The crew from Minnesota are our heroes. They dry walled ceilings yesterday and so they no longer had need for the drywall lift – a wonderful contraption that accomplishes what it took four human beings to accomplish the day before. And it even tilts, so vaulted ceilings become a piece of cake.
Once the team was able to finish the ceiling in the bedroom they were able to divide and conquer. One group started the bedroom walls, while the others moved in to tackle the kitchen ceiling.
Wes made a new friend today. Sabrina who lives across the street. She is quite cute with curly hair and was particularly attracted to Wes’ beef jerky. She also was grateful for Sue sharing her sandwich with her. You see, Sabrina is four legged with some Poodle in her lineage. She spent the entire rest of the day with the crew and jumped in the van at the end of the day, more than willing to come back to camp with us.
David met with Sara Edgecome who is the Coordinator of St. Charles Street Presbyterian Church’s Rhino (Rebuilding Hope in New Orleans) ministry. This is the program that Louisiana IV will staying and working with in August.
This will be "home base" for the August Trip
It’s a fun experience for us to be constructing rather than deconstructing. It’s a different kind of satisfaction tied to the experience of moving hope along. And it’s a very cool feeling to see that we actually can “pull it off” – or actually “put it up.”
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Greetings from New Orleans from Kim Hart! Getting up this morning on the second day was not as easy as it was the morning of our first day. Bodies were more sore, but hearts were upbeat about the day that lay ahead. Walking into the house on Robert St. this morning was unbelievable. The amount of work that we accomplished yesterday blew my mind. As a whole, we decided that perhaps we should pace ourselves due to the rising temperature and the humidity (not to mention, our bodies gave us no choice).
Looking around the house reminded me of an empty shell of what once was. At this same time though, it gave me a hopeful feeling of what one day will be. Yes, we are deconstructing a house…a “life,” but at the same time we are providing an opportunity for a “rebirth.” A new life and existence for someone who had lost everything. A clean slate to rebuild on.
Someone on our team found a bracelet in the back of a closet. It was in a small box, made of leather (that was somewhat decayed from the water damage), and in the box was a handwritten note on a piece of legal paper. Even though I did not read the note, I held that bracelet in my hand and felt sadness. I was sad because the bracelet was “forgotten.” It made me think of the many people down here that fell as if they were “forgotten.”
I began to think that we have not forgotten. We are here helping. Jesus said to His disciples “Even though I am not here, I am always with you.” These people and this experience will ALWAYS be with me. I look at my hands right now as I am typing this message, the calluses on my hands are a sore reminder of the days work. My heart though is not callused. It is open and aches for these people. It hopes that all of them can rebuild their lives.
Many people can easily donate to a cause and thank God for that. I donated with my prayers, my heart, and my sweat and for me that has made all the difference (in my life and hopefully in the person that we have helped here).
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Remember that tomorrow is "hump day" so you need to be especially ardent in your praying.
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