Reckless faith?

A favorite quote of mine is one I discovered just before Ray and I began Summer Greek two years ago: "I love the recklessness of faith; first you leap and then you sprout wings." (William Sloane Coffin)

That quote describes so many steps on this journey. Quitting work to attend Greek, selling a house and moving near campus, taking out student loans to finance our education, volunteering on the Gulf coast last winter, and now packing up to move into an apartment we have not even seen...

Add to that the financial concerns of not having our house rented out, not knowing if we should leave extra 'stuff' here or move it into storage, etc. As we wrote in a recent email to many of our friends and family, and have discussed with one of our classmates here on campus, this uncertainty - or rather, the willingness to proceed in spite of the uncertainty - seems to be a major component of the internship experience and the whole seminary process. Sort of a test of your resolve - first you leave home and come to campus, then you leave campus and venture into the unknown again - knowing that you will be returning again in a year. Just the sheer logistics of moving repeatedly are enough to deter the faint-hearted!

So is it recklessness that brings us to this point, or is it faith? When should a sane, sensible person say "Enough!"? Or does faith enable us to leap and simply trust that the necessary wings will indeed sprout? How much are we responsible for and how much should we leave in God's hands?

Yesterday in worship, as the gospel was read and preached (the feeding of the 5,000 from John 6: 1-15), I was reminded again that the God who created the heavens and the earth, led his people through the wilderness, and sent his own Son to feed and heal and redeem - this same almighty God will lead us through our wildernesses and feed us and provide for us here on earth AND bring us to eternal life.

So, by the not-so-recklessness of faith, I'm back to packing boxes with a calm spirit, preparing for the move by doing the part that I can and awaiting God's action to take care of the rest.

Packing Blues

This past week has been spent packing and moving things to storage. It has been hot (95 - 100 each day), so we have been moving during the mornings and packing in the afternoon and evening, as well as running errands and working on campus. It seems that no matter how much we pack, there is still at least that much more to do.

The heat is making it difficult to get enough done each day, so how are we going to be ready to move in another week? Somehow, it will happen. Rusty and Lisa were a big help today, and more help will appear as the week goes on. The bigger concern is that we still have not rented our house.

We have prayed for a renter, and many of you have joined us in those prayers. The problem with prayer is that God answers in his time, not ours. We are never patient enough, we want everything to happen now, on our timetable. These words come to mind:

Colossians 1:11-12 May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light.

So we keep praying, and packing, and in 8 days, we get in the truck and drive off to internship. God's time, not ours. God's will, not ours.

Being 2 places at one time

It has been a busy summer, with many opportunities for preaching and assisting at various churches. We have been to our home church, helped with the campground ministry out at the lake, been to our seminary partnership congregation, and preached a few times as supply while a pastor was on vacation.

The interesting part of this, as a couple that are both in seminary, is that we don't mind getting double-booked for a weekend. We do enjoy leading worship together when we can, but it is also interesting to do it separately - especially since we do it differently.

Quite often, when we are together, one of us will do the liturgy and the other will preach; sometimes we split it differently. On one occasion this summer, Ruth Ann sat and watched while I did everything (of course, she is going back to that same church this weekend by herself, which is why I did everything last time).

Our most interesting Sunday so far this summer might have been last Sunday. I had been asked to supply preach at a church way out in the country (by a classmate who had filled in there before, but was booked for last weekend elsewhere) and Ruth Ann was preaching out at the lake. I had never been to this church, and had only sort of met the pastor at a funeral, so I really did not expect anyone to know me, nor did I know what to expect. Turned out to be a wonderful congregation and a joy to be with. The real surprise was the email from the pastor after she returned from vacation, telling me how wonderful her worship committee thought I was, and then going on to tell me that she spent her vacation Sunday, at the lake, on a boat, listening to Ruth Ann preach!

The church is a small world; that is no surprise, but it still surprises us sometimes to find out just how small it is.

Sermon Writing

I have been working on my sermon for Sunday and it is just not "gelling." Now, it's only Thursday morning - there is still plenty of time, so there is no reason to worry - yet. But I can't help thinking about why it won't gel.

Could it be because the gospel text for this Sunday is Mark chapter 6, verses 30-34 and 53-56? This gospel tells about the 12 apostles returning to gather with Jesus after being sent out to do ministry and their profound need for rest. Then it tells about the crowds following Jesus, seeking healing. What, you may ask, happened to verses 35-52? Good question! The left-out section in the middle is the Mark's telling of the feeding of the 5,000 and Jesus' walking on water and calming the storm. Two (or three) major miracle stories, probably kept to be told as separate gospel stories, on another day.

But what are we to make of these bits put together for today? I don't think I miss the story in the middle as much as I struggle for a cohesive meaning for the assembled text. There are so many possible directions to go with this text... our need for rest, our need to get together and tell the stories of what we have done and experienced, Jesus' compassion for the hungry and ailing multitude, or his tremendous power - those who simply touched the fringe of his cloak were healed (Mark 6:56).

Since I've just finished reading a book on 'a Sabbath way of life for those who serve God, the church, and the world,' The Sense of the Call, by Marva Dawn, the sermon will probably focus on our need to rest and be refreshed in order to be sent out again to work and witness. But the reality of our need to go to Jesus in prayer to tell him all we "have done and taught" (Mark 6:30) and to gather together to tell each other those stories is very powerful as well.

Guess that's what led me to this entry. May we each take time today to talk with Jesus AND to talk with each other about our lives - our work, our experiences, our needs, our hopes, and our dreams. That is the way we can help build up the community of believers, the church, the body of Christ.

Sabbath Time

This summer has been a sort of sabbath or sabbatical for us - a blessed time. Don't get me wrong, we have been plenty busy, but it has been a different pace. For example, we have rarely set the alarm clock - instead allowing ourselves to catch up on much needed rest.

Lest you think I've been lounging around all day eating bon-bons, I should explain that I have been working some each week at the campus library. I've also spent some time reading several books that I checked out from the library earlier in the year. My goal is to finish and return them BEFORE we move. Most of these are non-fiction, either theological or spiritual, but typically not quite as deep as most of our assigned textbooks this past couple of years!

