Prayers of the Team

During this week, Linda Swearingen led the team in a time of reflection and prayer each night. The following prayer speaks to what we do in Biloxi and reminds us of the power of prayer.

Dear God,
I give this day to You.
May my mind stay centered on the things of the spirit.
May I not be tempted to stray from love.
As I begin this day, I open to receive You.
Please enter where You already abide.
May my mind and heart be pure and true, and may I not deviate
from the things of goodness.
May I see the love and innocence in all mankind, behind the masks
we all wear and the illusions of this worldly plane.
I surrender to You my doings this day.
I ask only that they serve You and the healing of the world.
May I bring Your love and goodness with me, to give unto others
wherever I go.
Make me the person You would have me be.
Direct my footsteps, and show me what You would have me do.
Make the world a safer, more beautiful place.
Bless all Your creatures.
Heal us all, and use me, dear Lord, that I might know the joy of being
used by You.
Amen.

Reference: Williamson, Marianne (1995). Illuminata: A Return to Prayer. Riverhead Books.

Tuesday January 21st

Following a “light” breakfast of pancakes, sausages, cereal, donuts, juice and coffee, we set off to the job site. Cold was the word of the day as it seems a little bit of New England style weather was in the forecast. Painting the outside porch proved a little tricky in cold wind but we prevailed. The finished columns look great! A fresh coat of primer on all the repaired soffits was applied and new work was taken on by a few installing insulation and sheetrock in the house next door. Others spent a long day applying second and third coats of compound with hopes of finish sand on Wed. while the rest ventured off to yet another site to prep a floor for tile work. The need for volunteers is overwhelming and there’s always work to be done. Being my first trip to Biloxi, I’ve found this experience to be everything I’d hoped for and more. The people of Biloxi are truly inspiring. While so many have lost their homes, their possessions, and so much more, they remain hopeful and patient and grateful for what remains and what is to come.

Mark Borenstein VIM (Jan. 09) AUMMC Member

Monday January 20th

Our first day of work began with a hardy breakfast at Seashore Assembly café and then a quick trip to the HOPE Volunteer Center for a safety review and paperwork signoff. Then if it was off to the job site. With 16 crew members, it was just amazing to see how fast the whole team got to work. Picking up where the last team left off, we began with the task of readying the freshly hung wallboard by applying the second coat compound in all the rooms. Some of us spent pretty much the whole day at it. Other team members tackled priming and painting the front port columns of this beautiful Craftsman style home. The carpentry on the outside needed some repair so the rest of the team got moving on the tear down and rebuild of the damaged soffits. All in all, the day was moving along until lunch time at which point we decided to take a trip down the street to the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Parade. And were we glad we did. I’ve never seen anything like it. There was such a buzz in the crowd; you could just feel the excitement. And see it too. The marching bands were not only rocking the crowd but dancing up a storm. The pictures we took don’t even come close to describe the atmosphere. But work was calling, so back to the house we went for a full afternoon of mudding, painting, and roof repair. By the time we quit working, not a soul could be seen who wasn’t covered in sheetrock dust and clumps of compound. After showers and dinner, we finished the evening off with a group meeting that let everyone unwind and talk about their experiences of the day.
The highlight of the afternoon was finally meeting the homeowners. Jeff, Stacey and their 7 yr. old daughter Lexie were just so appreciative of our work. They had only owned the home a year when the wall of the water from the storm surge ruined everything. Since then, they have lived on the second floor or their parent’s house along with other family members. Luckily, their home was not completely destroyed and Jeff has been working on rebuilding it himself over the past three years. With the help of volunteers like us, his family is very close to moving back in. Jeff and Stacey told stories of a neighbor who climbed through his roof and held on to a tree throughout the storm surge and of an uncle who, as the water rose, cut a hole through to the attic and pushed his wife up to safety.
Mark Borenstein VIM (Jan. 09) AUMMC Member

Arrived safely

Sunday, January 18, 2009

We arrived safely in Gulfport and settled into the dorms at Seashore Assembly. This is truly a special place with a beachside view and live oaks that survived Katrina’s surge. Three years ago, I remember the live oaks - brown, looking as if they would never show their green leaves again. Now, they are beautiful with their budding emerald leaves and their stately branches hovering over Seashore’s campus. With the beach in the background, we better understand why people come back time and time again to the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

This morning, the team worshiped at Turkey Creek UMC – the small, quaint community church filled with hallelujah voices and hospitality. Matt Fitch, first year team member, said it was “a place right out of a movie”. Afterward, we traveled to St. Paul’s UMC in Biloxi for a second service. The gospel choir was missing, but one highlight of the service was the “hand praise” – the act of clapping your hands when visiting a southern UMC in East Biloxi! Brother Robinson, the minister, preached a sermon with a vocal rhythm that lured parishioners into the message. We waited anxiously to see when he would, in fact, stop to take a breath.

