THE NEXT WAVE - Crashing In!
Well, we might have been 13 months overdue, but today was the official groundbreaking ceremony for our campus redevelopment program, THE NEXT WAVE. Following our 10:30 service (around 11:45) all those who chose to stick around met first in the auditorium. Bruce introduced some of the "major players" in the whole operation--the most significant of whom were the "8th and Orange Crowd" as he called them. These are the men and women who were part of FCC when it met at its first building on 8th and Orange. (Nobody is still around from THAT groundbreaking--1908!) These folks have been a vital part of FCC in all the years since--including the buildings that were dedicated to the Kingdom in 1956 and 1983 on our current campus.
While we were gathering for the ceremony to begin, I snapped the picture below of Kristi, Jennifer, Lexi, and Emily. I couldn't help thinking back to when we first became part of FCC in February of 1990. So MANY changes . . . not the least of which are the "girls" themselves. Kristi was in the 9th grade and Jennifer was in the 5th. Lexi and Emily, of course, weren't even in anyone's dreams at that point. They will get to be part of the very first generation of FCC children to enjoy the incredible facilities that were officially initiated at noon today.
Jennifer with Emily, Kristi with Lexi
(and Emily LOVING the camera!)
Then we moved outside for the photo shoot. It was neat to see the large crowd that was gathering around the construction fence, trying to catch a glimpse of the site. I was just taking some random shots of the crowd. I didn't notice until after I loaded the pics into my computer that the woman in the center (with the red top and black slacks) was the daughter-in-law of Tommy Overton, the beloved pastor who led the congregation from 8th and Orange to Main Street back in the 50s. I can't help wondering what was going through her mind today.
The Crowd, looking on
(Janet Overton, down center--
red top/black slacks)
Lyn signing her name on the "Prayer Wall," a
large banner that will be archived for the future.
The "8th and Orange Crowd"
(The man in the center--wearing the tie--
has been a member of FCC since 1931!)
Architects, Contractor, and Church Representatives
(Norm Dyson--3rd from the right--has been an unstoppable
force in the project. Without him, the grounbreaking
might have been delayed until NEXT summer!)
Most of our staff.
Several years back we took a staff
picture--there were SEVEN of us back then!
Part of Bruce's prayer at the ceremony
7 comments:
How very exciting. Thank you for that detailed post. I'll be praying for you all. How good to see God move the dirt beneath your feet. You're on holy ground...broken for His glory!
Don, thank you so much for posting this. I wasn't able to attend. It gave me chills reading about it and seeing the photos. God's doing big things!
Awesome day....
I was sitting in the back row of the next section over and as I was looking around I noticed you, Lyn, Kristi, Jennifer and their girls and thought "Wow"....it is neat how a lot of us "kids" have come back and made this our church family as adults and families. But it was neat to see you guys sitting together as a family to remind me of how blessed we are with this wonderful group of church members.
Oops...it's really Sarah on Brandon's computer.:)
it was a very exciting day----and I was thinking the same thoughts as Sarah. I'm so excited for what Emily will get to have as her church!
It was a really great morning! It meant so much to me to get to share it with my family. Won't it be great when our children and grandchildren get to experience their new building? It's so exciting!
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