Summer Projects on Campus

Before we left Guam a few weeks ago, two summer projects had already gotten underway.
Project #1 involved eight volunteers from Messiah Lutheran Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The picture at the right shows us, Pastor Jeff (from our church on Guam), the visiting team from New Mexico, and a few of the dancers from a cultural presentation and dinner we attended shortly after the team's arrival. This crew worked tirelessly in the heat and humidity, replacing over 100 feet of chain link fencing along the campus' front boundary, helping with cleaning up some of the grounds, and painting the interior of the women's dorm. (more photos below)

(Left)
Making sure everything is in order before stretching the fencing is pretty important.

(Right)
PIBC's Thailand Mission Team helped with the projects as well.





(Left)
The women who worked in the dorms had quite a job! Old paint on doors had to be peeled or sanded off. Next came the primer and last, the paint . . . and of course, in Guam's humid climate, the paint takes a long time to dry! Thanks, Messiah Mission Team, for all your hard work! PIBC appreciates your labor of love!



The other summer project is one that has been in the making for several months. Our students love to spend time outdoors. They fellowship, practice music on guitars and electric keyboards, and eat outside much of the time. However, the intense sun during some times of the year, and the heavy rain at others, both can interfere with these activities. In May, grading began for the construction of a concrete pavilion area.



Next, the workers dug the footing for the pillars that would support the heavy concrete roof/ceiling to cover the pavilion area.







The men who were hired for this project were amazing - they worked all day long, even on the clear days when the hot, tropical sun beat down during this hottest time of the year. In spite of having to dig up a lot of coral with some dirt, it seemed like the digging was done in no time at all!




The next step was to level the area where the slab would be poured and get rebar in place for pouring the four vertical pillars that would support the heavy roof.








Once all of the base work was done, the crew had to set forms and jacks for pouring the concrete roof. This was done shortly after we left island for the summer and the concrete now has to "cure" for about 3-4 weeks. Once it has cured, the forms and jacks will be removed and the job will be nearly done. The pavilion will include electrical outlets so that students can not only practice music outdoors, but we can have campus events using the pavilion and be able to use microphones and speakers. What a blessing!