Oprah Winfrey has demonstrated time and again her generosity and compassion toward others. And her giving doesn’t stop when the cameras stop rolling. The popular daytime talk show host recently bestowed an incredible gift upon the people of Kosciusko, MS—a $5.5 million Boys & Girls Club.
Oprah grew up in Kosciusko. The idea to build something for the children of the town grew out of a meeting with community leaders back in 1998. She asked what they needed and the Boys & Girls Club was their answer. Eight years later, on September 4, 2006, the 32,000 sq. ft. Oprah Winfrey Boys & Girls Club opened its doors. It is state of the art in every respect with a computer lab, teen center, library, arts center, a café and a full gymnasium. To sustain its operation, Winfrey pledged to donate $1 million a year for each of the next 10 years.
Robin Henry of Johnson-McAdams Architects, Greenwood, MS, worked with the Oprah Winfrey Foundation to develop the building’s design. And as construction began, its many unique features began to take shape. Winfrey’s personal chef flew in to provide a consultation on how to build the Viking-equipped kitchen, and Gail Pittman, a world-renowned artist, assembled a beautiful 91’ tile mosaic of the Club’s name near the entrance.
In the gymnasium, Henry and Mid-State Roofing’s Bob Henderson were doing something unique as well, using a special perforated version of Englert B4000 Series exterior metal wall panels as interior acoustical panels. Formed at the jobsite by Mid-State were approximately 2,000 sq. ft. of the panels. They were installed behind the baskets at either end of the bym. Normally fabricated from .032” aluminum, the panels were formed in this case of steel for budgetary reasons. The panel color is Bone White. It was chosen to complement the beige interior walls.
The use of Englert products was not limited to the building interior. Outside, some 40,000 sq. ft. of two different metal roof and wall profiles were used. The company’s 16”-wide Series 2500 standing panels, formed from 24-gauge steel with a Slate Grey paint finish, were chosen for the roof, while 12”-wide, 22-gauge Series B4000 panels of the same color were used for the walls and soffits.