The afternoon involved a walk on the newly refurbished beach (construction still in progress) with warm sun in our faces as we walked west and then warming our backs as we turned around to walk back east. It’s hard to believe that the same soft water that lapped onto the beach today, giving us joy and solitude, is the same water that brought such destruction and death to the lives of so many.

Tours to the Katrina Monument and the Camille Monument reminded us two monumental dates that are now etched in the minds of so many. For me, I vividly remember that night in August 1969 when our family rode out Camille – a “cat 5” – and how when my sister asked my father, “Are we going to die, Daddy?”, he humbly replied, “God will take care of us, honey.” I’m sure that similar comforting words from parents provided little solace to children during Katrina.

Today, August 29, 2005 is the date by which people make reference in their lives. “Before Katrina we…” or “It was after Katrina that we…” For us, it’s the birth of our children or our 50th birthday or our anniversary, for people here – it’s August 29, 2005.

Cassandra Broadus-Garcia
Biloxi VIM (Jan. 06; Jan. 07; Jan. 09)
SUMC Member, Mississippi native

January 17, 2009 - ready to go

Team #80 from the New York Annual Conference (NYAC) is ready to go to Biloxi. We will be working on new construction. This is usually the result of a decision to level the house down to the cement pad and start over. For us it will be sheet rock on new wall studs. This is a truly blessed team with many talents. We have a group of many that have worked together in previous teams and new inspiring individuals that will provide fresh visions for our horizon. Please wish the VIM Pathways well as we go to do our calling.

Friday morning the team from Sydney's house went back to work finishing what they could, door jams, trim pieces in the kitchen, window washing, the last couple of floor trim pieces.  once our work on Renee's home was finished a few of the group helped at Sydney's, some sorted and returned equipment to the trailer.  In addition a couple of people went back to Eugene & Juanita Daniel's home from last year to fix the electrical in one room and repair a whole in the wall.  The whole group was rewarded with Biloxi's best donuts compliments of Eugene!

Everyone worked until 1pm, returned the remaining equipment & had lunch. We all met Renee at her home for the " blessing of the home" and to present her with a couple of gifts. we gave her matching chairs & a little table for her front patio and a gift certificate to a local spa/salon. We all then went to Sydney's home for the same "blessing of the home". She was given two white rocking chairs for her front screened in porch and a gift certificate to the spa/salon. Both women have been under a lot of stress, with no attention to themselves, so a little pampering and care seemed the right thing ti do for them both.

The day ended with a greta meal in a private room at the Lookout 49 restaurant. Rev. Robinson and Bob joined us which gave us another opportunity to get to know them better. A very moving sharing of "high's & low's" was followed by an intimate serving of communion to each other.

Saturday morning was very rainy and windy.  The Minnesota/Philly group had to reschedule their flight because of bad weather in Atlanta.  The very kind Bob from St. Paul's drove them to New Orleans Sat. morning so they could catch flights from there.  The rest of the group fortunately was flying through dallas instead of Atlanta so the flight was not affected by the weather.  We were greeted by many family members at bradley Airport on our return.

So many people wherever we were- Wal-Mart, the beauty salon, the TSA people in Gulfport - expressed their thanks for our coming down to help and just as importantly their hope that we will return in the future to continue rebuilding.  The need is still so great. We hope that many of you will join us on future trips.

The Highs

The homeowners & their faith & hope

The work accomplished

Deepening the relationship between the team members

Deepening of one's relationship with God

Great food!

Lots of fun

Learning to do new things

Using power tools!

Visiting homeowners we have helped in the past

The Lows

None

except maybe some snoring

Update #2

One Martin & Paul completely cleaned out and organized the tool trailer.  Vicente & Rudy, our fearless leaders have kept us on the right track with technical advice, all the right supplies & equipment.  Rich & Jon are the two slave drivers, I mean crew chiefs at the two houses.  And Beth is the "ever busy, work is never done" base camp coordinator.  She can also hang a mean piece of sheetrock when not in the kitchen.

