Multi-Purpose Building & Kitchen Update
Construction Is moving along at a good pace and it’s very exciting to see the progress that is being made. Be sure to read the following update and view the photos……
Despite the many challenges facing the school over the next few years, we continue to develop and grow the campus. We broke ground two months ago for our most ambitious project yet. . . a massive Multi-Purpose Building and a large, modern kitchen. When completed (scheduled for late 2022) it will accommodate 500 students at a time for lunches and dinners. It will also have a raised stage for performances with room to seat 750 guests and will be able to accommodate 1,000 people for a social event. In addition, it can also be used as an certified government-approved testing center, a TV/movie room during off hours and on weekends.
The new 5-stove modern kitchen will alleviate the current issue of students waiting hours each day in the long lines to receive their meals from the current 2-stove kitchen.
Putting aside the challenges facing the school and the community, this project is underway at exactly the right time for the local citizens. We make it a practice to always direct purchase locally available construction materials and foodstuffs to bolster the economy of the area. Likewise, we provide a steady income for many by employing local men and women, both skilled and unskilled labor, for the length of the project. Vincent Mutyaba, our onsite architect and construction manager, has described the impact:
“The construction has brought smiles to people’s faces despite the challenges they encounter. Since the projects started, the local builders have connections with plumbers, electricians, painters and carpenters and they have helped them to learn new skills and tour different sites to earn money and raise the standards of living. Direct purchase of locally available construction materials, food stuffs like beans, maize flour, fish, beef, pork, rice, kitchen, turkey, cassava and sweet potatoes uplift the economy in the area. The project has helped the people in the local community with shelter for rent, to be paid by the traveling builders who occupy them.”
We’ll continue to update you on the construction of the multi-purpose building and kitchen, but please know that your support will not only create very needed space for our students on campus, but also continue to benefit the surrounding area now and in the future as new skills are learned and utilized.
The students, staff and community of JPSS have rarely, if ever, seen such large pieces of equipment being used for this project. It is a challenge to bring such heavy duty equipment to Chelekura!
