Inauguration of the New Electricity Workshops

We barely finished the construction of Hangar 1 for the new carpentry workshop when pieces of concrete started falling from the ceiling of the electricity workshop endangering the safety of students and trainers. The cracks in the walls were also a source of concern. We needed a new electricity workshop as soon as possible.
We informed our partners in Germany of our urgent need after supporting the ceiling of the workshop with scaffolding to ensure safety of students and trainers.
EVS/EMS immediately came to our rescue providing us with the necessary funds to build the new workshop. The bulk of the grant came form the Württemberg Church (Evangelische Landeskirche in Württemberg) and the rest of the money came from EVS/EMS.
Our partners in Switzerland, SVS, kindly donated the funds for the electrical installations of the new workshop. The work was done by our trainers and students.
Since we were constructing a new electricity workshop, we decided to divide the workshop into two parts, one for Home Electrics and Industrial Electricity, and the other for the maintenance and repair of electric cars.
JLSS needed to catch up with the future especially on green technology. Our car mechanics students should be trained also in the service and repair of electric cars.
Through the photovoltaic project of our Rotary partners we incorporated photovoltaics in our electricity program. It was time to include electric cars in our car mechanics program.
Our partners in the USA supported this vision. The Lutheran Board for Mission Support (LBMS) kindly sent us grants to buy a regular car lift, a wheel alignment car lift, and the air-extraction system which is necessary to remove the hazardous fumes that result from charging batteries of electric cars.
The new workshops were completed after an enormous effort by the contractor and the Schneller team of trainers and students who worked tirelessly to finish the work on time for the inauguration.
The EMS/EVS delegation arrived from Germany on Thursday 11 May in the evening. It included His Lordship Bishop Ernst-Wilhelm and his wife Mrs. Gabriela Gohl, Rev. Dr. Christine Keim, Ms. Jana Gäng (Journalist - Stuttgarter Zeitung), Ms. Kerstin Sommer and Rev. Dr. Uwe Gräbe.
The inauguration of the new workshops was held on Friday 12 May 2023 at 11:30 AM.
Attending were His Excellency the German Ambassador in Lebanon Andreas Kindl, our German partners from EVS/EMS,  Member of the Lebanese Parliament for West Beqaa Mr. Charbel Maroon accompanied by Mr. Shadi Naim, Rev. Dr. Habib Badr Pastor in Charge of the National Evangelical Church in Beirut and Chairman of the Schneller Board in Lebanon accompanied by his wife Mrs. Wadea Badr and board members Dr. Rene Ghattas, Ms. Dania George, and Mr. Richard Aramouni.
JLSS students, teachers, trainers, educators, and members of staff gathered outside the new workshops to welcome our guests, witness the inauguration, and thank our partners for supporting this project.
Rev. George Haddad welcomed our guests thanking His Excellency Ambassador Kindl for his presence, His Lordship Bishop Gohl for his presence and the kind support of the Württemberg Church of the project, Ms. Kerstin Sommer and Rev. Dr. Uwe Gräbe for their kind support of this project and the continued support of EVS/EMS for the whole JLSS ministry. He also thanked MP Charbel Maroon for his presence and staunch support without which JLSS would not have been able to complete the project. He also thanked Engineer Yehya Daher and Mr. Mohammad alKhodr for their excellent work in the construction of the workshops.
Rev. Haddad then addressed the vocational students telling them that this was their great day. JLSS and its partners are doing their utmost to give them the best training through the most advanced facilities. It is up to them to benefit from the wonderful opportunity that JLSS provides to have a very successful future.
Our students were then addressed by Ambassador Kindl, Bishop Gohl, Rev. Gräbe, Ms. Sommer, MP Maroun, Rev. Badr, and Bishop Gohl concluded with prayer.
Ms. Sommer then presented a set of test-screw-drivers to our electricity trainers as a gift for their new workshop.
Our honorable guests then moved to the new workshops where Rev. Dr. Habib Badr said the prayer of dedication and together they untied the inauguration ribbon and walked into the new workshops.
Bishop Gohl then unveiled the memorial plaque.
Dinner followed in Maria Schneller Hall for all our honorable guests.
We express our sincere gratitude to H. E. Ambassador Kindl for honoring our school through his presence, kind participation, and message to our students and members of staff. We also thank him for his friendship and kind support.
We also express our sincere gratitude to Bishop Gohl, Ms. Sommer, Rev. Gräbe and our German partners EVS/EMS for funding the complete cost of this new building. Our special thanks go to the Evangelische Landeskirche in Württemberg for the main grant of the project.
We thank our Swiss partners SVS for their kind grant for the electrical installations of the new workshops and their continued support.
We thank our American partners LBMS for the grants for the car lifts, air-extraction system and their continued support.
We thank MP Charbel Maroun and Mr. Shadi Naim for their presence and stalwart support without which the new workshops wouldn't have been completed.
We thank our honorable guests, partners, and board members for being with us on this very special day.
We praise God for yet another landmark achievement of Johann Ludwig Schneller School. Our students and trainers can now safely enjoy these modern well-equipped workshops and work for a promising future.
We pray that we will soon have the necessary funds to purchase the remaining equipment we need to start adequately training our car mechanics students with the now needed skills for the maintenance and repair of electric cars.