Pastor Testimonies
2009
Dear Pastor,
I few years ago I was doing some research and looking for help to construct a church building. Bro. Tom LaSalle and his team were recommended to me, so I called Tom immediately. Finally, in June 2009, we had the first phase of our site work done and the slab in place for construction. Then Cornerstone Baptist Builders arrived, and I thank the Lord for His grace to provide such a blessing as this team.
We had designed a building with a total of 6,250 square feet of ground floor space to be finished during the first phase of construction. Our plan also called for 2,100 sq ft of second floor space to be roughed in and left to be finished in the future as we are able.
My intention was to have a building that would be simple but elegant. Bro. LaSalle understood what I wanted and he built a building that is just that. As a matter of fact, due to Tom’s ability to provide intricately beautiful wood work, ceramic tile design, and a host of other things, it is much more elegant than I had imagined. I wish that I could give you a personal tour of the building, for I know you would be greatly impressed at what the Lord has provided for us through Cornerstone Baptist Builders. And the project, from framing to finish work, was accomplished in a little over four months time.
I highly recommend Bro. LaSalle and his crew. They are hard workers and they will work well with you and the men of your church. I don’t believe that we had a single conflict or quarrel among any of Tom’s team or our men during the time that they worked with us. It was a Christ honoring experience. Please feel free to call me if I can be of assistance.
Sincerely,
Bob Mitchell, Church Planter
Mid Coast Baptist Church
Pastor Bobby Mitchell
Brunswick, Maine
2008
Dear Pastor
I am a Pastor! Not all Pastor’s are the same but most have some things in common! One of these qualities is leadership, or control or whatever you may call it. We like to see things done well! Consequently if it is not being done well I will usually take the lead in correcting it. In fact, truth be told, I usually err on the side of caution and retain control until someone has proven competence and leadership.
Within weeks if not days, Tom LaSalle had gently assumed control of our whole project. (August - December 2008.) He did not have to wrestle control from me, I gladly handed it to him as I saw the scope of his knowledge and abilities. It was easy to let go as I watched him lead an exceptionally talented and gifted team with men like Jeff Glaesman at his side. He did things swiftly, with the quality I expected or better, and he did it with a great spirit. When something was not what I had envisioned upon completion, I would simply suggest a change and he would make it happen!
If any Pastor was to ask for my counsel concerning a building project, my first and most ardent recommendation would be; Call Tom LaSalle! He will be as involved as you would like or simply act in a support role. He will help with the planning, the blueprint, material procurement and of course also with the construction. He saved us in the neighborhood of a million dollars or more!
There is so much more I could say but I will simply end by proclaiming that Tom is not only all that I have represented above, he is now one of a handful of people in the world I call friend!
Because of HIS Grace,
Pastor John Gillespie
Grace Baptist Church
Flower Mound, Texas
Dear Pastor,
When you hear the phrase “words cannot express my gratitude” it is usually a cliché. However in this case, words cannot express my gratitude to Cornerstone Baptist Builders. Bro Tom LaSalle and his team did an outstanding job for our church. When they arrived on the last Saturday in February 2008, they found a 15,000 sq ft metal building shell with windows, but no doors. When they left 10 weeks later on the first Saturday in May 2008, the building was 99% complete with only carpet installation and some painting left. Not only did we complete our building ahead of schedule, they saved us several hundred thousand dollars. After hearing nightmare stories from other churches with other church building ministries, I have only good things to say about Cornerstone Baptist Builders.
In my 33 years of ministry, I have never worked with anyone in construction who was easier to work with. The entire Cornerstone team was a blessing to our church family. Not only were they excellent and knowledgeable craftsmen, they always exemplified outstanding Christian character. I never had a cross word with any of the ministry team even though we worked in close quarters at breakneck speed to complete our project. When we started the project we were complete strangers and now we have become close friends. I can’t say enough good things about my friends from Cornerstone.
Needless to say, I look forward to working with them again. I would wholeheartedly recommend them to anyone anywhere. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call me.
Garry Way, Pastor
Crossroads Baptist Church
Gainesville, Texas
2007
Dear Pastor and Church:
I am writing this letter to recommend Bro. Tom LaSalle and Cornerstone Baptist Builders to your church. They have recently finished a large remodel (August and September 2007) of our church property and have been a tremendous help and blessing.