From the achy knees of Julie, Peg, Dori, & Dick laying flooring, to the sore shoulder muscles of the ceiling sheetrockers Leigh, Deb, Lindsey, Robert, Fels, & Jon, were all feeling a bit tired.

Renee's home ended the rainy day Wednesday.  With all the closets & bathroom finally done & the living room walls started.  Pam & Roland "rocked" as a team measuring and cutting sheetrock.  And Hal stopped counting at 219 screws 'lovingly' put in the closets.  Now that the team has radio, Leigh's fun meter is at maximum.

Wednesday was a busy day at Syndey's as well, with "spaghetti junction" in the middle of all the rooms, doors, & workers.  The living room floor is complete, including trim work by "Dan the Man", the pro.

The great minds of Ron, Martin, Jim, & Rudy came together to replace the ceiling bead board.  Rolene spent the afternoon in the pantry with a very long paint roller!  And handyman Peter did all the odds & ends to help keep things moving along smoothly.

Every evening we shard a little "debriefing" and prayer time.  On Wednesday evening everyone shared their high & low of the day.  Highs ranged from Laura learning to use 3 new power tools, to Beth in a sparkling boa delivering treats for coffee breaks.  Lows shared were Rolene spending time wearing a respirator in the pantry, to hearing Renee tell how someone falsely applied for & received $20,000 due to her from FEMA, which has prevented her from receiving it to date.

Thursday was a celebration at Renee's, ALL THE SHEETROCKING WAS DONE!!!!  At Sydney's, in addition to the living room, the dining room, & front bedroom floors are complete.  The back bedroom is almost done.  The kitchen walls were sheetrocked, insulation added, & some electrical issues were fixed.  At debriefing on Thursday night, everyone expressed how quickly the week has gone & were already sad to be leaving in a little over a day.

Update #1

A 5:15am airport arrival time made for a sleepy eyed but enthusiastic departure for team #60 headed to Biloxi January 11-19, 2008.

After a layover in Dallas, we finally arrived in the Gulfport/Biloxi at St. Paul's UMC around 5pm.  We received an orientation for Loyce Searight to the sleeping arrangements and settled in for the night at the church.

On Saturday morning we met St. Paul's UMC Rev. Lindsey Robinson.  We got a great update from Mike Zeiderman, volunteer coordinator from HOPE - The East Biloxi Coordination Relief & Redevelopment Agency.  He spoke of the diversity of the neighborhoods that we would be working in and how many of them have deep family roots.  Before Katrina there were approximately 20,000 people in East Biloxi, now there are only 7-8,000.  Only 15-20% of the houses that need to be rebuilt have been completed.  

Currently there are as many as 400 volunteers on the ground at anyone time, yet it is important that everyone knows that a lot of help is still needed.  The area is also experiencing an increase in suicide, domestic violence & depression. Rev. Robinson is helping coordinate training additional persons to provide counseling.

Our team is divided between 2 homes.  One is the home of Sydney, who is a single female who has been serving active military duty in the Air Force for the last 16 years and just recently served in Iraq. When she returned she was not able to live in her historical home; instead she moved into her FEMA trailer where she lives today.  Ms. Dyche has lived in Biloxi for over 2 1/2 years.  Hurricane Katrina severely damaged her home, along with the 4 plus feet of water in her home; a majority of the damage was caused by the collapse of the roof.  The team is laying hardwood floors in the living room, dinning room, halls & 2 bedrooms.  The team is also repairing ceilings and walls in the kitchen & pantry & adding extra support in the attic.  It's a very busy construction site & great progress is being made.

The second home belongs to Renee, a minister whose church was destroyed during Katrina and has yet to be rebuilt.  Ms. LaRue is 50 years old and has lived in Biloxi for 15 years.  She shares her home with her 67 year old uncle, who cares for since his stroke, and 3 grand children, a 13 year old girl and 2 grandsons 11 & 7.  They relocated to Gauthier to a FEMA trailer park where she continues to live.  Her daughter & grandchildren recently moved to Phoenix.  The home has been gutted to the studs and insulation was installed last week.  Our team is sheet rocking the entire home, building a new closet and utility area & hopefully will begin mudding.

We had the privilege to meet both of the homeowners & have their amazing survival stories.  In the evening we've been blessed with great meals, hot showers, a little weekend football ("Go Patriots") & not so blessed with some serious snoring!  All in all we've been working hard, meeting new people & trying to work as God's hands the best we can.

