A rousing and boisterous “Wal-Mart cheer” closed out last Friday’s grand re-opening ceremony at the Windham Wal-Mart, signaling the completion of three months of hard work for a corporate redesign team that has called Windham home since early August.

The re-opening ceremony – starting at 8 a.m. before most shoppers arrived – was held in the newly redesigned entryway at Wal-Mart. From this vantage point, much of the store’s changes could be seen in the form of new signage, redesigned display units and new paint schemes. A new Dunkin Donuts at the entrance could also be seen. About 150 employees and community members gathered to help Wal-Mart celebrate the new look of the store.

As part of the ceremony, six members of the Windham Chamber Singers sang the national anthem. A color guard from the Windham VFW post opened the ceremony with a flag-placing ceremony. Capt. Frank Nataluk of The Salvation Army offered a prayer. Wal-Mart also presented checks to the Windham Police Department’s DARE program ($1,250) and the Windham Fire Department ($1,000). And representatives from the Windham Veterans Center were given a $2,600 check for help with their remodeling project.

The grand re-opening ceremony was the celebration of three months of toil. Local subcontractors and an in-house “store planning team” remodeled the store. The 15-member team, which travels throughout the country overseeing remodeling projects, started Aug. 18 and was led by J.C. Watts II, a long-time Wal-Mart employee who, like many on the redesign team, had to leave home in Louisiana for the last three months to work in Maine.

“This was a fantastic set,” Watts said. “The people were great. The store was great, and management was great. It was just a blessing to be here. Everything went smoothly. It was a real joy to come to Maine. I’d like to come back sometime.”

Watts said he and his team lived in a Portland hotel and ate in restaurants every night since starting the project. While sad to leave newfound friends made during the redesign, Watts said he was looking forward to going home to his family.

“This is our fourth straight store. Pretty much we’ve been on the road since January. We did store redesigns in Laurel, Miss.; Biloxi; and Detroit before this,” Watts said.

In Windham, the team repainted the outside of the building using a different paint scheme. Greenhouses were added. Offices and bathrooms were remodeled and new signing was put up. Some of the floor layout was reorganized and display racks were upgraded.

“Every five years or so, Wal-Mart tries to upgrade each store to what is current in the company. It keeps things looking up-to-date,” Watts said.

Six members of the Windham Chamber Singers sign the National Anthem as part of the Wal-Mart grand re-opening celebration last Friday morning.