Repainting the Sanctuary

The long-awaited repainting of the sanctuary has begun! The painters have been hard at work on extremely tall scaffolding painting all of the plaster surfaces in the sanctuary, including the ceiling. For decades, the sanctuary has been painted in an off-white color that did little to accentuate architecture and ornate plaster detailing. The new paint scheme includes warmer color tones specifically selected by an architect who specializes in historic church sanctuaries. He also selected the colors for SLU's St. Francis Xavier College Church, and Second Presbyterian in the Central West End.

Below are some before & after photos showing the progress so far:

BEFORE:


AFTER: The archway now is painted with great detail, with gold leaf on the medallions:


BEFORE:

AFTER:

BEFORE:

AFTER: The warmer brown around the windows will allow the stained glass to stand out more, while the "almond cream" pillars and arches will create the appearance of a collonade along the side walls:

New Sanctuary Sound System

In Mid-October, an all-new sound system was installed in the sanctuary. It consists of new main speakers for the sanctuary, in-ear monitors for the worship band, new wireless microphones for the pastors, and special microphones mounted on stands for the choir. The system has been fine-tuned for Memorial's sanctuary and should eliminate issues with interference and garbled sound that had plagued the old system for years. We are grateful that God has provided for this new system, which will help us join together in worship more fully, being able to hear and receive the Word more clearly.

Senior Pastor's Office

We start this week on refurbishing Pastor George's office. Cat Geyer, interior designer, has been working with George and the Capital Campaign to select new carpet, furniture, desk, lighting, and paint colors. Much of the old funiture is very outdated and mismatched, having been cobbled together over the years from different parts of the church. We look forward to providing our Senior Pastor with a refreshed, updated, and beautifully coordinated new office.

New A/C in the Rear Auditorium and Large Parlor

Work is underway to replace the old air conditioning system in the rear auditorium of the church. This old system has been a problem and a hindrance to ministry for decades and we're thankful to have the opportunity to finally replace it.

Because the air handling unit was just sitting in the corner of the room exposed, whenever the A/C would come on during a meeting, the booming sound of the system would dominate the room and interupt or obscure anything taking place in the auditorium. This system also served the large parlor just as poorly, with the loud sound coming through the ducts and disrupting meetings and classes.

The old system was also poorly designed and very inefficient. It was impossible to cool the large parlor without having the whole system running and also cooling the rear auditorium. The air circulation was poor and there was only one thermostat on the auditorium side of the wall, so the system would not shut off even when the parlor cooled down and it had to be operated manually much of the time.

We found that a good solution was to install a stand alone "split system" in the large parlor with a whisper-quiet air handler, while installing a new, quieter, and more efficient conventional air handler in the rear auditorium. It will be enclosed in a new utility closet that will be insulated to muffle the sound, with additional supply vents to reduce air sound.

Below is the area where construction is occuring:

Here is the new air handler already in place and blue tape on the floor where the new closet will be built. You can also see the coolant line coming from the new split system in the large parlor on the other side of the wall:

The original baseboard is being removed from the closet interior so that it can be used on the outside of the new closet:

The old air supply and return vents in the large parlor have been patched and will be replastered:

Below is the new whisper-quiet air handler in the parlor. When the system turns on, the fin opens wider and even oscillates to help with air distribution. It operates by remote control and will be a huge improvement over the old system.

The Chapel in the News

The Chapel's first hosted art gallery show got a great review in The Vital Voice, a secular St. Louis newspaper. The headline of the article, "Going to the Chapel: New art venue paints a selfless picture" is very encouraging as the volunteers at The Chapel seek to be a welcoming presence serving artists & musicians selflessly.

We enourage you to read the article at the link above...

The Chapel...in action

As we continue work on additional building projects, it's exciting to see completed projects bearing fruit. The Chapel has already hosted many concerts and events since its grand opening in June, and the first full art gallery show opens this Saturday (Aug. 16) at 6pm.

Friday's concert at The Chapel featuring John Hardy & the Public resulted in a review with photos on the RFT website (CLICK HERE TO VIEW). Despite some unexpected sound problems caused by a short-term problem with two of the speakers, the event still garnered a favorable review.

