Christmas came early for Brickworks. The Maybelle Clark Macdonald Fund of Oregon recently awarded the San Juan Islands Ag Guild a $20,000 matching grant to support its funding drive to renovate the Brickworks building and retire the project debt.

“Added to the recently announced $100,000 matching donation pledge, this generous grant will help us to raise $240,000 towards our goal,” the Ag Guild’s Jane Burton-Bell said

The Ag Guild says contributions will help open the building for use in the summer of 2013. Because volunteers and workers have been working seven days a week, renovation of the historic building is progressing rapidly, according to the Guild.

Frequent updates, including photos, are posted on Facebook (Brickworks).

Donation information: www.fhbrickworks.com. Email: info@fhbrickworks.com. Or mail to SJI Ag Guild, PO Box 1945, Friday Harbor, WA 98250.