I met Bro. Tom about four years ago while he was on deputation in the Northwest, invited him to present his ministry and began to support him shortly thereafter. As a church planter, with a small budget, we believed God would bless our support of this ministry and trusted in God’s principle of sowing in reaping. Our church knew that one day we would need the help of a work like Cornerstone Baptist Builders and decided to invest our mission money in them, with a look towards the future.
With that vision coming to pass, God allowed for Berean Baptist Church to invite Cornerstone Baptist Builders to help us in 2007. The construction work that they accomplished while with us was high quality and they saved our church a tremendous amount of money in labor costs. They also saved the Lord’s work money through vendor contacts that gave them good deals and by recycling a lot of our construction materials in one way or another. Bro. LaSalle, and the group he had with him, had a mind to work and put in long hours to complete the job in the allotted time. Bro. Tom is a man of good character and was an encouragement to me on various levels. He showed patience while working with our church members who didn’t have the skills for the task at hand, especially me. The humor and fellowship was encouraging and I enjoyed his preaching and teaching. It was our privilege to have him here and I look forward to his being with us again on our next project.
Whether you are ready to build now or have a plan to do so in the future, I whole-heartedly recommend that you have Bro. Tom to your church and invest in the ministry God has given him to do. If you need further information, I will gladly answer any questions you might have.
Sincerely,
Pastor Robert J. Reno
Berean Baptist Church
Puyallup,Washington
Pastors and Fellow Laborers,
I am writing to recommend Cornerstone Baptist Builders for your building project. I can’t say enough about Brother Tom LaSalle and his crew. They spearheaded a building project for our church in June and July of 2007 where we witnessed their faithfulness to the Lord and self sacrifice. They were an enormous blessing to our church.
His crew was extremely knowledgeable and professional leaving us with a beautifully remodeled building. With their experience in the building trades, they were able to complete the project in the shortest possible time, while saving our church more than $100,000 in labor and contractor costs.
If you have any questions about our experience with the Cornerstone Baptist Builders, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Respectfully,
Craig D. Houston, Pastor
Westside Baptist Church
Bremerton, Washington
2006
Dear Fellow Pastor,
I want to write this letter to let you know the blessing that Brother Tom LaSalle, his wife Lori and the ministry of Cornerstone Baptist Builders was to me personally and to the church where the LORD allows me to Pastor.
We had purchased an old building in October 2005 and had begun to try to remodel it in December. We were still in the destruction phase tearing out what we did not think we would need and trying to save as much as possible so we would not have to hire someone to come and put it back together. I had been desperately crying out to God for direction and someone to come in and lead in the construction phase of the building. I knew I lacked the time, experience, and expertise to manage this kind of a job. Through the providence of God, the LaSalle’s arrived in Nevada in February 2006, and I knew it was an answer to prayer.
From the very beginning Bro. LaSalle made it plain to me that he was here to serve and as Pastor of the Lord’s church I was in charge of decisions that had to be made concerning the building and expenses. I was able to communicate to Bro. LaSalle what I wanted in the building and how I wanted it laid out. He worked tirelessly with me and the members of the church organizing, delegating, encouraging, and motivating us to continue in the work. Not only did they work day and night on the building but during regular and special services at the church they were always there, helping out in any way possible.
Brother LaSalle personally led three workers that I know of to the LORD and witnessed to everyone who came on the job sight. On our first Sunday service I had the privilege of baptizing one of the men he lead to the Lord.
In my opinion, money is not the most important aspect of a building program, but the cost is a major consideration. Including the purchase price of the building we have spent $400,000. We have over 15,000 square feet of space under roof that calculates out to less than $27 per square foot. If you subtract the cost of the building and improvements we had to make which Bro. LaSalle had no control, we spent less than $200,000 on the remodel which calculates to less than $14 per square foot.
Our insurance agent originally insured the church with a one million dollar blanket policy for replacement cost. At completion, he increase our policy limits to $1.4 million which calculates to about $93 a square foot. Using these numbers, Bro. LaSalle and Cornerstone Baptist Builders saved Bible Baptist Church between $990,000 and $1,185,000 in labor and material costs. Because he was a contractor and has experience dealing with supply houses, Bro. LaSalle was able to save us between 10 and 30 percent on the cost of materials.
If I can be of any help to you or answer any questions, please feel free to contact me.
In Christ,
Pastor Jerry Pyle
Bible Baptist Church
Nevada, Missouri
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