Almost done

Our replacements are doing so well, we have decided to leave here Friday afternoon and drive part of the way home. Driving 9 1/2 hours on the way down was not too bad, especially since we were fairly well rested, but going home, I think we are still going to be tired so breaking up the drive will be good. Besides, a night in hotel with a hot tub sounds really good - especially as sore as I am tonight.

Today turned out to be moving day. There were several generators still in boxes that needed to be moved around, including a couple that were taking up space in the tool trailer. We have about 12 generators available as volunteers need them to run lights or power tools on job sites; these are extras that have not been uncrated yet. They need to be handy in case of a storm, but not in the tool trailer. Now that LEDR has the distribution warehouse, there is room there for storage, so we put them on pallets to be moved. Lifting is not really what I needed to be doing today.

A few new people arrived today; a big group left tonight on their way back to Nebraska. I spoke to a group leader in the Chicago area that is coming down in a couple of weeks - with about a dozen skilled people! Word is out - we are starting to do rebuilds and skilled labor is needed. It has really been great to begin to see some people almost ready to move back into their homes - especially as there are many people who are still waiting for FEMA trailers. As some move out of their trailers, they can then become available for others.

Volunteering here has been interesting, educational, and challenging. If you can get time, come down for a few days and use some of those tools that have just been sitting in the tool box. Or come and cook for a few days - volunteers are always hungry. Look for a group from your area that is coming down and support them - help with gas money or help them collect items to bring down. Blankets, towels, food - any item that you use everyday is an item that someone here could use as well.

This will probably be our last post from Ocean Springs. Hopefully, we can take some more pictures tomorrow and as we leave and we'll try to post some of them after we get home. First, there is the Jeep to unload, a month's mail to sort through, groceries to buy, textbooks to buy - all sorts of things. Thank all of you for your prayers and support while we have been here - it has meant a lot. Hopefully, after a safe journey home, we can get a little rest this weekend and be ready for classes next week.

Remember, we do hope to continue posting to the blog after classes start. We will continue to send out occasional emails about our progress but will be posting some information here as well. Please feel free to leave comments - know that comments have to be approved (by me) before they appear as a post, so if you want to leave private information, leave it and ask me to not post it. If you are not on our email update list and would like to be, please leave your email address in a comment and I will add you to the list (and no, I won't post it for the world to see).