GLASGOW — A unique construction project is underway at the Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall in Glasgow. Volunteers, including some who drove several hours from out of state, are helping complete the months-long renovation of the building.
The project is also highlighting the role of women in construction.
Husband and wife Gavin and Ellie Oakman are helping install insulation in the Kingdom Hall. They made a roughly eight and a half hour drive from Laramie, Wyoming to Glasgow to do the work.
"We enjoy the work. Even though some of the tasks aren't the most enjoyable, it's fun to be helping on a Kingdom Hall, on a place of worship like this. It's so enjoyable being with our friends. Even though most of the people here we don't know, we leave at the end of the week having friends that we're going to stay in touch with," Gavin said.
"It was a beautiful drive and we know that coming here we'd be with good friends. We have hard work to do, but we knew that it's worth it in the end. We drive home feeling good about it," said Ellie.
Alfonso Gomez made a roughly eight and a half hour drive from Scotts Bluff, Nebraska to help hang drywall.
"Close to the seven hour mark, I was kind of, like, 'What are we doing?' But this was a great experience," Gomez said.
Like the Oakmans, he appreciates the friendship involved.
"This is actually one of the things that brings me a lot of joy is coming here working with my friends, making new friends," said Gomez.
Rob Munguia is a spokesperson for Jehovah's Witnesses and estimates around 40 percent of volunteers on projects like this are women.
"We're very proud of the females that are able to support these projects. In the United States right now, women make up less than four percent of the construct ion workforce but we've found that the skills that women have in our organization are beyond compare," said Manguia.
Impressive work building inspiration for others.
"It's positive peer pressure. When they find out that some females have been working on a project and really had a great time, they get excellent training and they're able to do excellent work, then it makes others want to join in, too," Manguia emphasized.
The work is expected to be completed in July.
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