John Slyer is taking an abandoned building in Averill Park and turning it into something special for the community.
With every drilled hole and each door that’s fixed, the history of the building is coming to life.
“This used to be the St. Henry's Catholic School and the local church purchased it and used it until about 1996 or so, and then it was left unattended for about a decade," said Slyer, the executive director of the SHAC Community Center.
The old, abandoned building is already serving the community in a new way.
“Well, there’s no place around here you can go," Slyer explained. "Fifteen miles in any direction and there’s no community center.”
The SHAC Community Center has been under construction for about two years. They’re already running lots of programing.
“We have an art program, open-mic programs," Slyer said. "We also offer first aid and CPR classes, Narcan training.”
There’s a game room and library.
Once the center is fully operational, there will be a day care, after-school programs and activities for senior citizens, a place for everyone, no matter what age, to reconnect and help each other.
“As we open up day care, one of my dreams is to have senior citizens reading to the little kids,” Slyer said.
But this is a $1 million project, and Slyer is taking fundraising efforts into his own hands — and feet.
“The Appalachian Trail has been one of my bucket list items since I was 9 years old,” he said.
He’s hiking from Georgia to Maine — over 2,000 miles — to raise awareness about the community center and funds for repairs.
“We still have dozens of rooms to still renovate and the roof to repair and the ceiling and a few other things like the heating system and windows," Slyer said. "But by showing people something hard can be done one step at a time, everyone who donates a penny a mile is going to help up bring in funding that will help this come to life.”
He hopes the renovations will be complete by the end of this year so the community can fully embrace everything the center will have to offer.