Thanks to everyone who came out to our Open House. It was a very busy day, meeting neighbours and friends and curious passersby. We probably had around 200 people or so pass through our door (with a couple of repeats enjoying our fans and shade and snacks).
It was great to chat with people. It was also fun to hear from people who remembered what the church used to look like and hear the stories. We want to preserve some of the history of the church. It is a beautiful building and we want to acknowledge its heritage even as we remake it into something new.
Thanks to all the people brave enough to get up on the stage and entertain us with a tune. We really enjoyed the music. (and the few quiet times when the boys were able to get up and jam with people) We had lots of positive comments about the Hall and are thankful for all the support from the community and beyond. As we go forward, it will take everyone’s support to get our endeavour up on its feet.
For those of you who haven’t been able to make it out, here are a few before and after pictures to show you what we’ve done. (although you should still plan on coming by for a visit)
In the back, it might be harder to tell what we’ve done. We did paint the walls (they were actually a blue colour even if you can’t tell from the before picture), put in lights to replace the bare bulbs and added overhead fans. (They have already showed their worth during our Open House, which was a really hot and humid day. The fans kept the air moving, keeping us slightly cooler.) We also added a bar. But the most important thing we brought back was electricity, making it 200 amp service!
(As an aside, the before picture is from the day the boys took possession of the property)
At the front, we removed the red carpet and painted our stage black. We put in new stain glass windows. The church had taken out the stain glass windows and put them in the Grey Roots Museum so when we got there, the windows were covered in plywood. It was quite amazing that we were able to find stain glass that fit the size of windows and the curve that we had!
We kept the “holy, holy, holy Lord God Almighty” because it was hand-painted and too beautiful to just paint over.
These are just a few of the changes we have done while trying to keep the heritage of the building. We still have lots to do so stay tuned for more changes and for our first event!