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Giving Thanks

by Shawn Barrett

Farmland Friend's 110' geodesic dome after assembly. The Farmland, Indiana, congregation chose an 18' sidewall with the gable option.

As we look to the end of another year, we give thanks to all of those who have made 2000 such a great success for us. We realize how blessed we are to work with such fine clients and talented building professionals.

In the past year, we have have been fortunate to attend the dedications of some beautiful new worship spaces. What a pleasure to see our client's dreams come true.

At the close of 2000, we are finishing our busiest building season to date. Our on-site crew has traveled on back to back jobs since the beginning of October. We are thankful for their hard work, dedication and understanding wives.

On October 16, our crew was in Farmland, Indiana building a 110' geodesic dome with a gable option for the Farmland Friends Church. This was our fourth project with Robert Arrendale. Robert is with AET, Inc. out of Fishers, Indiana. We have built domes with Robert in Indianapolis, North Webster, and Frankfort, Indiana. We will be working with Robert on the Brookhaven Wesleyan Church of Marion, Indiana, in the upcoming months.

On October 23, our crew was in Virginia Beach building a 70' square with a gable option. The square will be a new worship center for the First Church of God. This is our first project with Cosco & Associates, Inc. We have several other churches in the design phase with Cosco. Cosco has offices throughout the U.S. Gary Hall, supervises Cosco's Virginia office. The First Church of God is Gary's home church and we are proud to have provided the square for them. If you would like more information about Cosco or the Virginia Beach project you can visit their website at www.churchdesign.com.

On November 6, you would have found us in Newark, Delaware. There we built an 80' geodesic dome for Pastor Carey and his congregation. The new complex for the Word of Life Christian Center will feature a new sanctuary, with classrooms and offices, wrapped around the dome. It will also contain a beautiful foyer with cathedral ceilings. This is our fourth project with the architectural firm, Fredrick Ward Associates. Frederick Ward is located in Bel Air, Maryland. It was a pleasure to work with Jeff Andrews of the general contracting firm, Daystar Sills whose main office is in Wilmington, Delaware.

In the middle of our busiest season, we assembled our most complex building to date. On November 14, we were in Ypsilanti, Michigan, building a 93'x130' rectangle with a 20' wall. On the first floor, the new building will include the sanctuary with classrooms and offices. The second floor will have a balcony with offices. The new sanctuary will seat 1,400. They will use their existing structure for fellowship and classrooms. The church's school will use the building as well. Gloria Shealey of The Daniele Company is the general contractor. Gloria’s company is based in Gross Point Park, Michigan. Bill Moustakes of Aprecis, Inc., in Waterford, Michigan, provided the architectural services.

The first week in December we were in Strongsville, Ohio, assembling a 75' square for Our Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church. The congregation is attaching our square package to their existing facility. This was our fifth project with Krumroy Construction of Akron, Ohio, and our third project with Larry Chesmar, Krumroy’s on-site Supervisor. We hope Larry is not getting tired of working with us because we are looking forward to several more projects together. You can learn more about Krumroy Construction in their feature article.

The U.C.S. crew headed straight from Strongsville, to Central Islip, New York. There, they built a 70' geodesic dome for Pastor Jackson and Central Islip Church of Christ’s congregation. The dome is being built on a basement and will tie into the church’s existing structure. The existing structure will be remodeled for education and office space. Sound Contracting is working as the church's General Contractor. We wish Pastor Jackson and his congregation many years of happiness in the new sanctuary and greatly appreciate all of Pastor Jackson’s assistance during the building process.

The staff of United Church Structures welcomes the year 2001 and we look forward to the opportunities it brings our way. We will be entering the New Year with projects all the way from Pemberton, New Jersey, to North Glenn, Colorado.

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