We have also had the time to catch up some long-postponed chores. For me, that included spending a couple of days doing nothing but mending. (After Ray helped me clean and oil the much-neglected sewing machine!) Some of the items in the mending pile had been there a LONG time!! I've also pulled out my knitting and worked on a couple of projects that have been partially completed for a long time. I still have to put the fringe on a shawl and sew a zipper into a sweater before they are finished, but they are much closer to complete than they were. Finishing up some of these things provides a restful but productive way to spend the hot summer days and provides a tremendous sense of accomplishment!

In a complete change of pace from our usual class schedules or our previous business experience, our plans this summer typically revolve around our weekend plans - specifically where we will be worshipping, assisting, preaching. We have worshipped in several different churches the past few weeks, in North and South Carolina, Tennessee, and Illinois. It is great to be able to worship in so many different settings, yet know they are all part of the same church - the body of Christ.

Praying that each of you can experience some of this sabbath rest that God wills for each of us...

Home Again

After two week of traveling and visiting, it is great to be home again and to sleep in our own bed. Even Smokey seemed happy to go for a walk around our own neighborhood.

Being home also means catching up. We both have sermons to prepare for this Sunday, a pile of mail to go through, and tons of emails to sort and read. Reading emails this morning brought up an interesting subject.

Please don't be offended by what I am going to say here, but do think about it. There seem to be a lot of emails circulating these days with the basic message of "Pass it on ... or else." Some of these play on basic superstitions, some play on Mark 8:38 (Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.").

Of course, those that quote Mark usually truncate the passage, so that it is no longer in context. Even out of context, though, this should not carry the message that failure to forward an email means that you are ashamed to say that you are Christian, or that you believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. Not forwarding an email may mean that you have already seen it 100 times; it may mean that you do not believe in forwarding emails which deliver an ultimatum. It may mean that you just don't forward most emails.

The ones that I think bother me the most are the ones that promise that dire things will happen if you don't forward them. I take my faith much more seriously than I do these superstitious threats. Quoting Paul, (Romans 8:38-39) "For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." This is much stronger than any perceived threat contained in an email.

For those who forward emails like this to us, don't be offended but know that we are not likely to forward them or to respond. Occasionally, if there is something in an email that is really good, I will edit the "bad" out of it and then pass it on. Maybe this is an idea that we can all take on - edit this superstitious stuff out of emails then forward them and see if they come back later in the form we started. Replace the threat with this quote from Paul, or this one from John 13:34 "I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another." No threat attached, just the love of Christ, as it is given to us.

In the meantime, please keep in touch, and keep us in your prayers as we begin the packing process. In the next 3 weeks, we have to pack and be ready to move for internship. Please also pray for someone to rent our house. We have talked with several seminary students about this, but so far, we do not have a renter. I don't even want to think of the financial impact this will have on us. It could mean not being able to go on internship, but I believe that God has a plan and that this will be resolved. Your prayers will help!

Now, which box was I working on...

Resting; gearing up

We ended the semester exhausted. (And the end was delayed because we had extended deadlines on some papers.) But I think after about ten days of no alarm clocks, we have finally caught up on our sleep!

Those ten days were also filled with driving and visiting. We didn't catch up with everyone we wanted to during our stay in Illinois, but we did see quite a few old friends and extended family members. (If we missed you, we're sorry - call us or send us an email, we would love to be in touch!) It was good to have a chance to visit - especially since we haven't been there in about three years and are pretty sure we won't make it during the next two, because of our school and internship schedule.

I'm glad we took the time to rest up, because we are back at home with a flurry of activity on weekends as we will be supply preaching at several churches in the next few weeks, and it is now time to begin the HUGE task of sorting and packing for our move. So we need to get busy again!

Happy 4th of July!

We are spending the 4th with family and friends, a little relaxing before we begin the big packing adventure. We hope all of you are enjoying a day off as well. For those of you traveling, drive safely.

Plans for Mobile continue - we have been told we have office furniture and a dinner meeting with out internship committees on Saturday night after our arrival on Tuesday. A couple of days to unpack, then we get started.

Peace be with you.

"Stick a fork in it"

Yes, that was the profound advice we recently received from our Pastoral Care professor. We've been working on the project paper for a contract course based on our Mississippi trip with LDR. And working, and working, with no apparent stopping place. You see, everywhere we turn, there is new information being published or posted on-line about disaster response, hurricane recovery, and the questions of "WIGIAT - where is God in all this?" Our professor knows we want to keep looking at the new material, but he also - wisely - knew that we needed to get the project to a stopping point!

For two good examples of this information on-line, check out this link to a photo essay by the NY Times - which just happens to feature Bayou la Batre, where we will be working for the next year AND Ocean Springs, which is where we spent January! I hope there will be more of these photo essays available as they travel further across Route 90 toward New Orleans.
http://ROAD_FEATURE

Or check out this blog from Drew Genszler, Director for Domestic Policy from the LOGA (Lutheran Office of Governmental Affairs) in Washington, DC. He is currently touring the Gulf coast, beginning in New Orleans, and providing a great faith-based look at the situation. http://www.elca.org/advocacy/how/blog.html

Yet another example is the upcoming Bible study, written by Faith and Terence Freithem in the Lutheran Woman Today magazine entitled "Hope in God in Times of Suffering." The introductory article appears in the July/August 2006 issue - the study will appear in the next 10 issues.

At any rate, the difficulty for us has been where, when, and how to stop writing this paper. Following his sage advice, we have finished, printed it out, stuck a plastic fork inside the binder cover, and delivered it to the professor for his review.

In the meantime, new info keeps coming to our attention... Clearly, the paper may be done, but the work on the Gulf continues, just as our internship looms ahead!

BTW, if you want any suggestions on materials to read on this subject, let us know - we have a whole list of great resources!!

Matthew 6:31 Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear?'

This verse is one we so often overlook. Many of us tend to believe that God needs our help - that we need to worry at least a little. The reality is, God does provide - just not on our timetable.

