Strawberry Social & Manse Accessibility Celebration

The weather cooperated! After some rainy weather up to just minutes before it began, the skies turned blue and the sun shone for our Strawberry Social on Sunday, June 23. Our beautiful Manse was the showstopper, with the beautiful perennial gardens entwined in the newly accessible ramp and entrance. Tours were provided inside where all saw the lovely new accessible combination washroom/laundryroom. Much thanks to Rev. Michiko and Johnny for opening up their home to us - just wonderful to see the care and respect to it’s history. Huge thanks to them both. A ribbon cutting ceremony and remarks were held at 2:00pm with MP Bryan May, Brant Mayor David Bailey,  Jennifer Kyle, Councillor, Ward 1, County of Brant. Representatives of WOW (Western Ontario Waterways) Regional United Church Council Rev. Kevin Steepr and Rev. Kathy Douglas were also in attendance. Much thanks to our Ministerial Accessibility Project team members of Bill Labron, Neil Sandilands, Bruce Shorney, Margaret Fleury , John Graham, Jayne Miller, Lynn McRuer  and Don Douglas. Thanks also to this event committee of Margaret Fleury and Margaret McPherson and those who assisted them. The strawberry shortcake was delicious and the fellowship sublime!

The MAP Committee was struck in 2022 and an application for a grant for the project was submitted to the Federal Government, Minister of Employment and Social Development for 80% project funding up to a maximum of $100,000. The grant was approved in March of 2023 with Alder Creek Construction retained as the general contractor in May and the Brant County building permit issued in June.

The goal of the project was to create a manse building that is accessible for ministerial staff, for the faith community, and for the community at large. This will benefit future ministers and their families by removing barriers to access this historic stone manse and provide accessible main floor living. It also provides accessibility for church and community members to attend meetings, minister consultations, or social events.

The project scope was to provide a fully accessible entrance to the manse front door and a main floor accessible bathroom/laundry room. The exterior work included raising the grade of the front yard, installing a concrete accessibility ramp, raising the existing porch elevation, adding new hand railings, building a new set of stairs, and landscaping to complement the new construction. This work was mostly completed during the summer of 2023 with final landscaping this spring.

Throughout last summer, the Glen Morris community may have wondered what was going on as truck load after truck load of fill and topsoil was brought in to change the grade of the front yard. This was to allow for an on-grade accessibility ramp without the use of an unsightly wood or metal ramp. The height of the porch deck was raised and new railings and stairs installed. A team of members with horticulture experience provided all the landscaping. The interior work was started in August 2023 and included getting appropriate permits, demolishing the old bathroom/laundry room at the back of the main floor, reframing to code, adding spray foam insulation, laying new flooring, installing new wiring, updating the plumbing, adding drywall, and then painting and adding the trim. This new room was complete with new fixtures, a roll-in shower, an accessible toilet and vanity, and a front load washer and dryer.

There were many surprises found along the way including bad floor joists, outdated wiring and inadequate framing. Alder Creek, with the help of the Brant County Building inspector were able to resolve these issues in a timely manner. Many carpentry and finishing touches were also done by church members Neil Sandilands and John Graham, with much appreciation. The final project cost came in at $156,500 and the church thanks the federal government Ministry of Employment and Social Development for their $100,000 grant that made this accessibility project possible. How perfect to celebrate this accomplishment as the faith community of this church looks toward the future, amidst reflecting on their past 175 years.