Asbestos removal required at former junior high gymnasiumStoneville, North Carolina - In Stoneville, North Carolina, local church leaders are hoping that they dreams of building a new community center might soon become reality. Many believe that the former Stoneville Junior High School gymnasium might be turned into the "Jacob Dillard Community Development and Enrichment Center."
"We have a dream of replacing something that has outlived its usefulness with something that will serve the needs of the community for many years to come," said the Rev. Kenneth Moore, pastor of Sharon Missionary Baptist Church in Stoneville.
"This project has the potential to be something great for our communities," said Pastor Perry Webster, who also serves as chief of the Madison Police Department. "Our mission is to give residents of all ages a place to come free for education, fellowship and recreation."
"We put on a new roof, put in new heating and air conditioning and did a lot of painting and upgrading," Moore said. "We got the gym ready for use by our young people and set up exercise equipment on the stage...We want to tear down the classroom building and build a new state-of-the-art facility in its place."
But realizing their dream will require hard work and a lot of financing, including $29,000 to pay for asbestos abatement.
"The tiles used in the building are made with asbestos," Moore explained. "There's also asbestos in the wrappings around the pipes and old boiler." But the leaders need more than just the $29,000 investment: all told, it would cost $80,000 to remove the asbestos and tear down and dispose of the building.
Exposure to asbestos may cause mesothelioma later in life. This rare cancer can lie dormant for decades and kill within months of being diagnosed.
"We have a wonderful group of people with a wide range of knowledge and experience to help us with this project," Webster said. "We also hope to meet with the town councils in Madison, Mayodan and Stoneville soon to set out our proposal."
"The churches decided to put all the proceeds from this year's offering toward the community center project," he added. "We'll also continue to take donations from the community and apply for grants and other funding."