The purpose of The Chapel is to enable us to serve musicians and artists in St. Louis, helping to lower the walls of suspicion between artists and Christians. The Chapel is off to a great start, and it would not have happened without sacrificial giving to the Beacon for the Gospel in St. Louis Capital Campaign.

July Update

Exciting progress is being made on the Campaign this Summer, with a new sanctuary sound system to be installed this Fall, including all-new microphone and speaker systems. New quiet and efficient air conditioning will replace the old systems in the rear auditorium and large parlor by the end of August. We are currently soliciting feedback from the congregation on proposals for repainting the entire sanctuary, and input-gathering will also begin soon on renovating the basement Fellowship Hall. Renovations in the Matthews Wing classrooms are also ongoing.

These improvements are made possible through God's provision and your sacrificial giving to the Capital Campaign!

Brief Update

With the chapel and nursery renovations complete, we are currently working on upgrading the ceiling, lighting, and flooring in the 2's & 3's classroom, with the 4's and 5's classroom to follow.

We also are working on plans for the new A/C for the auditorium and parlor, new sanctuary sound system and organ repairs, porte cochere roof repairs, and the outdoor playgarden.

This summer, the campaign team will also be seeking ideas and input from the congregation on renovating the Fellowship Hall. There are many possibilities for how it can be designed, so we will need to look at lots of different ideas to understand what ministries will be using the space and how best it can be designed to accommodate them.

More details coming soon....

The Chapel Hosts its First Event!

The Chapel is now 95% complete, and while the facility will primarily serve as a music and arts venue, we decided to have a "soft opening" by hosting the wedding reception of Lou and Jason Carmichael from the Memorial church family on March 15.

After seeing the The Chapel in action during the reception, we are eager to put it to use as a tool for the ministries of Memorial to help us communicate the welcome of Jesus to our city through the Arts. Stay tuned for an announcement of a grand opening concert event in either April or May.

(Photos by Abby Schamp - ImageArtistic, LLC)

Chapel / Nursery Floorplans

It occurred to us that we haven't posted the actual floorplans for the Matthews Chapel renovations online. The first plan below shows the existing configuration with the original chapel, hallways, and nursery:



The plan below shows the new layout after the renovations. The main changes in the chapel involve the expansion of the stage, new seating, and the addition of a fully equipped sound booth and prep area with full plumbing along the back wall. Extensive electrical work will be needed to provide for the sound and lighting equipment needed during performances.

The former lobby and hallway are being transformed from bland passageways into dramatic art gallery spaces with exposed concrete ceilings and contrasting wall colors.

The nursery's restrooms are being renovated to provide ADA-accessibility and to accomodate usage during chapel events, and the crib room is being separated into two rooms to better serve the nursery as well as provide a small dressing room for the chapel ministries to share:

Gallery & Chapel Progress

While the nursery renovations took center-stage in December, work was also ongoing in the gallery hall and the rear wall of the chapel, which will feature a sound control booth, food & drink prep. area, and emergency exit door. Below are progress photos:

View of the gallery hall looking north. Note the new bamboo floors, painted walls, and exposed concrete beams.


The new drywall along the south gallery wall painted bright white will make an ideal setting for displaying artwork. New track-lighting (coming soon) will be mounted on the ceiling beams:


The rear chapel wall features a new sound booth (at center), prep. area (at right of sound booth), and wall-mounted acoustical panels:


The front of the sound booth was created from the woodwork that was originally in the chapel chancel area:


Another view of the sound booth with rose window above:


The prep area will feature a sink, dishwasher, icemaker, and two undercounter refrigerators. The bare spot on the wall is where an emergency-only exit (connecting to the nursery) will be installed:

Nursery Renovations Underway

The Nursery renovations got underway in December with installation of bamboo flooring in the entry, wall demolitions, restroom remodeling, and ceiling removal. Coming soon is the new ADA-accessible restroom, new suspended ceiling and lighting, new carpet, and upgraded finishes throughout. Below are the latest photos of the construction progress:


View of the nursery entry and clean-up area with new bamboo floors:



Existing restroom in the foreground, future ADA restroom in the background:

Renovated existing restroom with new sink, toilet, mirror, and pendant light:

View of the main nursery area - new ceiling, carpet, and lighting are coming soon:

A new one-way emergency exit door from the chapel will be constructed here:


The crib room ceiling has been removed - a new doorway will be constructed along the right wall: