ST. MICHAEL'S, Md. - On a bright December afternoon, the sunshine failed to illuminate what should be a shining beacon in this Talbot County town.
"We've lived in the nighttime for too long in this space," said Langley Shook.
Shook is the director of the St. Michael's Community Center.
He said the Center has been an important part of people's lives when they find themselves facing hardships.
"If there was a crisis, if a house burned down, or someone had to move, unsettled with kids and no clothes and no furniture, they would come to us," Shook said.
From the outside, the Community Center looks like an old lumber warehouse, which it originally was when the structure was first built at the start of World War II.
Before it became the Community Center, the windows were blocked out, which meant that natural light only entered the building when the overhead doors were open.
The made for a gloomy experience for the town's youth.
"As you turned the lights out, and in the middle of day when you've got sunshine shining up above, not any of that light gets into the building," Shook said. "It's pitch black."
Just after Thanksgiving, a $4 million renovation project began. The project will add an 800 square foot kitchen, a state-of-the-art computer lab, and a clerestory that will finally let natural light in.
This will allow the Community Center to, among other things, expand a partnership with Chesapeake College that brings culinary students into the Center to teach home cooking to neighbors.
Funding for the project is coming from some state and federal grants. But most of the funds are from donations by the public. No money will come from the St. Michael's taxpayers.
For one neighbor, it's a demonstration of the generosity that makes the town special.
"It reflects what the season is all about: sharing love and joy and peace with others, and happiness and giving," said neighbor Bobbi Parlett.
Donations to support the renovations are still being accepted, and those donations will be met with a dollar-to-dollar match from an anonymous donor until New Year's. Donations in excess of what is needed to complete the renovations will support the Community Center's programs. Click here to learn more about the project and how to donate.
