Providence Christian School opens new library, classrooms
By CHUCK BALLARO
It was a day of celebration and song for the students at Providence Christian School Monday as they celebrated a longtime prayer that finally came to fruition.
Students, faculty and parents gathered to witness the opening of a new wing for the school on Mohawk Parkway, which will add five classrooms and a library to the education building.
Jami Hommerbocker, school principal, said it was a very happy day for the school and the Evangelical Presbyterian Church that uses the school as part of its ministry.
“It’s taken a long time. The people here have been dreaming of this project for more than a decade,” Hommerbocker said. “I’m just the lucky principal who gets to cut the ribbon.”
Providence, which is celebrating its 30-year anniversary, has educated children from PK3 to 8th grade for many years. In recent years it had to settle for modular classrooms as the student population has slowly grown to 90, Hommerbocker said.
The church held fundraisers and got the $600,000 needed to construct the wing, with the purpose of increasing enrollment to about 150.
“It’s not just a pretty building. It actually will help us grow and educate more children,” Hommerbocker said. “One of our contracting companies will take the (modular) buildings away so we’ll have a large segment of free land for a playground or further expansion.”
The classrooms will house the youngest students, from K3 to first grade as well as a small library.
The ceremony featured prayer, song and comments from Hommerbocker, who thanked everyone involved for their hard work before student Zac Rullo cut the ribbon to officially open the wing and open its doors to the students and parents, who got to see the finished product for the first time.
For the kids, there was no time to waste as they immediately got to work while parents and board members gazed in wonder.
Bob Johns, board member and church elder, was the head of the building committee when the church started working on the project. He said it took three years from start to finish and was happy with the result.
“The big thing is that the kids and moms and dads are pleased about this. Our hope is that more people will notice and say it’s a cool little school and see if they want to send their kids there,” Johns said.
Brent Lauder, pastor at the church, which opened in 1981, said the addition is the culmination of years of work and prayer.
“We built this with the hope that we would attract more kids to hear the good news of the gospel and teach them of the love of God and Jesus Christ, so we’re excited this day has finally come,” Lauder said.