A few weeks ago, we were winding down the semester and beginning to look at things that needed to happen before internship. One of those things was that the condo we own was currently empty. (Yes, we would love to sell it, but have not been able to.) Our last renter had moved out and we had made the switch to the leasing manager who handled most of the development. We had really been too busy to think about it, but as we began to look at budget for the summer, and for internship, we realized that if we did not have a renter, we were soon going to be in financial difficulty.

One of the problems with being an older, married couple who are both going to seminary, and on internship, is that the stipend provided is really based on either a young single person with very little in the way of expenses, or a married couple where the other spouse is working. Two of us - on internship, with a mortgage (actually, 2), a couple of car payments, etc., and suddenly the financial picture does not look very good. So we prayed. And prayed, and prayed. And a few days later, we received a phone call from the leasing agent saying that he had just signed a lease for our unit! And then, a couple of weeks later, we received another phone call - the one and only scholarship for which either of us was eligible while on internship had come through.

We will still be poor seminarians, just like our classmates, but God has seen to it that our basic needs will be met. We will be able to eat, and drink, and put gas in the car, and have clothes to wear. God has made sure of that. Whatever it is that you need, God will also make sure that you have that as well - maybe not on the timetable you would like, but when you need it - God will see that it is there.

Busy Times Continue

Sorry it has been awhile since our last entry, but we have been busy. (Yes, we ARE still working on papers!) I was concerned that I would really miss daily chapel on campus when the semester ended. And I have; but we have been able to participate in worship in a variety of settings that have been really wonderful, too.

For example, we were invited to the Lutheran retirement home where I did my CPE chaplaincy last summer to talk about our experiences on the Gulf coast. So we went for a midweek chapel service; I was able to share the good news about the great things taking place on the coast, and renew some aquaintances from last summer as well.

We also attended an ecumenical worship service at our field church on Ascension. It is truly a great feeling to sing God's praises and share communion with a large group of believers from a variety of denominations! I appreciate the opportunity to celebrate the things we have in common rather than dwell on the differences.

We have also been helping with the campground ministry and lakefront worship at a nearby congregation again this summer. So on Saturday afternoons, we put on our walking shoes and sunscreen and go visit with campers at the state park, distributing flyers and inviting them to worship. Then on Sunday morning, we help lead worship in an open air chapel on the lakeshore. Some people come into the chapel area, others sit in lawn chairs or in their cars, still others stay on their boats. With the help of a tremendous sound system, we are all able to worship together. (There is also a later service in the air-conditioned sanctuary - and by mid-morning, the cool air feels really wonderful!)

The weekend (well, Thursday-Saturday), we attended synod assembly, which is always a good chance to see people from all over the state - both old friends and new. Worship there was also wonderful. We used materials from the new soon-to-be-published ELW (Evangelical Lutheran Worship) and Renewing Worship materials and got to experience all the seasons of the entire church year. Thursday afternoon was Reformation, Thursday evening was Advent, Friday morning was Christmas and so on ... ending with Pentecost Saturday morning at the close of assembly. Tremendous preachers, glorious music, and God's presence in Holy Communion - everything worship should be!

It really has been a busy and inspirational time for us. We are also filling up our calendars with more worship services - we are already scheduled to preach and lead worship several times this summer. Now we are trying to get the last papers finished quickly, so that we can have some vacation time before we pack for our move to Alabama. The end of July will be here before we know it!

... and Going!

Ever wonder if the Energizer Bunny wishes that someone would turn him off so he can rest? By this time last year, Ray and I had escaped to a quiet spot in the mountains, where we both slept for nearly a week, because we were so tired.

This year, we are still going, in spite of being equally exhausted. We helped to celebrate commencement and the end of the seminary's 175th anniversary last week. We are both in the choir and I have been playing handbells, so we were involved in the special worship services for both events.

I'm not sure if I will ever be brave enough to play handbells again; it has been a real stretch for me. I don't seem to be coordinated enough to maintain a different rhythm with each hand, but I did improve as the year progressed. Wish I had learned to play piano as a kid - I'm sure that would help! Playing handbells also serves as another reminder that I'm getting old - it is very difficult to keep the music in focus! In choir I can just move the music, but with handbells you have to rely on the proper position of the music stand, since your hands are full. (Could the notes be getting smaller, is it dark in here, or do I just need to get my eyes checked?)

We both attended a two day internship conference here on campus this week. So now we have actually met the pastor who will be our internship supervisor and have a better idea what our internship in Mobile will look like, between activities at St. Paul's Lutheran and Lutheran Disaster Response. We are looking forward to this opportunity and should be starting our year there around August 1st.

Now we need to finish the last of our papers for which we received extensions. Then we can consider the semester really finished, and settle in for some rest before the next adventure begins!

and going...

Well, classes are over for the semester except for one small group session tomorrow morning. Unfortunately, the papers are not done! We have each turned in four this week. At least I think it's four - I'm starting to lose track. We still have five to go (about forty pages total for each of us) on a variety of topics; plus four exams (2 written, 1 oral, and one seminar).

Factor into the schedule research for the papers, studying for the finals, chapel services, choir practice, and some year end activities and you will understand why we are getting really tired!

I've got to get back to work! More soon...

Still going...

If you have been checking for updates, we are in the final couple of weeks of classes. One paper has been turned in, one more due this week, and then about 3 more due next week. Then finals. For the next several days, we have no plans but to write, study, and maybe catch a little sleep now and then. We'll try and get some more updates posted once all the papers are finished and turned in. In the meantime, we are still going, but very busy.

Easter Greetings

How do seminarians spend a week of Spring Break that coincides with Holy Week? Well, we stayed pretty close to home. We have been able to shut off the alarm clock and catch up on our sleep, spend time in the campus library doing research for at least some of the papers due before the end of the semester, mow the lawn and trim bushes, run errands like dropping off winter clothes at the dry cleaner, getting the oil changed in the car and having it inspected. Fun stuff.

