Surprisingly, not a week goes by without at least one new building usage request crossing my desk.
If it isn’t a non-member wedding or a concert, it may be a small congregation seeking worship space, or a community group needing space. What we once thought to be a burden is now a blessing for many in the community. This past month, we have agreed to allow a Kenyon Seventh Day Adventist congregation to use our sanctuary on Saturdays, starting in September. They will also be using Fellowship Hall for meals for part of the afternoon on that day. We will have the opportunity to negotiate with them about special events, and they have been made aware that there may be Saturdays when we will need use the space ourselves. They are very willing and flexible.
More exciting is the theater production presented by the New Brunswick Collaborative Arts. Starting the second week of August, our sanctuary will begin to look like a stage. They will be building one! Later on in the month, they will be performing Romeo and Juliet – but this time with an ethnic twist. Furthermore, the Collaborative Arts group has been working with the high school, some of whom are hoping to be a part of the cast. Keep your calendars open the second half of August for this special production. Oh, and by the way, I didn’t mention the best part of it: It’s for FREE!
Tagged as:
arts,
performance,
seventh day adventist
I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce Bill Hodge who will be cutting the grass in the cemetery this year. Bill is a recent graduate of Rutgers University. He quickly found that sitting behind a desk all day was not his thing. He began a landscaping business, relying on experience he gathered while working summers for DeVris Garden Center in North Brunswick.
Bill is a very personable young man. He said it is an “honor to work on such a historic property”. He has promised to be careful while working in the cemetery. The Property Committee came to an agreement with Bill to cut the grass every other week during the growing season. Bill, knowing how quickly the grass grows during the spring, has agreed to cut grass every Wednesday but is honoring the cost estimate he gave us for cutting twice per month. He said that every time he comes he will, pick up branches and litter, cut the grass and blow off walkways. As per our request, he will not weed whack around the monuments. We have arranged for volunteers to install wood chips around them so weed whacking, which could damage the tombstones, will not be necessary.
Bill has already become close friends with Pastor Hartmut. In fact, Hartmut and Susan will preside over his wedding this summer to his fiancé, Melissa. If you see Bill Hodge on a Wednesday at the church, introduce yourself. He is a very interesting young man.
A lot of remodeling is going on in our church. We just finished the women’s bathroom – please see the pictures – that show many of our friends from the Colts Neck Reformed Church who provided a lot of know-how and labor. All of this happened under the joint leadership of Dotty Weidman of the Colts Neck church and Julius Fekete who led the First Reformed team in his well-tried way. The selfless service of both groups was just incredible, and we extend a great thank-you to our sister church and to our own volunteers.
During the month of May, we will begin construction on the outside: church roof and steeple will be our primary projects. And then there is our feasibility study on reshaping the interior of our sanctuary. First results will be presented during coffee hour on May 2nd. [ more » ]
Over the past several months, we have seen a shift in our building usage. At the beginning of the year, Calvary Chapel moved from our upstairs in the Education Building. We are now preparing for the Pine Grove Nursery School to begin it’s renovations. Already we see the first signs of them with the preparation of a playground area in the front of the Education Building. If the weather warms up, we will soon see a green rubberized mat poured out over the rubberized mulch. It will be spongy – What fun!
Beginning in April, the Word of Life Congregation, which was worshipping in our sanctuary, will be moving to a new location. On the final March Sunday, Hartmut and I received a heart-felt farewell from their congregation, including a card and a bouquet! They are very grateful for the good relationship we have tended over the last five years, and wanted us to share this with entire congregation. They are moving to a location, which is closer to their membership. Their vivid worship on Sunday afternoons will certainly be missed by all of us. We wish them God Speed!
Throughout March and into April, our church has offered the 2010 Census free access to our Fellowship Hall for the purpose of testing new census takers. From about 2:00 until 7:00 pm on Fridays, there has been a continuous stream of applicants. This is just another way that we have opened our buildings for community use.
