
It feels strange. Couple the "closet" feel of my sacred space with sketchy (at best) internet service, and I felt alone too. Isolated. Even though Linda was right across the hall, in her brightly lit (albeit cold because the heat had not yet been connected in the ed wing) office.
From the midst of the primeval chaos (ok, perhaps a tad dramatic) I spotted a picture that was sitting on the windowsill. It's a photograph of three generations of Wilson men: my grandfather, father, and three brothers, taken in 1963 on the steps of my home church, Mt. Carmel Presbyterian, in Steeles Tavern, Va, just about 1.5 hours south of Woodstock on Highway 11.
In that photograph, I saw the strength of the ages through difficult times: a grandfather growing up during the Great Depression, my father raising (at that time) 6 rambunctuous children with a wife who did not work outside the home (my twin Laura and I would be born a year after this), and young boys who had yet to experience much of life's drama.
As I looked at this wonderful photograph, I realized something precious: the picture needed to be dusted. That, and this building project is all about linking the past - with its trials and joys - to the future with all its possibilities. If that means closing up my office windows so they can become library shelves in the "new" adult library, so be it. Bring on the dust! Bring on the mess!
On another matter: last week we had a special guest stop by the work site. This special guest came all the way from Mettu, Ethiopia! Kes Tariku is president of Illubabor Bethel Synod in Ethiopia and is a partner with Shenandoah Presbytery in mission and witness. Kes Tariku took a tour of the facility and was greatly impressed! Here are some pics of our special guest:
Up on the roof. Kes loves the view from the front dormers!
Inside the new facility, Kes was amazed by the duct work and amount of space.
Here are some pics of the work in my office.
Ray removing the window frame.
Window guy making sure the frame is gone.
Fitting in the wood bracket for drywall.
Working on the drywall frame.
First sheet of drywall. Goodbye backside of Fellowship Hall!
Securing drywall in place.
2nd piece of drywall goes in place.
The windows...sitting lonely outside my office.
Now, what's great is that there's so much more work that's been done! This Sunday we're hosting another "walk through" so come on out and check out the progress! God is awfully good to us to give us the responsibility of bridging the generation with this project. We've inherited so much - and we have so much to continue giving to future generations.
Wells Roofing is working late today! The guys are putting some finishing touches to the beautiful metal roof over the new porch. The work they're doing is magnificent! They are true artisans!
Knowing that we've used so many local subcontractors on our project pleases me greatly. It gives testimony to our commitment to Shenandoah County and its craftspeople. We have done a good job of putting some of our own local people to work over the past months, that's for sure!
Every day some new blessing emerges with the project. Coming back to the office after a meeting in Harrisonburg and seeing Wells Roofing still here after 5:00 - literally up on the roof - was today's blessing for me. I asked the guys why they were still here. Their reply: "We want to make sure every piece of this roof is done just-so! We're not leaving till we're satisfied."
That, my friends, is local Shenandoah County craftsmanship!
Enjoy some pics of our hard working roofing guys from Wells Roofing....and enjoy the Drifters with Carol King's great song "Up on the Roof."
What a beautiful several days God has given our workers! They're happy - whisting while they work! Who can blame them? Cool mornings, warm days - perfect working conditions! (Just wait till the end of the week, though, when temps dip down in the 50s with rain.....we'll see who's whisting then!) But, for now...all the workers seem pretty joyful working together, and all for our benefit!
To share in their whistling joy, let's give a listen to the perenially pleasing Snow White and the forest animals, singing and whistling while they work!
The interior is taking good shape these days! There's even drywall up in several rooms! It's really beginning to look like usable space, and so BIG! I'm amazed at how spacious the rooms are - yes, even my office! It really is a delight to watch it all unfold.
Most of the electrical work is nearly complete, with outlet boxes and wires tucked neatly in place. The engineering skill is really trememdous.
Enjoy a few pics from around the facility today!
Guys working on the door opening from the ed wing to the Fellowship Hall.
Removing the moulding from the door frame.
Can you see the new Fellowship Hall through the door?
Secretary's office with drywall ~ Linda has a beautiful space!
Hmmm...looks like enough electricity will be in my office, huh?
Drywall in the kitchen! John is itching to get in there, we know!
Drywall in the choir room. I'm loving those windows!
Stairs to the "bonus" room upstairs...
a great project for the Presbyterian Men!
Clearing away the dirt from the west side of the church...
planning for a nicely landscaped side yard.
Just one of the local sub-contractors ... working with flashing today.
These guys were having a lot of fun working in the sunshine!
Cutting metal flashing for the roof in the back.
Part of the flashing is already in place.
The front porch with that wonderful window in Linda's office.
In addition to the gorgeous weather, we're also blessed this week by the painting that is being done to the ed wing. Ken Hunter has been given a new title: Associate Pastor of Community Outreach. He has been at the church almost daily the past few weeks working with the wood doors and cleaning brass kickplates. What a blessing he is! Well, this week Ken has corraled Daniel Morrell from the community to help paint the high parts of the ed wing!
Daniel, getting ready to paint.
He's a brave guy - up on the scaffold!
A happy painter!
Our "Associate Pastor for Community Outreach" uses
the boot of his car for his office!