First few days

Pastor Laura with Rene, before sheet-rocking.

Off to a great start.

We're here!

Hi all,

We haven't had a lot of time to blog.  We made it here safely and have started working on our 2 homes.  We have met both of the home owners and they both have amazing stories of survival.  We have over 300 photos from the last couple days and will post some here tomorrow. Sorry for the delay, we have been so excited to get working and explore this area.

The Team

Monday, January 29: Our final workday!

Thank you all for the vision, the work, the commitment, and all the talents that made these teams so special. This is just the start of our VIM pathways journey together.

pathways

pathways from life’s many places

each with a powerful passion

for helping and hope of healing

all with a common vision

an unfailing focus in mind

conquering the quest by lifting

one starfish at a time

Monday, January 29: Our final workday!

We were focused, we were determined: we would finish as much as we possibly could in the time remaining! We had until 3:00 PM, when all tools needed to be gathered and inventoried. We didn’t linger at breakfast.

Working right up to the final moment, John completed the last fixture at the Daniels’ home while the tools were being loaded on the trucks. If all is well, the electricity will be turned on tomorrow! At least the next crew will be able to work later than we were: we had to rely on natural light, and with the cloudy weather we’ve had, that’s meant stopping between 4:30 and 5:00 PM every day.

It has been VERY cold, and we were dismayed to find that our plaster patching and nail hole filling had not hardened! Our body heat and the lights helped, and by about 11 we were able to sand/repatch. To our delight, this work was completed by day’s end, and the paint touch-up as well! Outlet covers were screwed on, and the walls were suddenly DONE! Did we say cold? To clean our hands for coffee break, Bill offered us a chunk of ice from the garden. Hot drinks never tasted so good!

At Mildred’s, the workers were equally focused - and equally cold!!! It was too chilly to start painting, so Cassandra and Carol got to work on putting together the double wide closet to be moved into the laundry room, once the floor is done. By the end of the day, the closet was completed, much to Miss Mildred’s delight.

After the laundry room was warmed up with a space heater and the morning sun, the painting was finally able to begin. The walls soon became a lovely sunny yellow. Cassandra and Carol worked very hard to get 2 coats done – and succeeded.

Mildreds’ Laundry - before and after

\

Alas, we had hoped the painting would be finished today, but one more coat is needed on the walls. Ted and Fran got the Laundry window trimmed out today and did it while we were still painting. A plumber who arrived with the new group is looking into hooking up the set tub we just purchased, the washer/dryer lines, and water heater. Once the linoleum is installed on the floor and the plumbing is done, the hook-ups can be made.

All the custom floor thresholds were installed: the floors in most of the house are done! Only one or two bedrooms remain to be completed. Rudy and Mel were finished working under the house, so joined the rest of us working inside the house.

Dick finished the garage walls with two coats of primer, completing all but one corner that he just finished mudding. With the two rear closets also done, the garage is now looking really good.

And “Dusty Dorrie Drywall” continued work in the bathroom closet, leaving a loving message on the wall.

Mildred with the crew; together with prayers of friendship.

How fortunate we all have been, to be able to participate in this work. Our group joined together with the homeowners at each house, for a prayer and blessing. We may be leaving physically, but a part of our hearts and the fruits of our labor will remain here with the people we have come to know.

Shortly after 3:00 PM, when all the tools and materials were packed up, everyone got together to tour each house so we could see what the ‘other’ crew had accomplished. We were all amazed at the changes: with so many hands at work, a LOT got done.




The Daniels’ living/dining area, before and after

Back at the Church after tears and hugs, tool inventory was completed, showers were taken, and we headed off for a treat: our final dinner at the private dining room upstairs at “Lookout 49,” a restaurant in Gulfport, known for its Southern specialties. Rev. Moses even joined us for a brief time.

We shared prayers and food: our last supper, and it was in the Upper Room!

Our worship-and-debrief circle was particularly poignant, with tears and loving thoughts shared freely. A plaque representing our group – NYAC Team 34B - was made by Stoddard (from a design worked out by a group of us), featuring our self-chosen name, Friends of the Light. It was made entirely from scraps of material from our work sites: sheetrock, a Styrofoam sun painted yellow, blue painter’s tape, copper wire, and window casing leftovers. Everyone signed in green, in recognition of the color that has ‘reappeared’ since the first visit of many of our group. Rev. Moses keeps these plaques, and had brought out one from an earlier group to display during our time here.

