STUTTGART, Germany -- Congregations at Robinson Barracks Chapel now have a lighter, brighter facility in which to worship. Parishioners at Patch Barracks Chapel now have a building on site in which to meet and fellowship outside of worship services.
Both chapels have recently undergone renovations in an effort to improve the U.S. Army Garrison Stuttgart's delivery of religious support services, according to Ken Bellinger, USAG Stuttgart deputy garrison command chaplain.
The new 3,200-square foot Patch Chapel Annex, a $750,000 project, features a kitchen, two large meeting rooms with a movable wall, and restrooms. The project was jointly funded by the U.S. Army Office of the Chief of Chaplains and the garrison, which provided $375,000.
At the Robinson Barracks Chapel, a $300,000 project funded by the garrison yielded a new electrical system and lights, new doors and windows and interior painting.
PATCH CHAPEL ANNEX
Before the construction of the annex, services at Patch Chapel had only an adjacent enclosed gazebo -- a very small facility -- on site that was equipped with little more than a small refrigerator, microwave and coffee maker, Bellinger said.
So in order to fellowship and have meals, Patch Chapel congregations would often use the kitchen and hall at Patch Religious Education Center, located off site, across from Subway and near the Patch Commissary. The Patch REC was also used for child watch services for the congregations, he said.
"Now, with the addition we have some child watch capabilities in the facility, as well as a kitchen and fellowship hall/multi-purpose room," Bellinger said. "The annex improves our abilities to provide for the religious support of this community and also enables us to support the broader community beyond religious support activities more effectively."
Father Brian Stanley, USAG Stuttgart Catholic chaplain, said the annex's fellowship hall provides a convenient meeting place for members of the Stuttgart Knights of Columbus - a fraternal benefit society of the Catholic Church - because several members work in U.S. European Command on Patch Barracks.
Bellinger said in addition to religious support, a number of units and community groups use the annex and the chapel for meetings and gatherings. "Use has definitely increased in the facility," he said.
While the annex's structure and interior are complete, work continues on the grounds around it, with landscaping and the installation of sidewalks still to be done, Bellinger said.
ROBINSON BARRACKS CHAPEL
Frank Bruning, Robinson Barracks Community Chaplain, described the work completed at the chapel as a "really nice face lift." While the renovations were underway, the congregations met in the cafeteria of Robinson Barracks Elementary/Middle School, Bruning said.
"All of the wood was cleaned and re-stained, and we got a new sound system and lighting," said Bruning, also the garrison's Family Life Chaplain. "It went from dark and dreary to bright and with a lot of light. It's a very comfortable place to have services."
Stanley, USAG Stuttgart's Catholic chaplain, echoed Bruning's sentiments about the new lighting at the RB Chapel. "It's so much brighter there now," Stanley said. "Before, I felt like I was saying Mass in a cave because it was so dark."
The chapel on Robinson Barracks also has new interior paint, doors and windows. Among the windows are four pieces of stained glass received from the decommissioned Kelley Chapel, which had gotten the stained glass from the first NATO chapel in France, Bruning said.
Social Sharing