We also both got haircuts. For Ray that was getting a serious trim; for me it was a more substantial change. I've been letting my hair grow out for about the last three years, with the goal of donating to Locks of Love again. Locks of Love uses donated hair to make wigs for children with long term hair loss. (See www.locksoflove.org for more info on this worthwhile charity.) My hair just recently grew long enough that I was able to have 12" pigtails cut off that I will send in. So I am now sporting a new, bobbed 'do! Our thanks to our friend Gwyn, who graciously provides free haircuts to her poor seminarian friends!

Most importantly, we have been able to observe Holy Week. We worshipped at noon on Maundy Thursday at our field church, Good Shepherd. We were able to attend the Tenebrae Service at our home church on Friday evening, where we experienced the biblical Stations of the Cross - a very moving experience. Then back to campus for the Easter Vigil service in Christ Chapel last night. This is an incredible (but lengthy) service, beginning quietly in darkness at 10 pm for a retelling of salvation history and concluding festively after midnight in great light with a Eucharist service to celebrate Jesus' resurrection. This morning, we returned to Good Shepherd for contemporary worship. It has been a beautiful week of worship - an opportunity to remember the suffering Jesus experienced for our sake and a chance to celebrate the good news that his resurrection gives us the promise of eternal life.

Christ is Risen! Alleluia! Christ is Risen Indeed! Alleluia!
May you each experience the joy of Easter with your loved ones.

Big News - Our Internship Assignment

The seminary made Internship assignments public on Friday afternoon. We did get an email sent out Friday night, but then a flu bug hit (for those of you who listen to Garrison Keillor, it was the "60 second flu bug" that he described a couple of weeks ago. It has to do with how fast it hits, not how long it last.) and we did not get the news posted here. Now it is Sunday and we are both feeling somewhat better, so here is the promised news.

Internship assignments, as you have seen from previous posts, are very much beyond our control. We, unlike many of our classmates, have known for a couple of weeks what site was being considered for us, but we could not talk about it. Below is the main part of the email we sent, with more explanation.

We began the process knowing that our only real input was asking to be placed somewhere near each other so that we could live together, but knowing that we would probably be at different churches, possibly in different towns, and that there were a couple of commonly used sites for married clergy couples that met these specifications. We had very little anxiety, because we knew there was just not much we could do about it and therefore, no reason to fret.

Then, a couple of weeks ago, we were called into the Contextual Education office to discuss a special situation that had come up. It seemed that a congregation had been working on becoming an internship site where the intern would be shared between the congregation and Lutheran Disaster Response. The hitch - it was only one site. We were recommended by the seminary internship committee because of our experience on the Gulf Coast in January. We were excited about the possibilities, but very concerned about the fact that it was only one site. You see, internship is paid (sort of). The intern receives, in most cases, a housing allowance and a monthly stipend. Under many circumstances, the stipend covers your living expenses, and if you are single or your spouse is working, life is pretty good. When both of you are students and you look at a budget living off one stipend, life suddenly looks pretty dismal. We wanted to go, but were afraid of financial disaster. So, we spent an entire weekend worrying, praying, talking, avoiding, and praying some more. On Monday morning, we said Yes, but we will have to have more income so can one of us work part time, or can we supply-preach in the area, or something? Two days later, we were told that the site had found additional funding to cover the second stipend!

Now, after all that, where is this place? It is St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Mobile, Alabama. The site is a shared site between St. Paul's and Lutheran Disaster Response. We (both of us at the same place) will be working within the congregation and working for LDR in the area - which means the Gulf coast - very near where we were in January. Now you may want to know how did we managed that, but we didn't. Read the paragraph above again - this site wasn't a possibility when we went to Mississippi or even when we first came back. The only part we played in this was to say 'Yes' to an idea that was being pulled together.

Today it is official, and we can tell you all about it. As we find more details, we will post them on the blog. For now, we praise God that we have been assigned somewhere, with an exciting mission ahead of us.

Now, to answer a couple of questions that we have already received from our email: How long? Internship assignments are normally 1 year, roughly running from Aug 1 to July 31. Since this is a new site, they will not be ready for us until Aug 1, so our plans will be to move down there the end of July. Other questions: What will we be doing? Like most interns (or vicars, as many churches call them), we will be assisting the pastor at St. Paul's with normal things such as Sunday worship, Sunday School, and other parts of parish life. In addition, we will be working with LDR in the area with case work, visiting, preaching are area churches, and so on. Some of this is still being defined. Stay tuned for more, as we find out.

Waiting...

What Ray is not-so-subtly hinting at with his last entry about "Big news coming on April 7" is that our internship assignments for next year will be announced Friday afternoon. Right now, we - and all our classmates - are anxiously awaiting those announcements.

When you start seminary, you know that you face two years of classes, a year of internship in a congregation, then another year in classes. What you don't realize is how quickly those first two years will pass! It is hard to believe that we are now almost ready for internship. (I say almost because there are another four weeks of classes - and several papers and final exams - before this semester is completed.)

Last fall, we filled out internship applications and were interviewed by members of a placement committee on campus. Of course, we told them that we would prefer to remain here in town, so we wouldn't have to move. But the reality is that there are very few sites available within commuting distance, and those will go to our classmates who have pressing reasons to remain here - spouse's job, children finishing high school, etc. We can rent out our house, pack up, and move; and we expect to need to do so. Our situation is special, of course, because both of us are students. Fortunately, we have been promised that they can find us two congregations close together, so that we can live together and commute reasonable distances to work and worship. We know that they found appropriate sites for THREE couples in last year's intern class, so we have been very confident that they would locate ONE this year - since we are the only couple in our class.

We expected to have assignments by the end of March, but it seems it has been difficult to secure enough sites for everyone in our class, so the announcement was delayed until April 7. In the meantime, the placement committee works to match interns to congregations based on their applications and interviews - selecting the type of congregation and supervisor that will be the best match for each student.

Lest you think all the locations are in North and South Carolina, last year there were students from Southern Seminary on internship in a number of other places, including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Texas, and Pennsylvania. Now the tension is increasing dramatically for our entire class as we wait for the news.