New pathways from the Friends of the Light


Tuesday, January 30: Heading home

Our final morning started early as it had all week and was a flurry of activity as we all rolled our sleeping bags, packed our suitcases, and cleaned the church so it would be welcoming for the next group. We arrived at the airport in plenty of time, and even managed to catch an earlier flight to Atlanta. This gave us a longer layover there, and many of us gathered for lunches at the airport restaurants. There seemed to be so many things to discuss. The reality of our impending return to our separate lives hadn’t fully been realized.

Our flight to Bradley was smooth and easy, and the welcome from family and friends was a sight for sore eyes. Husbands/wives and children were joyfully hugged, and then it was time to say goodbye to those who have become very dear: each other. We have become close, and we all look forward to meeting again at reunions, and on return trips to Mississippi. May God go with each of us until then.

Your journalists,
Lauren Swan & Carol Savery-Frederick

Sunday, January 28: The Sabbath:

Mike read to us from Philippians today, Chapter 2, Verses 1-16. Here Paul tells the new church at Phillipi to follow Christ’s example of service with humility, and to be an example of God’s will in a this world.

Tiny Turkey Creek United Methodist Church (at Mt. Pleasant, MS, about 30 minutes from Rev. Moses’ church where we are staying) has been in existence since the days of slavery, and serves the small, tight-knit community around it. Rev. Moses normally preaches here as well, but today is Fifth Sunday, so the laity has charge of the service. We all came, both groups of the NYAC Conference, and we pretty much filled up the church!







Because so many members of their church choir were absent this Sunday, all who were part of a choir in their own congregation were invited to come up to fill the choir’s pews, so there were some familiar faces!





Wonderful, rousing hymns were enjoyed by all, skillfully accompanied by a pianist and a drummer. Singing “It’s me, it’s me, it’s me, O Lord, standing in the need of prayer” was a lot more poignant here than when we normally sing it. Our sermon, “The Junk In My Trunk,” (delivered by one of their lay speakers who also played the piano), reminded us that we all carry around a lot of unnecessary things, both physical and emotional, and that we would be better off to let them go. Good advice for us all.

After a hasty drive back to St. Paul’s UMC, we joined our second church service of the morning. A medium sized sanctuary was well filled by the regular congregation and our group. This church is far newer construction, and it escaped Katrina with mostly some water damage from leaks in the roof. The lovely modern interior included brick walls, a peaked roof, and greenery in wreaths and swags.

The choir here was impressive: 23 singers plus the director, organist, and several soloists. Only five were men, but the group provided the enthusiasm and volume for a rousing service led by Rev. Moses. Our own Rev. Mel participated by providing the Charge to the new leaders of this church, who were taking office today. We also witnessed the baptism of Malik Robert Ashley, the newest member of St. Paul’s UMC of Biloxi.

Observing the Sabbath, we didn’t head to our work sites for the afternoon, as many of us yearned to do! Instead, Cassandra led two vans on a tour of her old stomping ground in the Bay St. Louis/Waveland area, where her family had a fishing camp on one of the bayous (inlets). This is where the eastern wall of the eye of Katrina hit, the most destructive part of the hurricane. We followed I-10 west, between mile after mile of dying forests of Southern Pines. Many were broken off at about 15 feet; many are leaning, and many, MANY look like they are dying, with no needles regrown after they were stripped off by Katrina. The salt water might have helped as well. Visible between their trunks is the detritus swept there by the water and wind: washers and dryers, teddy bears, even a basketball high in the limbs of a tree at the church we visited.


Cassandra showed us some of the lovely beach communities, with a combination of richer homes facing the ocean, and block upon block of smaller homes stretching from the coast inland. A year ago, these blocks were filled with debris, with not a house standing. Most of the debris has now been cleared (signs offering debris removal and slab removal are posted everywhere), but very few homes have been rebuilt: block after block is empty except for an occasional FEMA trailer.

A few brand new homes stand out starkly, as do the few destroyed homes still standing. One Florida developer had built a group of homes designed to withstand a Category 5 hurricane; this group stood out amongst the devastation, a clear lesson in forethought: they all survived.



We have heard that only about 20% of the damaged or destroyed homes in Mississippi have been rebuilt, and money is a large factor in that statistic. Insurance companies have refused to pay for complete loss, arguing that they are only liable for wind damage, not water damage, and that a house being gone means that the storm surge swept it away, not the wind.


