Branch Dedications for Jehovah’s Happy People

“HAPPY is the people whose God is Jehovah!” (Ps. 144:15) Jehovah’s Witnesses feel that way worldwide. Where there is a new branch building, there is special cause for rejoicing. Because Jehovah’s people have refused to be deceived by the world’s changing scene, Jehovah has blessed them with growth.

Finland

June 13, 1992, started out as an unusually warm summer day in Vantaa, Finland. Branch office expansion had been going on for 15 months. Dedication time had now arrived! The 99 members of the Bethel family, over 100 temporary construction workers, and all the traveling overseers in the country were invited. A total of 559 persons gathered together in the Kingdom Hall, in the dining room, and in other areas of the new facilities to hear the dedication program.

Since the Bethel Home was first constructed, it has been enlarged seven times. Robert Tracy, who visited Scandinavia as the zone overseer, said the following in his dedication talk: “In Sweden, your next-door neighbor, they said that in Finland you are always building.” The original area has a modern printing plant, a bindery, a mailing department, offices, and residences. The new five-story wing of 77,000 square feet [7,200 sq m] consists of 39 Bethel rooms, also health-care facilities, saunas, and storage areas. This new addition is the largest that has ever been made to the branch facility. The entire complex now has 232,000 square feet [21,600 sq m] of space.

Finland is a neighbor of Russia, and for decades it was a gateway between the Western world and the former Soviet Union. So, besides producing literature in Finnish, the Finland branch also prints The Watchtower in Estonian and, in addition, publications in Lithuanian and Latvian. The 18,316 publishers in Finland are so happy that Jehovah has now rewarded his servants with such privileges in supporting his work in Eastern Europe. The new addition to the Bethel Home is a great blessing, and it will benefit all of Jehovah’s Witnesses in that area.

Thailand

On February 8, 1992, Thailand had good reason for rejoicing​—their new Bethel Home was dedicated. It was the culmination of over two years of hard work. Why were these new facilities necessary?

The first Bethel Home in Thailand was established in 1947, when 31 publishers of the good news served in the entire country. That leased building also housed missionaries. In 1962, when the number of publishers had increased to over 300, the staff of three Bethel workers and some missionaries moved into a newly constructed building owned by the Society. During the next 25 years, the number of publishers tripled, and the Bethel family increased to 16 members. Since expansion in that residential area of Bangkok was not possible, the Governing Body recommended that the Branch Committee look for new property. Finally, in 1987, after a long search, the brothers located a suitable piece of land in a newly developed suburb of the city.

Before construction could start, the 1.5-acre [0.6 ha] lot had to be elevated by more than three feet [1 m] to prevent flooding during the rainy season. Then there was the construction of the two-story building that was to have a total floor area of some 32,000 square feet [3,000 sq m], including a large Kingdom Hall. A 1,200-foot-long [370 m] perimeter wall also needed to be erected; it was to consist of some 1,200 precast concrete panels resting on 145 piles, each 18 feet long [6 m]. Who was going to do all that work? Would there be enough volunteers from among the some 900 publishers to form a “construction family” and to give sufficient support to the project to complete it without much outside help? The previous Bethel and missionary home had been constructed entirely by a commercial firm.

The response to invitations sent out in 1987 to the 33 congregations throughout the country was very gratifying. Volunteers with special skills were few in number, but many brothers and sisters ‘offered themselves willingly,’ freely contributing their time and energies, ready to learn new skills right on the work site. (Ps. 110:3) It was estimated that during the two years of construction, the publishers in the eight congregations in the greater Bangkok area spent, on the average, about seven hours each month on construction. Still, the time they spent in field service was hardly affected. Vital​—and much appreciated—​was the help received from 37 international volunteers, who came from four countries.

Dedication day was truly a joyful and memorable occasion for all the 427 invited guests. Among them were representatives from six branches in the Asia-Pacific region. In his dedication discourse, the zone overseer, Brother H. V. Mouritz, pointed out that throughout history Jehovah has always provided what was necessary for his people to carry out his work and worship. As the program came to a close, all present felt greatly encouraged to carry on the preaching work with renewed vigor.

In another mark of growth, two branches in the West Indies were dedicated by Governing Body members in 1992: the Leeward Islands branch, on February 2, by Milton G. Henschel and the Bahamas branch, on February 8, by John E. Barr.

[Pictures on page 28, 29]

Finland

A large addition to the Finland branch was dedicated on June 13, 1992

[Pictures on page 30]

Bahamas

The Bahamas branch and Assembly Hall were dedicated on February 8, 1992

Thailand

February 8, 1992, was the date for the dedication of the new Bethel Home in Thailand

Leeward Islands

On February 2, 1992, the branch in the Leeward Islands (Antigua) was dedicated