GUERNSEY – What started almost three years ago as a bathroom remodeling project has turned into a quest for Guernsey shop teacher, Troy Reichert. 

“We started getting grants for this project in the spring of 2017,” Reichert said. “In the fall of 2017 we started working on it.”

According to Reichert, the school got three grants from the Home Depot Foundation for $14,000 total. The Wyoming Department of Education donated $3,200, Daniel’s Fund donated $70,000 and Harbor Freight Tools for Schools donated $35,000 for another project, but those funds are available for the VFW renovation if needed.

The kids write all the grants and with the Home Depot grants, the funds were given due to the fact that the students had the opportunity to improve an existing structure for veterans.

“So we came down and talked to the VFW guys and asked if there was anything the student builders could do,” Reichert said. “That’s how this all evolved.”

Reichert is not your conventional shop teacher. He doesn’t have the kids putter in the classroom making birdhouses and spice racks. He advocates action within the community and leads by example. Most of the projects are done by the kids with Reichert side by side, tools in his hands. On a summer day  when other teachers are enjoying the beach, or a weekend when the golf course is very inviting, you can find Reichert with a saw or some other tool in hand working on the project to renovate the VFW. Many days, alone with some of his own work crew. Or just… alone.

“I stress community service,” Reichert said. “So, this is done during a class period called trades class and it’s full of Skills USA members. And then my Skills USA kids that can’t be in that class, we come down and work on weekends or we’ve had some this summer.”

The project has spanned three years and in that time some of Reichert’s students are lost to graduation and new recruits show up at the door and the education begins anew. What they all don’t realize is that when they come back to Guernsey 10 or 20 years from now, perhaps with children of their own, they will drive past that VFW building and point out a memory of building that railing or erecting that roof or the horror stories of installing insulation on an 80 degree day in an attic.

Reichert is not only creating carpenters and students that can work with their hands for their own families one day, but he is instilling the standard of community pride. And when a project is still there years later, the teaching is of course is that kind of effort stands the test of time and creates memories that will stand as long as the project itself.

“Every year we get a group of seven in the trades class,” Reichert said. “Last year we had 25 student Skills USA members.”

The projects that these Guernsey students have done to date are, the black metal fencing in the park, the metal cutout signs at the football field, and of course a full demo and reno of the VFW which is still ongoing.

This fall the roof will be put up to cover the ramp and stairs leading to the front of the building. The old stage will get a face-lift and the flooring will be completely sanded and varnished. New tables and chairs will be added and for the first time the top floor of the VFW will not have to be shut down, locked up and the bathrooms will not have to be winterized.

Although the full project will not be completed this fall, VFW member Don Mack said that it would be used for the first time since the remodel has been done on the inside. Shane Clevenger who has run his gun show for four years is excited about the possibility of holding the show in the newly remodeled building.

“In years past we’d have to have the big blast coolers in here,” Clevenger said. “With the humidity and heat and temperature extremes it wasn’t the best environment for the guns.” 

This year with a new front access and a semi-remodeled interior the gun show will take on a new look. The show is just one of the community events that the VFW hopes to be using the remodeled building for. The possibility for weddings and receptions and parties and even indoor concerts are exciting, Mack mentioned. VFW member Jerry Wood said that it was the biggest venue in town the community could utilize.

“It’s going to be used the Fourth of July weekend by the gun show,” Mack said. “The projects have been incredible. Everything is state of the art, and it all came through the grant that Troy wrote through the Daniel’s Fund. There was no heat up here. It was usually shut down by October. The bathrooms were winterized so they weren’t available. Basically, this upstairs was totally out of commission from October to May.”

A lot of communities have birdhouses falling apart in the trees or perhaps spice racks that are in basements and attics. In Guernsey, Reichert’s army builds things that beautify and fortify the community. He builds leaders and the next generation of hard-working men and women. But most of all he builds pride of ownership. He causes kids to invest in something. And only when you invest and give back can you feel like you’re a part of it. So, the bottom line, he gives each and every student a sense of belonging.