Before you read my write up on the "BUILD" I want to acknowledge the person who was behind the workings of the build.
She contacted all the men whose names are mentioned here and more.
She was relentless and worked tirelessly to put everything in order for the build to happen, over the past 2 years.
We owe her a great debt of thanks for doing what she does best; which is organize a project and work with people.
Dianne Young, you're the best of who we are at Ak-O-Mak….
Our lives have a foundation, and who and what we become depends on that foundation.
Ak-O-Mak has been the foundation for many of our lives. Mine included.
As was my privilege to be at camp to watch the "dream" unfold,
I saw Kelly and Craig dig out the soil to what would become the foundation.
Huge trucks unloaded thunderous loads of rock for 3 and a half days.
Sandra, Kelly's wife, allowed me to travel into the gravel pit to see the process.
Yep, Sandra drove a 16-ton truck quite handily.
Josh, an engineer and cement company owner with his partner Erin did the forms to hold the concrete.
In our lives, we need forms which are our boundaries to allow a healthy respect for who and what we are.
Camp helps us develop those healthy boundaries.
With three layers in the foundation of: 18" of heavy rock, 6" of gravel, and 6" of concrete. This was "the base" for the pavilion to rise.
With Jonathan as supervisor, Volunteer Builders, set and adjusted trusses, adding plywood and shingles for the roof.
They built the side walls with the openings for the windows. All these pieces were assembled on the ground.
Then, June 7th, a massive crane operated by Luke set the side walls in place, as volunteer builders helped guide all the pieces together.
Luke, incredibly skilled, swung the roof halves from the soccer field up over the walls with a good wind coming off the lake and set them in perfectly in place.
As the second half of the roof was set down, and Dianne and I watched with hard hats on, I could feel tears well up to see the dream become real.
The day I left Josh was forming and pouring the concrete for the outer porch on three sides.
Now camp will need skilled personnel to finish the porch roof and make final adjustments to the pavilion.
This becomes the next phase for this project which requires more funds.
As I drove back to Pittsburgh, I wondered what Buck or Jan would be saying about all this, I'm sure it would be entertaining and thought provoking.
I am reaching out to all of you that know the value of experiencing a place called Ak-O-Mak to give and help continue to fund this huge project.
The Pavilion has and will forever, change the landscape of camp when you first see it.
But the impact on the camp program will be immense.
Pam