Tagged as:
building usage,
Calvary Chapel,
Pine Grove Nursery School,
Word of Life Congregation
Tongue in cheek, I can say we are in the calm before the storm. I say this because the current action of our preservation project takes place behind the public scene. Let me explain what I mean.
This month, Westfield Architects collected pre-qualification forms from the potential contractors involved with Phase I of our project. Following this, Westfield Architects called for references and sent them for approval by the New Jersey Historic Trust (NJHT).
As soon as the NJHT approves the bidder’s list, the bidding documents will be distributed. The bids are due in the second half of March. If all goes according to plan, our Consistory will vote on particular contractors in April. At the same time, our Preservation Team will want to coordinate our choice of contractors with neighboring Christ Episcopal Church. Cooperating in this way, we hope to be economically more efficient. Phase I construction is scheduled to begin during the second half of May. This is when the public will notice progress.
Since our grants from NJHT and from the City of New Brunswick will be paid by reimbursement, there will not be much news prior to the beginning of the construction. The exception is, of course, our reimbursement for previous construction under the NJHT grant. This depends now on recording an easement on our buildings with Middlesex County. NJHT is currently drafting this document, but Consistory will have to approve it before we can bring it to the county office.
There is some development regarding the state grant covering the cost of remediation for our former underground oil tank. The grant has been set aside by the Department of Environmental Protection, but requires review by the NJ Economic Development Authority who will have the final decision.
Tagged as:
Preservation
Most of us have, in one way or another, heard about the ambitious reconstruction plans for our women’s bathroom. As big as this project is, it will also provide a great fellowship opportunity. We will meet old friends like Gary Delhagen. We will work side by side with the wonderful team of volunteers from the Colts Neck Reformed Church, their leader being Dotty Weidman. And we will enjoy great lunch breaks in between. Do you remember the resemblance to a colonial village two years ago, with women, children, men and dogs, all gathered around the tables in Fellowship Hall during mealtime?
For those of you who need some more planning, we provide the following calendar in this month’s newsletter.
Tagged as:
reconstruction,
volunteers
At first, I just wanted to catch your attention with this dubious title. At second glance, however, there may be some truth to it anyway. To extend hospitality is a form of ministry. Renovating a bathroom is a form of hospitality, especially, if others use this bathroom more than we do.
Think about it! We use the women’s bathroom mostly on Sunday mornings or on the few nights when there is a committee meeting. Yet, we have other congregations using the space with us. Then there is the House of Manna which, perhaps, needs this bathroom more than any other group. Already from a brick-and-mortar standpoint, it is high time that we renovate the room. Gender equality also demands it — we did the men’s bathroom last year. But what it all boils down to in the end is a sheer matter of hospitality. That’s why we really do it.
Below please find the proposed schedule for the renovations. We are happy that the volunteer team of the Colts Neck Reformed Church under the leadership of Dotty Weidman will again support our efforts.
We are also happy that Gary Delhagen’s company will do the plumbing — Gary grew up in our church, and we have good ties to his extended family.
If you, Dear Reader, can contribute something to the effort, please talk with Julius Fekete or myself. We will need people to:
- take apart the old bathroom
- who can paint or grout
- who can fill a dumpster
On Saturdays, we also need volunteers to form a kitchen crew. (As you know, a good meal furthers the friendship between various groups.)
Please let us know how you can help. Together, we can achieve a great thing.
Project breakdown for Women’s Bathroom 2010
- Plumber removes fixtures and disconnects bathroom heat
- FRC removes wall and floor tile
- Plumber roughs out, Electrician installs outlets
- Colts Neck installs Sheetrock (7 sheets) and sub floor (1st Sat.)
- Colts Neck puts down floor tiles
- FRC grouts floor tiles
- Colts Neck puts up wall tiles (2nd and 3rd Sat.)
- FRC grouts wall tiles
- FRC paints walls
- Electrician installs new light fixtures
- Plumber installs new fixtures
- FRC installs new partitions
- FRC exchanges ceiling tiles and fills the dumpster
- FRC installs paper towel holders, mirrors, and changing table
Tagged as:
Renovations
