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Air Force Reserve, Army units collaborate on World War II chapel renovations

  • Published
  • By Christina Carmen Crea
  • Northwest Guardian
JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. --  Turning a World War II-era chapel into an Environmental Education and Conference Center here has connected Washington National Guard's 176th Engineers and 446th Airlift Wing Citizen Airmen in a unique way.

It was a chance for Army and Air Force components to collaborate on a project outside of combat training or operations.

"This is unique in troop construction," said JBLM Directorate of Public Works project manager and 176th Engineer Maj. Matthew Weeks. "It's above and beyond what normal troop construction has been with all of the wars going on the past few years. What makes this unique is it's truly a joint operation. You've got the Air Force Reserve and the Army National Guard working together on a military base."

Instead of going through a contractor to rebuild the chapel, Weeks said he wanted to go with military engineers and tradesmen who were already trained and on the clock.
"This project came up and I realized that they have the right skills sets and it's good to put them to work," he said.

The 176th Engineers are the lead on the project with support from the 446th Civil Engineer Squadron.

Staff Sgt. Dustin Buel, 446th CES, said sometimes it's challenging for the Army and Air Force to work together, but this project is a good example of their collaboration.

"There's a lot of great people to learn from, we learn from each other," he said. "Since we're already on one base, why go somewhere else when there's knowledge right across the street? And it saves the public money."

In return, service members get hands-on cross-training.

"It's a win-win situation for all parties," Weeks said.

Staff Sgt. Shane Little, 446th CES Heating, Ventilation, and Cooling technician, said it's been a great opportunity to learn how the Army operates.

"There are different rules for them compared to us (Air Force)," he said. "I enjoy this project, I like working with my hands. My trade is HVAC, but with this project I get to learn different skills such as putting beams up and pouring concrete. I don't do this on a daily basis so it's good to learn."

Staff Sgt. Jose Espinomella, 446th CES, said it correlates with the joint missions of JBLM.

"We all have the same mission and vision," he said. "It's one fight."

Chief of the Environmental Division Branch of JBLM DPW project manager Ken Smith said it's a new approach for public works to use Army and Air Force for projects.

"This is a test to see how effective it would be and so far I'm very impressed with the quality of work and attitude of folks who get the job done," he said. "Hopefully more projects will be handed off to them to utilize the workforce already here."

This project has also been a "check" off of Smith's bucket list.

"I'm pretty excited from both a personal and professional aspects," he said. "We've got a few sustainability projects going on at the same time to make JBLM the most sustainable place in the Army."

Smith added that the location, size and amenities of the new building will be much better than the current building.

"There's a storm-water retention pond we can use for our environmental projects right next to the building," he said. "Right now there's always so many people who take our classes that the lines go out the door. This space is triple what we have now and will have lots of data ports for students."

This project originally started 20 years ago and faced some construction setbacks - but since October of last year, they've planned to start the project again with construction officially starting on Aug. 1.

"Back in 2007, we did a sustainability project to show that a lot of old buildings could be renovated and reused as opposed to going to the landfill," Smith said. "Of the 13 buildings removed, we have 96 percent of our materials come out of those to be re-used."

The renovations to the chapel include a new HVAC system, electrical, plumbing, interior walls, sidewalks and other interior amenities.

"Essentially, the only things it had was a roof and exterior walls and frames," Weeks said.

Dan Fry, electrical inspector for JBLM DPW, said he thinks it's "fantastic that the troops are out there practicing their skills to get the facility done."

Fry was involved in the project years ago and is excited to see it completed.

"It's great the Soldiers can actually see something happen here from start to finish. See the results of their labor," said Lt. Col. Jennifer Phelps, 627th Air Base Group deputy director of JBLM DPW.

This project is also part of the "Net Zero" mission at JBLM.

As old buildings are being removed to make way for newer, more modern and energy efficient facilities, Weeks said they too often see the loss of something special regarding the heritage represented by the buildings being replaced.

They are using durable, cost effective "green" material systems and sustainable design will be used for everything from the foundation, windows, doors, wall assemblies, insulation and roof. The reclaimed exterior wood siding (which is prime quality, old-growth wood) will be reused on the interior and the final structure will end up retaining its historical design.

"We wanted to reuse the building because the actual structure was sound," Weeks said.

This has also allowed the troops the ability to be creative and make adjustments to the design.

"We are basically creating something new with the frames," he said.

Construction will continue throughout the year, with completion expected by the end of the year.