Events

Last Sunday, November 15, The congregants of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Jericho, Vermont, reinstalled their sign.

The 5'w x 10'h sign was purchased several years ago with memorial money. Since its original installation, it has had periodic refurbishments, including repainting of the sign face.

By this summer, the sign was once more looking its age. The paint was peeling in large flakes, particularly on the western side facing the sun. The dimensional logos were a bit faded and all in all, it did not reflect the vibrant Good Shepherd church community.

But purchasing a new sign the same size as this one, and made with materials that were more weather-durable, was not in the church budget. Even refurbishing the sign had its price tag, so a deal was made: We at SignARama would make panels that adhered to the sign, and that would effectively cover the peeling center panels.

We also agreed to either replace or repaint the logos, and re-mount them to the new panels. Church members volunteered to remove the sign, scrape and sand the redwood trim to remove the peeling polyurethane, prime and paint the trim, and reinstall the sign. A few more volunteers stepped up to spray paint the brackets, and putty and paint the large sign posts. In all, ten volunteers worked on the sign.

"We didn't realize how much work the scraping and painting would take," said Ann Mallet, church member. "But then we came to appreciate the redwood trim once it was done. We also realized that the trim was what made the sign so heavy!"

But what Ann and the volunteers did realize was how much more vested they became in their sign, a sign that was sorely missed by church and community members. Reinstalling the Good Shepherd sign was more of a barn-raising than a simple installation, and this is where a sign for a place of worship differs from a business sign: the emotional attachment.

While all signs advertise what the sign owner does along with the hours they are open, as well as greeting their "customers" upon arrival, a sign at a church reminds its congregants that they are part of a larger community. No wonder Ann Mallett called this symbol of her church "A mighty sign for a mighty mission." Amen.

Do you have a similar story about a sign at your place of worship?

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