AND WE'RE OFF!

What a great start to the Project 2017 Renovation!

On December 27 about 40 parishioners (including college students, families, grandmas with grandsons, couples and some people wielding their own power drills) came to help move and transform the parish center.  An altar was set up, Christmas decorations were moved or put away, the holy water fonts were moved, the stations of the cross were put up, hymnals stacked on a rack, chairs were set up, signs were put up to direct people, and more!  We were done in about an hour!  Most of the volunteers are pictured here:

Courtney from Conrad Schmitt Studios from Milwaukee came and picked up the Mary and Joseph statues to restore them.  They are going to being examined and receive a little more color to enhance their beautiful features. They will be re-installed on the side altars but Mary will return to the left side and Joseph will be on the right.

Meanwhile, 3 workmen from Gunder Church Furniture were dismantling the pews.  They numbered and marked them, unbolted them from the floor and took them apart.  The kneelers were removed and disposed of (new kneelers with padding and hydraulic closures will be coming).  Everything was loaded into a trailer and taken to a warehouse in Waupaca, Wisconsin where the will be refinished, repaired, and re-stained.  The men worked from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.  The church looks so different without the pews!

Then on Wednesday, December 28, the workers came from J and D Environmental to remove the asbestos.  The only asbestos left in the building is in the glue of the tile that was under the pews (probably installed in the 1950's) and an area of the ceiling by the Highway 50 entrance.  They have sealed it all off now for everyone's safety and will be doing the asbestos abatement over the next few days.

As the church building itself is closed to the public for safety reasons, we will keep you updated here with photos and the progress!  It's so exciting to see it all starting to happen!