Kevin Vernier had a dream. He got the dream from Kelly Kolstead, then Milo groundskeeper. They dreamed of creating a place of beauty in a parklike setting at the entrance to Milo Academy. As class president in 2000, Vernier proposed donating class funds to build a fountain there. The next year work began.
As campus residents and visitors watched, the vision that Vernier had began to take shape month by month and year by year. Not a mere fountain in a pool, but a hillside with waterfalls, a stream, winding pathways among terraced beds of flowers, a reflecting pool and a gazebo.
Students learned stonework skills as they built the retaining walls. Volunteers grew plants to fill the flower beds. Vernier came back as a task force worker and volunteered many extra hours to the project. Kolstead could be seen after work and on weekends devoting his own “free time." The construction became a part of many people’s lives.
Kolstead and his assistants have pooled the talents God gave them to create something beautiful to glorify Him. Visitors are welcomed by the beauty; students and staff go there to visit and meditate. Couples say their wedding vows in the shade of the gazebo.
Kolstead is never slow to talk of God's great love for us, and of the ways God has led him in his life. Now, even when he is not nearby, the fountain will be a witness of his belief in God's love.
Kelly Kolstead designed and supervised the fountain construction.
The fountain provides a great location for weddings, worships, and other gatherings besides enhancing the beauty of the campus.
The fountain provides a great location for weddings, worships, and other gatherings besides enhancing the beauty of the campus.
