We Made It

Hey, we made it to our final destination. We arrived in Ocean Springs, MS at about 2:00 p.m. The drive was long and pretty uneventful after our tire fiasco. I bought a GPS for Christmas this year and does that thing rock! It talks and tells you exactly where to turn. We got some laughs when we would make stops or drive a different direction. The lovely ladies would voice would say “recalculating” like she was annoyed. She even told us to make a u-turn and that there is a better route. Technology is truly amazing, how did I get around before? Well, to be honest I often get lost, so that is why I made the investment.
After arriving this afternoon, we got a short orientation and a tour of the facility. This is a great place. It is a large building that is split into several sections. One area is the sleeping quarters. Around six different areas that have rows of bunk beds. They can accommodate nearly 200 volunteers. There are around 60 volunteers here this week. The other areas include a food distribution area, a cafeteria and showers area, and a tool warehouse. There is also a small office area where the Camp staff works.
After we finished the tour I met with the construction coordinator. We got our job assignments for the first couple of days. We were assigned to a house that needs to have the shingles finished on the roof and some inside gutting and new drywalling. They also asked if we could work on a plumbing and cabinet job. We decided to go check out these sights today to see what to expect, so off we went. The roof is partially finished and the inside is a total mess. Very dirty and junk piled everywhere. I spoke with the owner on the phone at his workplace and he told me some of the work he wanted done. We then went over to the other site and happen to run into the lady that owns the house. She was originally from Ohio and moved done to MS in the 70’s. The house was nearly finished. We are doing some of the finishing touches so that she can move in. I hope we can get both of these jobs done in the next four days. It is supposed to be nice weather, in the 80’s and sunny the next two days.
We will start the day at 6:00 a.m. breakfast and then pack up our tools, shingles and head out to the Sizemore roofing job. I think I will work on the inside, tearing out drywall and insulation. I am not much of a roofer. We will work until 5:30 and then head back for dinner. Tonight we are watching a documentary about Katrina – Or maybe I will watch American Idol instead.
One last interesting thing I learned today is that the Lutheran Camp we are at has coordinated around 1500 work sites. They currently have 100 jobs going and have another 700 waiting. That is just one organization. So there is plenty of work to do the rest of this year and probably next year as well. I hope we can bring several more groups here to help impact this area. Some amazing things are happening. God is Good, All the time. I want to thank the great team that is here with me:
Todd Kandel – our construction expert
Chelsea Kandel and Nick Kandel – Todd’s children
Terry Jones – Comic relief
Terri Hupp – Fitness expert
Cathy Capuano – Friendly and fun
Randy Emler – The only one that can sing
Roger Bond – I think he is related to James
John Troyer – Most likely to get injured
Chad Stutzman – Food coordinator