Lincolnview Bible house waiting to expand

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

Renovation plans are in place and now, patience is the key for the Lincolnview Bible Board’s Bible house.

About 400 K-8 Lincolnview students attend the Bible house for an hour each week, including walking to and from the facility and the school with the help of adult volunteer walkers. The current facility, adjacent to the Lincolnview Local Schools on Middle Point Road, has been in use for over 12 years. It was donated by a bank that needed have it removed from a different lot.

Expansion plans include enlarging an existing classroom by removing a wall and transforming a garage into space for another classroom.

“When my kindergarteners through third graders back up their chairs are back-to-back,” teacher Deb Mongold said. “We decided we needed bigger classrooms because when you have 24 kids coming over, two walkers and a teacher, the classrooms just get a little bit crowded.”

“I do a lot of group projects with my older kids (fourth through eight grade) so they get down on the floor, they take clipboards, we’re doing a lot of interactive stuff,” teacher April Gray said. “We try to make it hands-on, something they can remember and take with them. (We want to) give them a little more personal space so they can be able to concentrate a bit more.”

Gray added she’s hopefully Ignite Van Wert will pick the Bible house as a volunteer project, a decision that could be made in the coming days.

“We have a contractor coming in but we’re hoping they can do some painting, some taking off trim, hanging some drywall and that type of thing,” Gray explained.

The goal is to have the project complete by mid-September. However, Board President Steve Cowling said while there are some things that can be done now, the Bible house is waiting on a state building permit in order to begin actual renovation work.

“We can patch the existing walls and paint but until we get a permit, we can’t take a wall down because as soon as we do any real construction, it means that we are not legally able to occupy the space,” Cowling said. “Right now we can paint and do carpeting and legally occupy this space until we try to build new walls and stuff like that.”

Cowling added the original timeline called for work to begin during the third week of July, with the process taking approximately a month. However, the permit process is taking substantially longer than usual, meaning a lengthy delay would likely lead to discussions on whether to delay the start of Bible classes or push the expansion project back to next summer.

The Lincolnview Bible Board is a non-profit (501c3) organization and relies on donations from local churches and individuals. To donate or for more information about the mission, check the Bible Board’s Facebook page or go to lvbiblehouse.org.