![\"Hooper](\"http:\/\/old.covchurch.org\/uploads\/ba\/k3\/bak3EOSUllfvG1VegdEifw\/Hooper-update.jpg\")
The AEC will partner with the church, Samaritan\u2019s Purse, and Missionary Aviation Repair Center to construct the five houses. Samaritan\u2019s Purse, led by Franklin Graham, is financing the work.<\/p>\nBy Stan Friedman<\/p>\n
HOOPER BAY, AK (August 30, 2006) – High school students in this community, where an August 3 fire destroyed the only elementary and high school and at least 14 homes, will receive high school and college credit for helping to build five new houses.
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\nGrant Funk, pastor of Hooper Bay Covenant Church, worked with the local school district to arrange for the credits, says Mark Hill, executive director of Amundsen Educational Center (AEC) in Soldotna, Alaska. Funk\u2019s wife, Lenna, also is helping families as they consider educational options.<\/p>\n
The AEC will partner with the church, Samaritan\u2019s Purse, and Missionary Aviation Repair Center to construct the five houses. Samaritan\u2019s Purse, led by Franklin Graham, is financing the work.<\/p>\n
Since 2001, AEC has offered a one-year certificate in home construction, as well as a two-year advanced certificate in home construction, Hill says. The founders and staff of AEC are all Covenant members and the organization is a partner ministry with the Evangelical Covenant Church of Alaska.<\/p>\n
Students complete one new house each year and learn all aspects of construction, ranging from dirt work to finished carpentry. The accompanying photo was taken last year, showing a team of students building a new home similar to the ones being constructed as part of the current rebuilding effort.<\/p>\n
Some students have returned to their villages in the Alaskan Bush where they have been hired to do construction \u2013 some have gained foreman positions, Hill points out.<\/p>\n
He looks forward to working with the Hooper Bay students. \u201cWe know the students are going to get quality instruction in construction,\u201d Hill says. \u201cWe\u2019re going to celebrate the achievements of every student who participates.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe hope that when students earn college credit, they will be encouraged to continue their education after high school,\u201d Hill adds. Roughly 30 students will help build the homes in Hooper Bay.<\/p>\n
Construction will begin September 18 and Funk says it is hoped the work can be finished by Thanksgiving. After that, the winter weather becomes too severe to allow work to continue.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re working on a time frame that is pretty tight, and we have a lot to do in a short time,\u201d Funk says. \u201cWe\u2019re putting in some long days.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hill noted that \u201c40-knot winds can come through during the fall. The weather can be a major challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n
Many families are sharing homes with people who lost their residences. The state has promised to bring in temporary homes before the winter hits. The five largest families in this remote village will live in the new homes.<\/p>\n
Samaritan\u2019s Purse has secured two general contractors, but skilled carpenters still are needed. Finding carpenters to spend several months in primitive conditions, including no running water, is difficult, Hill says. The problem is further compounded by trying to find those who can and are willing to teach high school students.<\/p>\n
The short timeline also presents an educational challenge. \u201cIt\u2019s a fine line between teaching and having to hurry to get it done,\u201d Hill says.<\/p>\n
Carpenters interested in helping should contact Samaritan\u2019s Purse and speak to Nicole Franklin by telephone at 800-528-1980.<\/p>\n
Educating the other students in Hooper Bay is proving a formidable task. Lenna Funk says that most people have handled the material losses well, but they are anxious about how all of the children will be educated. About 400 students attended the school.<\/p>\n
Most of the teachers have come from outside the district and many are not coming back, Lenna says. \u201cThe school said they will set up a packet with books for kids to work at home,\u201d she adds, \u201cbut so far that doesn\u2019t look like it\u2019s happening.\u201d<\/p>\n
The district also plans to hold elementary classes of an hour and a half each day, and then have the students complete work at home. The Covenant church will house two of the classrooms, but Lenna says other classrooms have not yet been arranged.<\/p>\n
Some village children have gone to boarding schools in other villages. High school students have state exams, and Pastor Funk says efforts are under way to find tutors.
\nThe school district hopes to have a new school built by the end of December.<\/p>\n
Lenna has been showing material to parents who are considering home schooling. \u201cWe need a lot of wisdom to figure out how we can help,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
The Funks, who have served in Hooper Bay for seven years, say they are grateful to be helping the villagers through the crisis. \u201cIt\u2019s not a hardship right now,\u201d Lenna says, despite the harsh conditions. \u201cIf God puts you in a place, he prepares you for what he wants you to do in life.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou just love the people more and more,\u201d she adds. \u201cYou hurt when they hurt. You rejoice when they rejoice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Copyright \u00a9 2011 The Evangelical Covenant Church.<\/p>\n