'Quick build' to put up church in four days
By Staff
Jonathan Willis
There is a single wall standing on a large concrete pad at a site on Franklin 48, between Pleasant Ridge and Tharptown.
That will be the case until workers gather at the site on Thursday, June 5.
By the afternoon of June 8, worshippers expect to be inside a fully furnished Kingdom Hall.
More than 700 workers are expected to be in the area next week to help build a new Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's Witnesses worship center.
Workers from across Alabama, Georgia and other states will take part in a quick-build by a regional building committee.
"Everyone will know their specific job when they get here and they will do it," said congregation member Donnie Tharpe. "Nobody takes anything lightly."
The congregation outgrew their old sanctuary just up the road and sold that building earlier this year.
Site work on the 21-acre tract of land where the new building is being constructed began more than a month ago.
A large parking lot and concrete pad is on place and ready for crews to begin work next week.
"We will have a working kitchen going all day to take care of everyone," said congregation member Sheila Harvey.
Church members expect to cook between 6,000 and 7,000 meals over the course of four days. Church members are also opening their homes to provide places for the workers to stay.
"This project is financed by voluntary workers," Harvey said. "Nobody gets a salary, we don't take up a collection, and it's all voluntary."
The church pays for the materials, but volunteers provide all the labor, she said.
The congregation began to see a need for a new facility after a steady growth in Hispanic attendance. The church has two services each Sunday, with one being in Spanish.
"The Spanish service is growing so fast we need a bigger building," said Ottie Sandusky, a church member who has been volunteering his time to work at the site.
The old church seated about 130 people, whereas the new facility will hold about 200, he said.
Tharpe said many people find it hard to believe that a building constructed in only four days can be well built.
"It's built as good as one that takes six months to build," he said. "When 600 or 700 people come together with certain assignments and the same goal in mind, it's amazing what can be done."