So Ray is right: A big announcement is coming on Friday, April 7!

Big News Coming!!!

Watch this space!

Big News Coming!!

More Details on April 7!!!

Plea from the Distribution Center

We received an email last night from Bob Montgomery, a member of Christus Victor Lutheran Church in Ocean Springs. He is the volunteer in charge of both foodservice for the volunteer work crews and the distribution center. I can't say it any better than he does, so I'll include part of his message:

The semi-trailer trucks have stopped arriving and the receipt of supplies has reduced to a trickle. We are experiencing daily shortages at the Distribution Center. Our volunteer workers are processing 150 to 200 families a day, six days a week. With the magnificent outpouring of donations from across America, Christus Victor Lutheran Disaster Response has been able to help close to one thousand families a week. We have been told to anticipate the demand for food and supplies from the Distribution Center to continue for several years.

Over 29,000 families, more than 25% of the Mississippi Coast's population, live in FEMA trailers. Ten thousand of the trailers are in Jackson County, where Christus Victor is located. As of a month ago, another third of our coast residents remain off the coast, as there is no place for them to live. Economic activity has stagnated, tax revenues are unpredictable, and unemployment is high. The recovery on the Mississippi gulf coast is going to take a long, long time.

He goes on to ask for 52 congregations to commit to providing a truckload of food for distribution, hoping that somehow he will find enough churches to provide a truck full of food each week for the next year. That is certainly an ambitious goal, but I believe it is possible with God's help. And help from folks like all of us.

It has been challenging for us to be back to 'normal' and know that many others are not. Receiving this plea for help reminds me of the helpless feeling I experienced many times when we ran out of some critical item at the distribution center. I also know how incredible it was to watch a supply of something suddenly appear: 250 blankets and quilts stuffed into a motor home from Indiana; a box of towels from a man who had received the wrong ones from an online retailer - they told him to keep them and so he brought them to us; groceries purchased overnight by volunteers who saw what we needed; a skid full of feminine hygiene supplies that had been hidden and forgotten under a tarp in the back corner of the warehouse. The list of miracles that we experienced could go on and on.

Even if you can't send a entire truckload of food, you can still be a part of those miracles for the Gulf Coast. Anything you can contribute will certainly help. If you want more information about the items needed, go to their website (www.christusvictordisasterresponse.org/current-needs.html) and look at the "Supply, Hygiene and Food Items Needs." You can also contact us and we can put you in touch with Bob. I know he would be delighted to hear from you!

Dead Sea Scrolls

As you can see, we seem to stay busy, and not just with books. Last weekend, we were offered tickets to the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit. If you have the opportunity, go see it. What makes the exhibit so interesting is the background information that is provided - about the community, the methods of copying and storing the scrolls, how many were found, etc. What I really found fascinating were the signs that hung beside each display, with the text shown in the Hebrew that I can read! There are also coins in the display with Greek inscriptions which I actually recognize! Just think - two years ago I am not sure I would have even recognized a Hebrew letter; now I can translate them!

The other thing we were able to do while at Discovery Place is go to the IMAX movie. It is not directly related to the Scrolls exhibit, but close. A group ran the Nile river, from the source (Blue Nile in Ethiopia) all the way north to Alexandria, Egypt. More than three months on the river, in rubber rafts, going over water falls and being chased by crocodiles! It is a great movie - plenty of information on Africa and the Nile river, info on rafting, and incredible footage of the sights along the way.

I am not sure which was better, but having done both was very much an experience which translated well into seminary life, learning stories that occurred in that part of the world, learning the language that is used to decipher the scrolls and other artifacts of Qumran, as well as a day off from studies which translated into a learning experience!

books, books, and more books

Well, I've finally done it. I have exceeded my limit at the campus library. That means I have over 50 books checked out! Plus Ray has probably another 30 or so. All our bookcases are full of books we own, plus there are stacks of books everywhere in our house...

Now, to explain at least a few of them: We purchased one set of our 24 required textbooks for this semester, then checked an additional copy of each book from the library. This way we each have a copy to read now and we will have one copy for future use, but we don't accumulate two copies of everything.

Then there are the commentaries: We currently have a couple checked out that cover the gospels of Matthew and Mark, along with other lectionary readings. That wey we have resources available to prepare sermons. We also have commentaries on the gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts, for our course on Luke-Acts. Plus a couple of books on the book of Ruth, since that is our current topic of discussion in our Old Testament class...

We have research papers to write in five classes - so I have started to accumulate books on five different topics. That is a pretty good stack on one corner of my desk. Plus a book that we are using for our small group study at church, plus a couple of new books in the library that just looked interesting...

I've always loved to read. Many treasured gifts in my childhood were books, and many happy memories are of rainy or snowy days curled up reading a good book. I have not been able to give up reading for fun. So a few books at a time I check out mysteries or science fiction, fantasy or whatever strikes my fancy - to read in my "spare time." One of the books we both read recently and I can thoroughly recommend is by Robert Fulghum. Remember All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten? If you liked it, check out Maybe/Maybe Not - Second Thoughts from a Secret Life. It is full of stories so true, and yet so funny.

Anyway, if you need to find me, look for me curled up with a book! Or maybe behind one of the stacks of books scattered throughout our house...

Back from Spring Break

Probably not a great title, as it would lead you to believe that we actually went somewhere exciting for spring break. We did get away for a couple of days, but spent most of the break working at home on little projects that have been getting put off.

The main reason for this post is a phone call from my sister saying that we must be really busy, as we have not been posting very often. That would be a very astute observation. We are each taking 19 hours, plus auditing a course and working 10+ hours per week, plus keeping things up at home. For those reasons alone, spring break was nice - at least we could sleep in most mornings!

Our one trip during spring break was to visit my mother, and to stop and see the new puppies at Rhonda's. Here is a picture of the puppies:

These are Feist puppies. I did not know what a Feist was before, but apparently they are similar to Jack Russels, but not as high-strung and are particularly good for squirrel hunting. Rhonda and Chris are raising these particularly for hunting dogs. Though you cannot see all of them here, there are eight little furballs in this litter.

