News: July 19, 2024
Dear Friends and Members,
No to the Cayman Islands. Yes to Renew, Rebuild and Rejoice!
A while back in time, First Church conducted a Capital Campaign fund raiser to catch up on maintenance that had been deferred, improve the campus functionally and visually, and to support some general items such as implementing a reasonably sized facilities reserve fund. Your generosity allowed for over $1.8M to be pledged! A committee was formed and approved by the Board of Directors (the Renew and Rebuild Committee) and its mandate is to manage the prioritization and roll out of the greater than sixty projects and items.
OK…what has been accomplished to date? Did the Renew and Rebuild Committee abscond with the money to the Cayman Islands? Hardly. The five of us on the committee realized: 1) the Cayman Islands are no safer from hurricanes than Houston, 2) $1.8M split five ways isn’t enough money to live there forever, and 3) we don’t have access to it anyway. Tawanna and Colin are the only authorized check issuers.
Now is an appropriate time to update you gentle folk relative to progress to date on expending this resource and what is around the corner. To wit, the Renew and Rebuild Committee assessed all of the projects/items and gave each one a priority number in large part referencing the survey you, the church community, completed as your most desired projects/items. A Priority 1 was most important to roll out with a Priority 3 being least important. Additional considerations included the additional costs if we deferred spending Capital Campaign funds on that item. Other considerations were related to a safer more inviting campus. The Board of Directors approved the Priority 1 projects/items.
The following projects have been completed or, in one case, are in process.
There are other Priority 1 projects on the immediate horizon as funds are made available.
Additionally, there are many other projects to complete such as painting the front gates and handrails throughout the building, new storage and workspace solutions in the staff office, new storage and organizing solutions for the nursery area, expanded bike rack space, and an outdoor water station for the unhoused. This is by no means a complete list.
Maybe in my next life, I’ll make it to the Cayman Islands.
Michael Morrison,
Chair,
Renew and Rebuild Committee
No to the Cayman Islands. Yes to Renew, Rebuild and Rejoice!
A while back in time, First Church conducted a Capital Campaign fund raiser to catch up on maintenance that had been deferred, improve the campus functionally and visually, and to support some general items such as implementing a reasonably sized facilities reserve fund. Your generosity allowed for over $1.8M to be pledged! A committee was formed and approved by the Board of Directors (the Renew and Rebuild Committee) and its mandate is to manage the prioritization and roll out of the greater than sixty projects and items.
OK…what has been accomplished to date? Did the Renew and Rebuild Committee abscond with the money to the Cayman Islands? Hardly. The five of us on the committee realized: 1) the Cayman Islands are no safer from hurricanes than Houston, 2) $1.8M split five ways isn’t enough money to live there forever, and 3) we don’t have access to it anyway. Tawanna and Colin are the only authorized check issuers.
Now is an appropriate time to update you gentle folk relative to progress to date on expending this resource and what is around the corner. To wit, the Renew and Rebuild Committee assessed all of the projects/items and gave each one a priority number in large part referencing the survey you, the church community, completed as your most desired projects/items. A Priority 1 was most important to roll out with a Priority 3 being least important. Additional considerations included the additional costs if we deferred spending Capital Campaign funds on that item. Other considerations were related to a safer more inviting campus. The Board of Directors approved the Priority 1 projects/items.
The following projects have been completed or, in one case, are in process.
- A new rooftop drainage system was completed on the Southmore side (gutters, downspouts and a new underground stormwater pipe)
- The rotted facia and soffit boards have been replaced and repainted all around the building (these items are the “ledge” of the roof that hangs over the outside walls of the building)
- The louvers on the Southmore outside wall were scraped and painted
- The badly worn vinyl tiles in the foyer and around to the hall going to the Southmore door and in the kitchen have been replaced with new porcelain tile
- The lower cabinets in the kitchen have been replaced to include a new wall to hide the underside of the commercial sink
- New faucet hardware has been installed on the shallow sink in the kitchen
- There now exists a new DISHWASHER and commercial ICE MAKER
- New porcelain tile was installed in the second and third floor bathrooms
- The playground stucco wall was resurfaced
- A new playground is in process and will have…
- Safer play equipment (check out the poster in Channing Hall depicting this)
- A new playground “landing” surface that meets international safety guidelines
- An improved drainage solution
There are other Priority 1 projects on the immediate horizon as funds are made available.
- A new telephony system to replace the obsolete one
- A new and improved website
- A new electronic digital sign replacing the wood and banner sign on Fannin
- Improved audio, visual and lighting in the sanctuary
- Southmore side outside grounds improvements
- An injection of funds into a currently inadequate building reserve
- An early payoff of the campus “greening” loan to save interest dollars
Additionally, there are many other projects to complete such as painting the front gates and handrails throughout the building, new storage and workspace solutions in the staff office, new storage and organizing solutions for the nursery area, expanded bike rack space, and an outdoor water station for the unhoused. This is by no means a complete list.
Maybe in my next life, I’ll make it to the Cayman Islands.
Michael Morrison,
Chair,
Renew and Rebuild Committee
