THE CONSTRUCTION OF FELLOWSHIP HALL

After years of praying, planning and fund-raising, the construction of our new Fellowship Hall (many refer to it simply as the Barn because of its architectural similarity to a Chester County Bank Barn), as designed by John Milner Architects of Chadds Ford, PA, commenced with a Groundbreaking Ceremony on Sunday, April 17, 2005. Active construction began immediately thereafter, and was almost continuous through 2005. The Barn was ready for that year's Christmas Eve Children's service, and again for the New Year's Eve service. The Consecration and Dedication of the building, officiated by the Right Reverend Charles Bennison, Bishop of the Diocese of Pennsylvania, was held on January 18, 2006 - appropriately, the Feast of the Confession of Saint Peter.

St. Peter's Church in the Great Valley began meeting over 300 years ago as a missionary presence, and is today the oldest Episcopal church in Chester County. The people of St. Peter’s have reached out to welcome and embrace an ever growing and changing community, and several building projects have been completed over the centuries. Ever faithful to our missionary heritage, the current construction of Fellowship Hall is the latest of these in the history of this parish church.

Part of the mission of St. Peter’s is to “nurture people of all ages in the knowledge and love of God in Jesus Christ.” Our new hall will be a place of hospitality and nurture. When completed, the building will provide a place for all who seek a place at the Lord’s Table and who desire to grow in faith in a welcoming Christian community.

The second part of our mission is to “make Christ known in the wider community.” Our new building will also be a community resource in partnership with public and private sector human assistance initiatives, a center for teaching and learning, and a forum for the arts.

With the exception of several photographs taking during the building of the Common Room addition in 1988 [which connects the historic church building and the parish hall], we have few detailed records, and no photographs or drawings, that survive to describe St. Peter's building projects of the past. We did not want to repeat that omission with the construction of Fellowship Hall. Beginning on April 22, 2005, and frequently over the succeeding months, a St. Peter's parishioner, Roger Thorne, completed a thorough photographic record of this construction project with the active assistance of the on-site representative of the general contractor, Wohlsen Construction Company.

Hopefully a "picture is worth a thousand words", and we invite you to follow this chronological array of photographs that help us remember the significance of this effort, how far we have come, and the work yet to be accomplished in the continuing outreach of this parish church. And remember, Named Gift Opportunities are still available to help us finish the work which we have started.

June 16, 2005
Initial erection of steel girders by the firm of Ira G. Steffy & Sons, Inc., of Ephrata, PA, began.
The erectors would remain for the next several days to complete their effort.

July 12, 2005
The skilled timber joiners of Vermont Timber Frames Inc. began the erection and joining of the massive wooden beams that create the support structure for the main sanctuary.

July 16, 2005
By 1:00 p.m. on this Saturday afternoon, their work completed, the joiners prepare to depart Paoli for Connecticut where their next assembly project would begin on Monday. They had done an extraordinary job.

BUILDING A BARN: THE CONSTRUCTION OF FELLOWSHIP HALL

BUILDING A BARN:
THE CONSTRUCTION OF FELLOWSHIP HALL