The Pastor and members of the Shimei Seventh-day Adventist Church say they are excited with the progress of the rebuilding of the church building in Long Bay.
The latest development was the casting of the floor “jollification” style on Sunday 26th February, 2023. Work on “pouring the floor” started early in the morning when the truck rolled on the property to ‘shoot’ the concrete.
Workmen from the Mount Fortune and New Life churches in the east had traveled to the west to participate in the work. They were accompanied by the church sisters who cooked and distributed a delicious Sunday meal.
Pastor Lester Jules is the Pastor assigned to the Shimei Ministry, as well as the Jireh Ministry in South Hill. He shared with The Anguillian his feelings about the casting of the floor:
“We have registered good progress with the pouring of the floor,” he said. “This work spells excitement, hope, and great expectations, as we continue on this worthwhile project for the Lord. We were joined by members from the other districts who came down to assist us, and indeed we are thankful for all the help we can get.”
“The effort was crowned with a very tasty lunch provided by the women of the Mount Fortune Church. Indeed, we thank them immensely,” Pastor Jules said. “We remain resolute and committed to having this church project completed for the work of Christ in the not too distant future.”
Pastor Howard Simon is in charge of the churches in East End. He is the Coordinator of the building project, and one of his duties is to ensure that there is adequate manpower for the work.
He told the Anguillian Newspaper he is eager to see the Shimei church completed.
“Pastor Jules marshaled his troops,” he said, “and we from Mount Fortune and New Life joined forces with them to make the work easier. It was a wonderful experience. We had a tremendous time. We had a lot of folks down there engaged in the casting of the floor. The ladies from Mount Fortune provided a sumptuous lunch for us, and we thank them wholeheartedly.”
“We had gone down there before as a team to work with the Chief Contractor, Brother Earnest Fleming, on some other preparatory work for the floor pouring. All in all, Sunday’s work was quite rewarding and our united efforts proved to be a great success.
Remarkably, the Shimei Ministry was the first Seventh-day Adventist church established in Anguilla in the early 1930s, but the body of believers had no building of their own in which to worship. Services were held in Edmond Hodge’s home – one of the members – before a little shelter was built, which was occupied for a number of years.
Since then, a building was dedicated in 1987. The new building, now in progress, promises to be a magnificent edifice when it is completed. This 11,935 square-foot structure will replace that 1987 building which was destroyed by Hurricane Irma in 2017.