Spring break ended yesterday and classes started again today - from now until Holy Week we will be pretty busy, then a few days off from classes for Holy Week, but more to do at church that week, then back at it until classes are finished in May. We'll try to get the occasional post uploaded here, but forgive us if homework has to come first.

5 Down, 1 to Go...

Guess it really is my turn to post something to the blog. It seems to often be forgotten in the midst of reading, research, and writing. Those must be the 3 R's of seminary.

Actually, after further consideration, I think it should be 4 R's for seminary education - the other one would be reflection. The list should be: research, reading, reflection, and of course, (w)riting. We spend a great deal of time researching to locate the appropriate materials, reading to gather insight and information, reflecting on what we have learned and experienced and where we have seen God at work, and then writing papers or sermons about those insights and experiences. (And then, of course, there is translating from Greek and Hebrew. But that ruins my list of R's so I'll give up that effort...)

Most of the juniors on campus have been accepted for CPE, so they know where they will be working this summer. This week the seniors received their first call synod assignments, which means that while they still need to interview with specific congregations and await calls, they at least know what synod they can expect to be living in soon as they graduate and begin their pastoral ministry. Now all of us middlers are anxiously awaiting the next round of announcements, which will be our internship assignments for next year. We expect those assignments to be announced around the first of April, so for the next month, the stress level will be high among all our classmates! While we are pretty flexible about location, some of our classmates need to be in specific areas and that just adds to their stress!

In the meantime, we just keep busy with our reading and other homework, and look forward to Spring Break, even though Ray and I plan on spending most of it right here at home. It's hard to believe we have already finished five weeks of this semester, and have just one more week to go before before the much-anticipated break. Which will probably be a very busy week as well, with plenty of homework, housework, and yardwork to do!

Update, Feb 17

It appears that my last post got lost (lost in the mail? Operator error?). Life has certainly been busy, and there has not been a lot of time to update the blog. Another problem has been that our DSL has been on the blink ever since we got home. Hopefully, it was fixed yesterday and seems to be much more reliable than it was.

Class schedule for this semester is pretty tough - lots of reading, two classes requiring Greek translations and one requiring Hebrew translations. The transition back to seminary schedule has been a bit of a shock to the system, compounded by our arrival home only two days before classes started.

We have heard from a couple of people that we met in Mississippi, and talked about our experiences. We have also been asked to share with our field education church here, as well as with a couple of groups on campus. Talking about our experiences is good, but it can get a little emotional as well when you try and explain to someone who has not been there what it is really like. There are those who lost everything, but who remain hopeful. It does make it a little difficult for us to hear someone complain about everyday problems, though.

It's Friday night, the fourth week of classes are over, and we plan to do not much of anything for the evening. Sunday will be a big day - church, then home to watch the Daytona 500, and then back to church to meet with our small group. We are using the book Ordinary Joy, which is somewhat interesting, in that the author talks about ordinary joy in everyday life while we are still thinking about people to whom ordinary joy has become a truck delivering basic food supplies, or a blanket to keep them warm on a cold night. Our ordinary joy's would be extraordinary to many of the Katrina victims on the Gulf Coast.

This is a photo of one of our last days in Ocean Springs. This is me training my replacement (Ken) on repairing wheelbarrow tires. On Ken's first day, we fixed a record six flat tires. This photo was recently emailed to me by Wes, who took the picture.  

Back at Seminary

Wow! We only thought that coming home required some readustment - starting classes again has really been hard. We have now been in classes for a week, and going from working 7 days a week to sitting in classes every day has been quite an adjustment.

Instead of trying to get chainsaws working for a crew to take out, now I am trying to figure out how to read 300 plus pages every week. Between the class schedule, homework, and trying to get back into working in the computer lab on campus, I have been as tired this week as I was the first week in Ocean Springs.

This has also been a very busy week. We have been to classes, back to our field church, celebrated Ruth Ann's birthday, and re-stocked the pantry. This weekend, our dog is coming home and on Sunday, my mother is coming to visit. Hopefully, by next week, we'll be a bit more adjusted to being home and back into the swing of classes and homework.

Back to the grind...

Well, we are back and classes started today. Don't know why, but we just can't seem to get over being tired. We only changed time by one hour (I used to change time zones like changing shoes) and we can't seem to get caught up. Yesterday, we slept late, went to the late service at church, bought groceries, and then took a nap. Today, staying awake through two classes was very difficult.


On our last day in Ocean Springs, we went to a seafood restaurant called Port of Call. It is certainly not a fancy place, but they had some of the best fried catfish I have ever had (or was it just from eating at the church for 3 weeks?). Across the street from the restaurant was this storage business. As you can see, the building (and contents) were heavily damaged by Katrina. Also, you can see in the second picture, another boat that just does not seem to be where it is supposed to be. Seems that we saw many boats - some were stored and washed off their trailers but we also saw several that appeared to be washed from some other place and deposited.

The sign in the foreground is just one of many, advertising roofing, remodeling, or other types of home repairs. The creator of the Presbyterian blog that I gave a link to earlier described it best when he wrote about going to Florida to finish the settlement on his burned motorhome - you are driving along (as we did coming home) and suddenly realize that things don't look right - there are no blue tarps on the roofs, no broken trees, and no signs like this one advertising for home repairs. It was actually a bit unsettling as we drove home and into our neighborhood - it looks so different than what we had been seeing the last 4 weeks.

We are glad to be home, and eventually, we'll get back into the swing of things here and be able to stay awake for classes. Most of all, we need to get used to things looking "normal". Stay tuned - we'll be posting updates as the semester progresses.

Home Sweet Home

We got a late start from Montgomery, Alabama this morning since neither of us are morning people. We drove much of the day in light rain and arrived home around 5:00 pm. We had time to unload the Jeep before dark and between rainshowers, but we discovered some sure signs you have been away from home too long:

1) Neither of you know where you put your house keys (mine were in my purse and quickly located - I'm not sure where he found his!)
2) You don't remember where to put away some of the stuff you packed!
3) The unopened mail covers the kitchen table!
4) The house just looks different than you remember.

