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St. Michael’s Church Announcement
The IGLOO
Neighbor Letter
Articles
2002 Christmas Theme
The theme this year was “Ice Castle.” Standing in front, you saw a rotating turntable with 4 holiday scenes. Then you entered a 26 foot tall icy palace to view penguins, trees, 2 working waterfalls, and the Snow Queen and her attendants overseeing it all. After leaving the palace, guests tried their luck at the coin toss before circling the “castle grounds”. (All monies collected are donated to Santa’s Secret Service, a program that visits nursing homes and shelters over the holiday delivering gifts and goodwill.) Polar bears and penguins, and some lucky children were ice skating. Jack Frost was on hand to keep things cool.
The igloo
(created by the McGrogan Family)
The igloo was six feet in diameter and almost four feet high. It was made of 105 custom-cut styrofoam blocks.
The blocks started life as three 8’x2’x9″ flotation billets purchased at TAP Plastics. They were cut on a home-made machine into 9x12x4 inch blocks, which were then uniquely shaped, depending on their position in the igloo. It took 5 to 10 minutes to precisely cut each block.
The blocks were cut using number 8 guitar string, heated by 1.5 amperes of current. A little less current and the wire wasn’t hot enough to cut. Any more and the wire would quickly break!
The first course of blocks were fastened to a large wooden platform with screws. Subsequent courses were attached to earlier courses with long wooden dowels and eight tubes of adhesive bathroom caulk. Assembly took about six hours.
The entire unit was very light. The bathroom caulk weighs about as much as the styrofoam.
Bookmarks
2002 Christmas Blessing
There is a special peace that comes with the Christmas season. People are more loving, friendly, and tolerant. We seem to put aside our differences.
America, the great melting pot of unity in diversity, of people from many cultures, with different languages and rich traditions should be celebrated as a gift from God for we are one nation under God.
Lord God Bless all people of goodwill, Bless the peace makers, Those who sow love, and those who comfort others.
Bless each an all who pass thru the gates of the House of the Dove, a symbol of your peace.