MOUNT VERNON — Passers-by 189 Mansfield Road saw the building go up on two weekends in September. Finally, after heating and ventilation, interior finishing, paving and inspections were all completed, the Jehovah’s Witnesses congregation moved into its new Kingdom Hall and Saturday invited the public to an open house.
Straw still covers areas that will be grass, but the parking lots are finished and lined and the building is “open for business.”
Congregation Elder David Hatfield said some neighbors came to see what the new facility is like, but most visitors seemed to be people they have called on around the community.
Ground was broken for the new facility in July, Hatfield said, and after site preparation was complete, the building was erected by volunteer labor on two long weekends in September.
Gregory Allen, from the Jehovah’s Witnesses national headquarters in New York, who was the guest speaker for the dedication service later Saturday, explained that Regional Building Committee organizes volunteers with construction skills from around the region to come in and erect the facilities.
“It shows what can be done with a spirit of cooperation,” he said.
He called it an excellent facility that is comfortable and functional for the congregation’s needs and those of the community.
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