In spite of those moments of confusion, we are glad to be home. We have opened and read our mail, gotten mostly unpacked, found enough food to cook some supper, and started washing the mound of laundry. Tomorrow we will be going to church and the grocery store and continuing the chores here. Monday will be a day for buying books and running other errands on campus before we go to our first class of the semester.

Thanks to all of you who have helped us on this journey with your prayers and support, especially Rusty for bringing in the mail and keeping my houseplants alive and Rhonda for caring for our beloved mutt Smokey. The house is very quiet without him! We are eagerly awaiting his homecoming in a few days.

Those who remain on the Gulf coast - residents and relief workers - will remain in our thoughts and prayers for some time to come, as the rebuilding process begins in earnest. We are already considering a return trip...

On the way home...

We are about a third of the way home. Leaving, as usually, was more complicated than we had planned on. A couple of people had mentioned a restaurant which had great seafood, so we went out for our last lunch (I expect we won't be having hotdogs at our house for a while). Then, when we went back to our hosts home to pack, I noticed that a tire was low. One of the wonderful things about driving around in neighborhoods where many of the homes have had all of the drywall pulled out is the number of nails laying in the road - and one of them found it's way into our tire. So, after packing, we sat for an hour getting the one tire fixed and the other three checked.

Our last stop at the church for goodbyes took a little while, but we had expected that. Some of the people there had been our constant companions for the last 24 days. We finally got on the road and arrived at the hotel about 8:00 p.m. - just in time for a nice, long soak in the hot tub! After that, and a good nights sleep without alarm clocks, we are ready for the final leg of the journey home.

Short timer

It is time for the distribution center to open, yet here I sit at my computer. What an odd feeling. My replacement seemed to be learning quickly, so after spending a day and a half training her, I decided the best thing I could do was to hand over all the keys and notes and let her take over. This morning when the van full of volunteers left for the distribution center, I stayed behind. I'm trying to give them time to get there and get opened up. I will stop by later this morning, to see if I can answer any last lingering - or suddenly occurring - questions before we head for home later today.

I am asked by many pastors and volunteers what items are needed most by the distribution center. The simple answer to that question is FOOD (or money to buy food). We had to order groceries last week - nearly $10,000 worth! Six full pallets of food arrived yesterday but I suspect that they won't really last very long. Items that we continually run out of are soups, juices, spaghetti sauce, cookies and crackers, and packaged meals like macaroni & cheese.

We had a special project yesterday at the distribution center. We assembled 75 food kits for a new FEMA trailer park in a nearby community. Seems that a small church nearby has adopted this new neighborhood - they have obtained dishes, pots and pans, bed linens, and towels to furnish all of the trailers for the new residents. They asked us to provide a food kit for each trailer so the families moving in would have everything they need for the first few days. We assembled the food kits, stacked them on pallets, shrink-wrapped the pallets, and loaded them on a truck. I was really glad we had received all the new groceries so we could help!

We also filled 160 orders from the front line and 20 casework vouchers for furniture, linens, and other household items. It was very a busy day, with supplies and donations coming in and kits and furniture going out!

Today we begin our trip home. I'm looking forward to being home, but will miss this place as well. We have worked hard, but we have also made new friends from all over the US. For example, I worked with a pastor from Nebraska yesterday who assured me that he would be glad to help us if we want to intern or serve in his synod!

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).

Job Posting Closed!

I found a new tool man today! Actually, Paul and Gwen found him. Now that I have a replacement, it really is time to go home. Ken spent most of the morning helping me repair wheelbarrow tires - 6 flats - a new record. A little more time with me tomorrow, then he is on his own.

Our host have been wonderful. Knowing that we will be leaving soon, they presented us with a book this evening of pictures of the Ocean Springs/Biloxi area both before and after Katrina. They signed it and everything! We really have been blessed, both this January and last in that the families that have hosted us have been wonderful people.

We attended our last long-term volunteer coordinators meeting today. Everyone seemed to be happy that we had found replacements and were training them, but they still threatened to slash our tires so we couldn't leave. They even offered to write notes to our professors at seminary, explaining that we would miss a few weeks of class! We have really enjoyed our time here, and have learned a lot about what disaster relief looks like, but we are also ready to go home. Part of the pastoral care for volunteers is knowing when they need to rest. We may come back, but for now, it is time to wrap up this trip and go home. Classes start next Monday and we will arrive home where there are no groceries, a pile of mail to sort, and most likely, a bit of dusting and vacuuming that needs to done.

This week has been filled with amazing stories about people and their ability to survive, their struggles, and how volunteer’s hearts are touched so that they go the extra mile to finish their home, or help them buy groceries, or something. I would imagine that everyone who has been here has at least one such story to tell. Some of us have several. It is truly amazing what we, as the body of Christ, can do, will do, and have done. Praise be to God!

Three more days

One of the members of Christus Victor who is involved with their relief efforts asked me tonight how many days we had left. I had to ask him what day it was before I could answer his question! The days are starting to blur, especially today, with all the rain and the problems it created. Most of our crews could not work because most of the work was either outside or was in a house where the roof leaked. We had a lot of make-work jobs today, including putting up more drywall in the sanctuary at Christus Victor.

As we move more and more into construction, there are tools that we need but don't have, so I was sent on a shopping expedition today to outfit a couple of roofing crews and a couple of drywall crews. When the weather clears tomorrow, we'll have the tools to send people out to do construction type projects.

It is not that all of the houses in Ocean Springs and surrounding towns are all cleaned out; it is that we are about out of cleanout jobs where the homeowner has returned, has a FEMA trailer or somewhere else to live, and has had the insurance adjuster come do their thing so that they can clean out the debris. Some people simply have not returned (yet) or have not requested help. One of the things volunteers were doing today is going to areas where help was obviously needed and passing out flyers and offering help. Much, much more needs to be done, but only with the homeowners permission (and usually with them present).

