Boys Village is a nonprofit residential community that touches lives of children who are in critical trouble or have been abused or neglected.

A group from the church began hosting a Bible Study for those who were interested, according to Summer Goode, LC Communications Director, and found out about the gym.

“You should have seen this place,” said Rev. Jeff Ralston, church pastor. “I walked in and my heart just sank. It was bad. It stunk.”

The floor of the basketball court was stained and badly buckled. Insurance money had covered roof repair, but it wasn’t enough to replace the floor, according to Cindy Mathiew, Boys Village development director. Before the hurricanes, the gym was the boys’ go-to place for recreation, and where many of them would rather be most of the time.

The church sent letters to local businessmen, including Shannon Smith, a local contractor and church member.

“We cannot find anyone willing to redo the floor in its current condition,” Ralston told Smith, “and even if we could, the company wouldn’t be able to guarantee its work.”

Ralston and Smith visited with John Quarles and Keith Young, K&J Development. They sent out a crew to assess the situation, and realized that the original floor could support a rigorous sanding, and only a few spots would need to be completely replaced. They knew a crew that could do the job, make-over 5,000 square-feet of gym floor for $24,500. Plus, they donated $10,000 to the Boys Village Foundation project.

On Wednesday, Boys Village held a ribbon cutting to mark the completion of the work and open the gym up again to 24 Boys Village residents for the first time since August 2020.

“I can’t wait to see the look on their faces,” Goode said.