Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new.
2 Corinthians 5:17
One of the responsibilities of the Vestry is to preserve and maintain the church properties. Under the leadership of Senior Warden Kirk Denkler and Junior Warden Jonathan Nateghi-Asli, your Vestry has undertaken to create a five-year plan that prioritizes needed repairs and improvements. Since COVID-19 has prevented us from using the buildings for worship and public activities, it has been the ideal time for maintenance projects that would otherwise be messy and/or disruptive.
September 2020 report to the Vestry from Senior Warden Kirk Denkler:
Our contractor, Randy Williams, has been working patiently and steadily for several weeks on the Church proper windows and doors. He is remarkably thorough. He absolutely refuses to paint anything until the surface has been properly scraped, sanded, and primed (which prior painters have neglected). He has also repaired or replaced as needed so that his work is lasting. Unfortunately, previous paint jobs have been sloppy accumulations of paint and caulk that have built up to create uneven surfaces and edges, and occasionally have served to cover up gaps and bad wood. We’re uncovering more than we bargained for, but we now have the chance to make it right.
1. Rear sealed door – Most of the left side trim was rotten and has been replaced (pics 1-1, 1-2). Pic 1-1 shows a paint stirrer stuck in the rotten wood.
2. Side entrance door – both main doors (and the windows) have large side gaps around the edge where wood trim meets brick. Over previous years, these were never repaired, just covered with layers of caulk (pic 2-1). Also around the doors and windows, the mortar between the courses of brick was always not filled in completely (pic 2-2). Again, originally covered by caulk that was only exposed when Randy removed all the old caulking.
3. Front entrance door – the lower left trim was rotten and replaced (pic 3-1 & 3-2). Notice the rot in the original wood piece leaning on the step. Also portions of the overhead arch were bad (pic 3-3). Along edges of the front door – and the windows and side door – Randy has been filling in the mortar gaps (pic 3-4). Notice the color of the mortar, which has been treated with dye to match the original so no conspicuous bright white contrast.
4. Windows – like the doors these were covered with layers of irregular paint and caulking that covered up gaps and splits. Pic 4-1 shows where the original caulk had covered up the large gaps between the brickwork and window frame. As with the doors, Randy has been filling in these gaps with the dyed mortar (pic 4-2).
5. Front large stained glass window – Randy will start working on this soon, but we agree that the entire trim must be replaced as it is rotten in many areas and has started to fall away (pic 5-1). Again, old caulking had covered up the gap between brick and wood. Since Trent had already replaced the sill panel with more resistant PVC material, we will do the same with the trim.
As most of you know, Emmanuel has a Capital Improvement Fund which plays a vital role in providing the funds for these kinds of improvements. This fund needs to be replenished regularly, so please consider a special contribution for this purpose. Simply make your check out to Emmanuel Episcopal Church with “Capital Improvement” in the memo line or in an attached note. Send to Emmanuel Treasurer, 122 E. Court St., Woodstock, VA 22664.