With generous support from the family of long-time Prince of Peace member Margaret Sorenson who passed away in 2018, we have recently taken delivery of new, more comfortable seating to use during meetings and events in our reception room and gym. A task force, chaired by Diane Dodge, evaluated our current inventory of occasional seating and then worked with a designer from Church Plaza, a company that specializes in seating solutions for ministry contexts like ours. A selection of the new chairs are now on display in the sanctuary entry for you to try out.
With considerable input from the membership, sturdiness and comfort were the primary concerns needing to be incorporated into the new seating. Two styles of chairs were selected, 50 wider seats with arms for easier transitions and 150 padded chairs that could be stacked for storage when not in use. Both styles of chairs were finished with the same fabric covering and metal finishing in order to coordinate the look for times when both sets of seating will be used together. Just think how nice our next 200-person pot-luck will appear!
Many thanks to Diane Dodge, Ruth Hagander, Gus Haugan, and Esther Tatley for their fine work on the selection committee. Thanks also to the crew that helped to unload and uncrate the chairs upon delivery: James Ericksen, Rainer Jaeschke, Brian Johnson and Dave Olson. And finally, thanks to the Monday Morning Crew who individually unwrapped each chair of its protective wrappings and prepared them for use.
To make room for the new seating, the existing inventory of seating was scaled back, donated and sold. A number of the unused sanctuary chairs are now in use at Lakeview Lutheran Church in Maplewood. A collection of the maroon stacking chairs have been relocated to the lower level Sunday School rooms (where their easy-cleaning plastic will be appreciated). Some of the folding chairs have been retained for the occasional outdoor event or for temporary loan to members for off-site gatherings.