Christ UMC completes renovation

Contact this contributing writer at PamDillon@woh.rr.com.

It takes faith, hope, hard work and charity to embark upon an ambitious expansion of church facilities. Christ United Methodist Church in Kettering had an abundance of all four.

A $4.6 million building campaign was successfully completed, within budget and one month early.

The church is on Shroyer Road across from Fairmont High School.

Faith

The planning stages began in November 2009, and by January 2011 renovation ideas were firm enough to form a building committee. It was chaired by David Helmers, with members Kathy Fellows, Mary Beth Melville, Gay Mercer, Ron Klenk and Mark Fellows, who acted as church staff liaison.

“After approval from the church board, we presented it to the congregation for a vote. We were hoping for 60 percent approval rating, but we received a 95 percent approval from the 1,700-member congregation,” said Helmers. “That majority has never happened in the history of our church.”

It was November of 2015, and time to proceed with the project. The $4.6 million was pledged to be paid over a three-year period. Committee reps included church members in the planning stages, so they could recommend some improvements: a larger serve area, larger elevator, an expanded food pantry, and better mobility/accessibility within the building.

Hope

Anytime you put a committee in charge of a complicated project, the harmony of the unit is of the utmost importance.

“I thought the committee was a very cohesive group, friendly and cordial. We worked well together, supported each other, and everyone contributed along the way,” said Melville, who also serves as an office volunteer. “We’re very pleased with the results.”

Another hope with a construction project is that unforeseen costs are kept to a minimum. A total of $200,000 was earmarked for the demolition, and it only cost $120,000.

“The extra money came in handy. We were removing the original 1957 pews in the sanctuary for the new carpeting, they were falling apart,” said Fellows, church building manager. “New pews were on a dream list, and would be movable and flexible for various seating arrangements.”

Besides a compatible building committee, capable professionals were hired to do the work. Committee members said Lead architect Jim Mitchell was outstanding, and Matt Gray of Shook Construction did a great job of coordinating contractors.

“One of the issues was replacing ceiling lights, with limited floor to floor space.

We used panelized LED lights, and replaced the 1965 HVAC system, and put in energy-efficient windows,” Mitchell said. “We are getting a total of about $35,000 in rebates from DP&L and Vectren for all of these upgrades.”

Hard work

Renovations of the 90,000 square foot space included ADA compliant restrooms, new roof, sanctuary reconfiguration and tripling the size of the church’s serve space. A new sprinkler system brought the building up to code. A highlight is a newly dedicated 6,800 square foot Kids’ Zone.

“We are extremely excited to rededicate this space to be of service with and to the community,” said Lead Pastor Barry DeShetler. “Now we are well positioned to continue to minister to and serve our church community and the larger community of Kettering in bigger and better ways.”

Charity

Christ Church is known in the community for its service and partnership with outreach programs such as the Kettering Backpack Project, Kairos Prison Ministry, supporting five local food pantries and serving at St. Vincent’s Homeless Shelter.

“Prior to our renovation we had one dedicated room for sorting and distributing clothes and food out to a few other United Methodist churches in the Dayton area,” Fellows said. “Now we have three large rooms to do the same thing and soon we will have a food pantry and clothing center to help meet the local community needs.”

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