The damage here is different from that of Biloxi. Biloxi had severe water damage, but many of the houses were left standing. In Waveland and Bay St. Louis, it is complete – a ‘clean sweep slab.’ Beth Nelson told the story of a woman she met whose mother had lost everything. While searching the empty lot, the woman found one single silver teaspoon that had belonged to her grandmother.

Many folks living here may be eager to move away, but need to sell their property to be able to go. Cassandra told us that prices are presently very high, with few buyers. She cited the cost of one lot: $250,000, still piled with debris.

Even houses set on posts were destroyed, as the storm surge was far higher than they had been designed for. This ‘tidal wave’ surge swept over this flat land.

Roads and bridges were also swept away, including two vital bridges now under reconstruction. This bridge would have dramatically shortened our trip; like everyone else now, we had to drive around the bay it spans.





On the way back, Cassandra told us about some of the communities in this part of the coastline. The ‘first responders’ trained for emergencies (firemen, police) sometimes had to swim for their lives, and many spent the storm holding onto trees. After the storm passed, they had no way to respond: every single vehicle was gone.





Paul, Dorrie, Fran (getting ready to take a picture), John, Rudy, Cassandra & Carol enjoying the delicious, but messy task of eating crawfish.

Our final ‘home cooked’ meal (we plan to eat out tomorrow night) included Cassandra’s boiled crawfish, a first for many here. Her recipes appear below, for those who have requested them.

Your journalists, Laurel and Carol
~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Saturday, January 27: It's coming together.

Our Biblical passage for today was Isaiah 41: 5-13, God telling his people not to be afraid of the problems that come their way. The Lord will be there to help us, and we are all His servants in helping each other.

Today was to be our final full day of work (Monday is supposed to be just a half day, to allow us to inventory the tools and prep for the next team). But many of us are hoping that we’ll be able to work a full Monday: the next team is arriving tonight in time to join us for dinner, so the transition should be easy! That’s if they are assigned to work on the same houses.

Today was cloudy all day, with rain in the afternoon, just to make it extra fun for those working outside…

Progress seems to be quite rapid: it helps to have so many people working! At the Daniels’ home, Eugene was already there to greet us when we arrived 10 minutes early; we understand that being there by 8:00 a.m. has been a running joke, but we were all ready to go!

Don, Stoddard, Mike, Beth & Marge take a well earned coffee break.

John – our miracle working (2 houses - 1 day) electrician

John and Mike tackled the electrical work immediately, hooking up outlets (mostly GFIs), the doorbell, the smoke detectors, and the new fans that we purchased with Juanita yesterday.


Mike doing the vents for air conditioning got covered with grills, and suddenly the walls looked so complete: no gaping holes!

One setback occurred when we started to cover the electrical outlets: we discovered that almost all the holes were too large for the covers to… well… cover!

One of Laurel’s many talents...

So a new job involved plastering the half-inch gaps, which will take at least two coats. This means we’ll have to return to the painting as well, but just touch-up.

Marg

Also painted: the two bathrooms got their primer coats, and now that Juanita has chosen the final color, the final coat can be applied.

Dr. Beth

Ready to be painted: the window and door trim, thanks to the patient work of Marge, Barb and Don, who painstakingly set each nail, then filled and sanded each little hole and gap.

Stoddard

Stoddard and Bill continued plugging away on the door and window casings, coping with the non-90-degree angles, the out-of-plumb uprights, and the unlevel floors. Their perseverance sets an example for us all! They reported that there was clearly a mistake with the delivery of the final door: it actually fits, as is!

And our wonderful (and young!) electrician John won our admiration by going under the house even though it was pouring rain, to move the 220V location for the stove from on side of kitchen wall to where the stove will be installed.

Down the street at Mildred’s, Mel and Rudy completed all the floor joists, and even worked out some other problems they checked out while Rudy was under the house. To all expressions of concern, Rudy would cheerfully say, “I’ve just been lying around on my back all day!”

Rudy – or should we say Muddy

Mildred’s laundry room was transformed with its primer coat of paint, plus the top coat on the ceiling. Mildred has chosen her wall color, so that can be completed before we leave. In addition, both garage closets were primed, leaving only the interior garage walls left to prime.

The large closet in one of the bathrooms had not been taped/mudded: that’s now done thanks to Dorrie. We think that’s the last of the taping and mudding at Mildred’s!

