A hail storm that blew through Terral in the spring of 2017 left significant damage to the roof, playing surface floor and the lighting of the 80 year old WPA era school gymnasium. After the contractors that repaired the roof and lighting completed their task and all that was left was the refinish of the gym floor new Superintendent Donna Anderson walked through the historic old building and decided the interior looked tired and needed some tender loving care. Over the next eight months plans were put into place to give the building a fresh new look without changing the architectural history of the building.
The project included renovation of the entry foyer-concession area with new doors, windows, and flooring. The floor plan of the concession area was also changed to allow for more room for staff working behind the counter and improve traffic flow in the small area. Restroom facilities were updated with new toilets, and electric hand dryers to replace the old paper towel dispensers. Other plans were to change the graphics on the gym floor playing surface, install new scoreboards, new wall pads and new backboard padding.
The final project was a revamp of the team dressing rooms which was completed with the assistance of the 6th, 7th and 8th grade Art classes and the teacher Rayma Powers. The team room renovation saw new paint in Terral school colors of red and white painted by the Art students complete with stenciled in school logo and a wall of honor featuring the students that worked on the project. The update to the team rooms and weight training room included new carpet and reorganization of the weight room equipment. Hannah Spence and eight grader that worked on the ream room renovation stated “it was a lot of work, but if you put your nose to the grindstone you can accomplish anything, everyone that helped was in there working hard.”
Transportation and Maintenance Director Bret Foster who over saw the project spent time trying to chase down the history of the building but found very limited information. He believes based on the limited data the gym was a WPA project completed around 1940. His message to the community is “we have an old gym that represents part of the history of the United States at a time when the country was struggling. I want to have a gym that our community and students can be proud of and maintain the historic identity”
Superintendent Donna Anderson whose leadership was instrumental in this undertaking stated “we are so proud of the work going on to improve all areas of education at Terral. With the gym remodel we are able to update the entire building while keeping a balance of new construction and hometown memories. It is an exciting time at Terral Public School and we invite everyone to come out and view the facilities as we head into another great year”
The leadership team at Terral believes the community will notice and appreciate the changes to improve the building. Former Terral student Dustin Bryant who saw the building inside for the first time in many years commented “it really looks different, new and fresh I think the team has done a great job with the renovation.”
The ribbon cutting ceremony complete with an open house will be held Thursday July 29th at 6:00PM. Hotdogs and drinks will be available for purchase. Students new to Terral are encouraged to come by see the school and meet the staff. The district encourages everyone to attend. For more information contact the school office at 580-437-2244.
