Oakerhater Episcopal Center

Watonga, OK

  • Completed in 2008, the $790K Oakerhater Episcopal Center in Western Oklahoma is the result of Hans Butzer’s collaborative efforts with Cheyenne-Arapaho tribal leaders, Episcopal clergy, community volunteers, and the design team to build a center from which to run community programs related to alcohol or drug addiction, young offenders’ court advocacy, family counseling, summer feeding, and clothing distribution. The primary structure seeks shade protection from an east-west stand of existing trees. The building is set within a larger circle on the 10.5 acre site that defines the threshold between the sacred and banal. Parking is situated outside of the circle, while the dance grounds are defined by an arcing continuous pergola at the northern edge.

    The design is inspired by the Cheyenne’s three-pole teepee, with its rigid frame set to support a folding and adjustable skin. A series of arched steel frames receive prefabricated structural insulated panels consisting of OSB outer boards with compressed straw as insulation. A clerestory invites northern light into the space, the result of peeling the roof skywards. Exposed OSB serves as the finished interior wall surface, while exposed ducts and other services are carefully managed to support the minimally adorned worship space. Tightly proportioned window openings are limited in an effort to reduce vandalism and heat gain in this harsh, open landscape. The completed 50 R-value wall and roof assembly become the contemporary version of a wrapped exterior skin, strong enough to survive 85 mph winds endured during Tropical Storm Erin in 2007.

    When the Center was mostly complete, a local Cheyenne-Arapaho chief came to inspect the space. “This is good,” he declared and proceeded to perform a dance and blessing.​