The men at Mildred’s (Ted and Fran) worked steadily at the door and window casings, finishing ALL the windows. These will now need to be prepped for painting by setting all the nails, and filling and sanding all the holes. Thresholds are needed for every single interior doorway: that will be next.

Carol playing in the rain?

Bill caught this drive-by photo of Carol, using Mildred’s hose to clean all the painting equipment – in the rain! Notice how long the trash bag raincoat looks on her, compared to when Rudy was wearing it?!

Dinner tonight was later than usual: the next NYAC team arrived, and we wanted to welcome them with a hot meal. Cassandra outdid herself, working with Jan to produce a pork loin dinner with Southern specialties like Hoppin’ John (a black-eyed peas dish) and fried okra. For those who don’t already know, Cassandra was born not too far from here, and has been a guiding light for this mission work of Simsbury United Methodist Church.

Cassandra, hard at work!

Your journalists, Carol and Laurel.

Friday, January 26 "shining new skills"

A full day of work today, and we were all pleased to see it dawn sunny and bright, though still cool. We’re definitely not getting sweaty!

Today was a day of “to be continued” work. Our many jobs are underway, and will continue tomorrow.

Painting and door/window casing continued at the Daniels’ home. Next door, where a 10-person UMC group (also staying at St. Paul’s) is working, our electrician John was eagerly put to work. And Eugene treated us all to donuts, still hot from the cooking, and absolutely yummy!

Carol Savery-Frederick – Is the sheetrock sanding never done?!

Miss Mildred, the home owner, pitches in!

Walls, windows and floor joists were the continuing theme at Mildred’s home. How does Rudy fit his six-foot-something frame under there?! Mel very kindly warned him to beware of snakes; how thoughtful!

Yes, Mel is at work – Is that measure once, cut twice, or measure twice, cut once…

Rudy Maurer with his hydraulic assist.

Rudy (aka Muddy, the largest of the now 8 dwarfs) emerges from installing much needed joists – a happy man!

The “support” crews worked hard, though out of sight. Cassandra labored in the kitchen yet again, providing delicious food (I remember the saying ‘the Army moves on its stomach’ – it’s true for us too!). This entails planning, shopping (which requires coordination to have a vehicle), all the prep work, and then the deadline of three meals a day plus two coffee breaks. We ALL cheer for the cooks!

Laurel Swan – making our hot coffee breaks possible

Dick Carlson, Dorrie Easton & Mel Kawakami – Making the most of a SUNNY day.

The big, blue van got new tires, eliminating the shimmy that made Paul think he had Parkinson’s. We’re back in business, able to transport everyone easily.


Beth Nelson & Miss Juanita, exhausted, but very pleased with the new purchases

Beth and Laurel took Juanita shopping for the window blinds and fans/light fixtures she needs, kindness of a SUMC donor who sent a special gift. It was strenuous for Juanita, but she was just delighted. We hauled all the ‘loot’ back to her house, where we hope all of it will get installed tomorrow.

Paul Collen, Co-Team Leader & Mike Swan, Crew Chief

Planning for the future takes time too. Our team leaders (and gofers extraordinaire), Peter and Paul, spend their days planning for the next two days’ needs, and buying (or custom ordering) the items the working crews need. No, they are NOT playing at the casinos! Got to keep all those volunteer hands busy… Today they found, bought and brought the sliding closet doors for the Daniels’ home, as well as all the miscellaneous supplies and tools that on-going projects need. By the end of the day they were conferring with crew chiefs to work out what we can accomplish before we leave, so they can be sure to have all the supplies on hand. A large picture window will replace the two small windows in the front bedroom at the Daniels’, and a tiny sink will be needed for their back bathroom – both custom orders. We only have a day and a half of working time left (Sunday is a day of rest, when we will join Rev. Moses at each of the two services he preaches, and Monday is just a half day of work).



And finally for today, kudos to Paul, who hikes to Java Joe’s carrying his laptop, so we can get our news out to the blog (they have a hot spot, with wireless access). Pictures come from Ted, Carol, Laurel, Pete and Mel; Laurel and Carol do the composing, and then Paul makes time in his already busy day to upload it all. We are truly blessed with the many and varied talents of our team! A big thank you to those who have left messages: it’s so encouraging to know we are in your minds and hearts. We are ALL grateful for your prayers.

Laurel and Carol, Journalists