November 19 - Windows!

The Beautiful Donate Button -
Well, it did not happen while I vacated, but now I will offer an explanation of the "Donate" button now residing in the blog heading. Early on in the building project, after one of the very early posts I got a phone call from a non-Elk River congregation member, suggesting that the blog should include a place for readers to donate if they so wished. So a link to the LLCER website was added to static area on the right side of of the blog. However, donating to the project through the LLCER website required leaving the blog, finding the proper tab on the website, locating the correct fund on the drop down menu and finally making a donation. A seemingly cumbersome and somewhat daunting process for someone who just wanted to make a contribution. I know if I were a follower of the blog, I would have been discouraged by the multi-step process required. It also may have seemed intimidating to go through all those steps and only make a $10 or $20 spur of the moment donation.

Now then, to make it very easy and convenient to help out our building project in Nowthen, all you have to do is click on the Donate button in the blog heading. It looks like the one shown here, although tastefully smaller. Notice that many popular credit cards are accepted. And please understand that any and all donations are appreciated.
The whole project is dependent on free will offerings of labor and money. We understand that even with supreme effort and financial sacrifice, the project will succeed only if God blesses these efforts. As the Psalmist wrote long ago, "Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it:" (Psalm 127:1). We have seen that God has blessed the project with many willing workers and generous donors. We thank God for these blessings.
The Race Against Winter -
While I was away, many things happened on the building site. For one thing, a beautiful, mild autumn season abruptly surrendered to the first snowfall of the season as winter barged in and dislodged the fair weather fall. Another happening was that windows showed up. Fortunately, the windows showed up before winter. I was told that Andy got a start installing the windows, but it was one man against many windows and many openings.


Fortunately, eight workers from Niemela Construction showed up to help install the windows. Trevor Hillukka is shown preparing the opening as Ken Kako looks on.

As nice as it is to have the windows on site, it is even nicer to have them installed in the wall openings.

I have reason to believe that Kevin Loukusa, the worker pictured, is aiming the hammer at the nail head on the frame piece and not testing the strength of the glass. At any rate, the glass was not broken.

While they were in the neighborhood, they also help finish sheeting the gable ends.

So, the chronicler returned to find closed up gable ends and all the windows installed. But as the chronicler was returning from the west, winter came racing in bearing snow (yuck), cold (yuck, yuck) and wind (more yucks) on its shoulders. I spoke with Ken Friday evening, to check up on the project status. He announced that he was standing inside the church, out of the wind, where because of windows and enclosed gables, the wind is banned from entering. This is not totally accurate since there are still door openigs to be sealed up, but it is possible to find a wind protected spot inside the building.
Saturday Update -

The snow showed up on Friday, but the windows were all installed. Now with the roof complete and all the windows in place it looks like it will be possible to get some heat in the building so the inside work can continue through the winter. It was a close race, but it looks like winter finished a close second.

Anybody Need a Window? -

While on site Saturday morning, I noticed this window, sitting in a shipping frame, inside the building. I asked Ken where this was going to be used since I saw no unused window openings in the building. He said it was an extra. I am not sure if we will sell it or what will ultimately happen to it. We also have an extra piggy back truss. Know anybody who needs a green window or a piggy back truss? It seems like all the projects I ever tried had extra parts left over too.

Ken did point out on the drawing where the window was originally planned but had been Xed out. Apparently the X showed up after the window order had been placed.












The Heated Box -
One other interesting sight was a covered box with a cord attached. The cord is visible just to the left of the far corner in the picture. I was not exposed to the contents of the box but I suspected that it is an incubator for chickens or geese or some such thing. I was reminded of the late spring day one of our boys found a goose egg outside and brought it in the house to hatch. He knew it needed to be kept warm until the gosling decided to come out of its shell. He placed the egg in a cardboard box adjacent to the heat register in his bedroom. He then turned the thermostat up to 90 degrees, thus turning our house into a 2,000 square foot incubator for this one goose egg. When Mom got home to a very warm house the box was placed under a heat lamp and the house was allowed to return to normal, human comfort level temperatures.

So what is the need for a heated box? There are things that should not freeze and with winter now here in force these items, like caulk and the Keurig coffee maker need to be kept from freezing. Therefore, build an insulated box and drop in an electric heater. Another of the short-lived construction steps necessary on this kind of a project. I understand that heat will be pumped into the building in the next week or so. I suppose the box may need to stay in use for a while but eventually it will make its way to the dumpster.