My Fellow Parishioners,
 
As many of you have already heard, a water pipe burst in the men’s bathroom in the early morning hours of Wednesday, Oct. 2, resulting in a flood in the hallway, the Founders Hall, the library and the church office.  Fortunately, the flood was discovered early and ServPro was summoned immediately to clean up the water, dry the affected areas and return the church to normal operations ASAP.
 
The good news is that the flood water was clean – we did not suffer a blackwater incident or any related outcomes. The bad news is that the Founders Hall is damaged.
 
The insurance adjuster visited St. George yesterday to inspect and assess the floor damage. On Monday, Oct. 7, an inspector will visit St. George to assess and recommend how best we repair the underlying floor, which is intact and contains asbestos that we will have removed through abatement, which entails sealing the room and restricting its use until the work is completed. Currently, there is no threat hazard at all to St. George, and any and all floor removal procedures will be conducted after consultation with both the insurance adjuster and the inspector, as well as a formal decision by the Parish Council.

In the short-term, we will experience several inconveniences at St. George. We already needed to cancel the Greek Pre-School the past three days, as well as Father Dimitrios’ “Journey to Orthodoxy’ class, both Thursday afternoon and evening Bible Study classes, and the Sunday School teacher workshop on Saturday morning.

Last night, Parish Council members toured the damaged areas and formulated an immediate plan to re-work the St. George schedule this weekend. The Founders Hall, Chapel and Kitchen will be closed. Coffee hour will still take place in the back of the Grand Hall. However, all youth activities such as GOYA basketball and Greek Dance practice are cancelled this weekend.
 
Regarding Divine Liturgy and Sunday School, we will set up a temporary chapel this Sunday in the Grand Hall (similar to Holy Week) for the children’s Divine Liturgy. Sunday School will take place as normal, with a few adjustments that will be conveyed by the director and co-director, who attended last night’s meeting. Sunday School students will be advised by their teachers as to which rooms their classes will be held.
 
We will need help from the community on Saturday, Oct. 5 at Noon-2:00 PM to set-up the chapel for the Sunday Divine Liturgy. We will also need help in putting away all the chairs on Sunday following Divine Liturgy. Everyone available to volunteer is encouraged to come to St. George on Saturday, stay after Divine Liturgy on Sunday, and help.
 
Fortunately, the wedding planned for Saturday will proceed as planned.
 
After the insurance adjuster and inspector complete their initial work and report to the Parish Council, we will devise a plan forward and keep you up to date and informed of all plans.
 
We look forward to seeing each of you this Sunday for Divine Liturgy in the Church and the Grand Hall. Please feel free to ask any questions of me or the other members of the Parish Council.
 
In Christ’s love
 
Stephen J. Vlahos,
Parish Council President