While it looks like Ruth Ann has a replacement, I don't. There are a couple of people who could take over for a week, but by the end of the month when we are gone and Paul and Gwen leave, there will be no one with knowledge and history of any of the tools that are available or the maintenance that has been done or is needed. Hopefully, a long-term volunteer will show up in the next couple of days or Paul has to go back to doing 2 jobs.

From our blog hit counter, it looks like a lot of you are checking in on us. Hopefully, you are learning some of what it is like to be here, but I assure you, it is only a glimpse that you are seeing. The stories that the volunteers share each evening wrench your heart while at the same time assure you that God work is being done here; that His hand in everything that we do. My stories of tools and supplies appearing just when we need them the most continue. By Sunday, we had 3 crews trying to rebuild or repair fencing and only had one post-hole digger. By Sunday afternoon, a group from Pennsylvania had arrived with blankets and other much needed supplies for distribution and 6 post-hole diggers for the tool shed. I can't tell you how many times this has happened during our 21 days here. Prayers are answered, sometimes even before we ask.

Rain, rain go away...

It rained outside all day today - and inside the distribution center, as well. The volunteer schedulers wanted to send me extra people to work in the center, which seemed logical, since we would be inside and many of the work projects are outside. But in reality, I needed only about half as many people as usual to work. We were not able to put clothes outside or to do any sorting of clothes or other items inside. Everything, including our big work table, needed to stay under plastic for protection.

So the twelve or fifteen of us there unloaded a couple of trucks, packed some food kits, swept floors, emptied buckets of rainwater from under some large drips, and helped the 80 or so clients that came by. (That's only about half as many as usual.)

We made sure the tarps were in place when we left, but the weather forecast is for clear weather tomorrow, so hopefully the drips will slow down and we will be back to business as usual.

The good news is that another long term volunteer (also from Charlotte NC!) has arrived and is scheduled to take charge of the distribution center when I leave. Now my challenge is to pass along all the information I can to help her out.

Monday, Monday

I have to agree with Garfield (the comic strip cat) - I'm not much of a Monday person. Monday's here tend to mean lots of new volunteers so there are lots of questions and lot of work, since I tend to not do much maintenance work on Sunday afternoons. Needless to say, by the end of Monday, I am exhausted.

Ruth Ann seemed to have one of those days as well. With rain in the forecast for tonight and tomorrow, everything at the distribution center had to be tarped this afternoon. That takes a lot of time and energy!

The best part of this Monday is that it will be our last one here as part of this trip. Next Monday, we'll be home and back in classes. As the days count down, we have mixed feelings - ready to go home, but knowing that we could stay and help and be able to do some good. One of the volunteers here, Jim, has been here for something like 3 months. He is leaving tomorrow to take 3 weeks off, then he is coming back. He is young and single, which makes this more possible, but it is still pretty amazing that he has been able to be here for so long. The continuity that Jim has brought to the volunteer coordination here is one of the reasons that Christus Victor Lutheran Church has had such success with volunteers. We talked to him in October and he was still here when we arrived in December.

Seems that several of the long term volunteers that we have gotten to know are either taking time off or winding up their stays. Of the dozen or so long term volunteers that we met our first couple of days, over half have gone home or taken extended time off. Only a couple are local and only 3 or 4 will be left by the time we leave. It is kind of like spending your summer working at camp or something where many of the people change each week, but a few core staff people are there all summer and at the end of the summer, you all hate to part company. The big difference here, is that "camp" won't be over when we leave; it will be going on for the next few years, in some form or other.

Seems that this week in particular, we are getting more into construction mode. Several people have had their houses cleaned out and gotten their building permits and either have insurance money or FEMA money to buy materials, so we are providing labor to hang sheet rock or shingle roofs. While we have plenty of tools for tearing things down, we are finding that we could use more construction type tools - especially power tools such as screw guns for drywall and roofing nail guns. If you still would like to help, send a tool or a Lowe's or HomeDepot gift card (see www.christusvictor.com) so these items are available for volunteers to use. I will probably be shopping for an air compressor tomorrow to run the one roofing nail gun that we have. Hopefully, we can come up with the funds to buy a complete second set (nail gun and compressor) so we can have two crews roofing this week. If you are experienced in hanging sheet rock, finishing sheet rock (tape and mud) or in roofing, bring your favorite tools and come help out for a week! There is plenty of work to go around.

Drive thru Service! Cars enter the parking lot from the left, a volunteer talks with them and takes their order, and then they exit to the right. 

When it rains, it pours! This is how Ruth Ann finds things under the many blue FEMA tarps that cover everything in the warehouse.  

This is the big work table that Ruth Ann wrote about being cleared. In the background there are volunteers assembling food kits for distribution. 

Our last week!

Today is the beginning of our last 7 days here in Ocean Springs. Next Saturday, we will be heading for home. Today, being Sunday, was a pretty lite day. Ruth Ann and I took our friends from Michigan and a couple from Wisconsin for a little tour around the area. At first, there was a lot of talk about needing to take pictures; then after awhile, mostly silence. Seeing houses blocks from the Gulf that have clothes strung in trees 15 feet in the air makes you realize that pictures just will not capture the enormity of the destruction.

I even took a little extra time at dinner this evening to watch the end of the Panthers and Bears game. I was, of course, the only Panthers fan in the room. Most of the Midwesterners were pulling for the Bears. Still, it was very relaxing to just sit and watch the end of the game.

I am also improving my small engine repair skills. One of the chainsaws that I had previously worked on developed a leak in the fuel line. After finding some fuel line tubing, I managed to get the saw apart, remove the old fuel line, cut a new piece, get in installed and it worked! A few weeks ago, I would probably have just taken it to the shop. Now, I have both the time and the need to get it done quickly and cheaply.

New volunteers continue to pour in. About 30 new people have arrived this weekend and twice that many left on Friday or Saturday. There are always new faces at meal time. Believe it or not, after 19 days, we are considered old-timers, as there are just a few of us who have been here more than a week. This afternoon I was giving tours of the church like I was a life-long member. It is always interesting to see the reactions we get when people ask how we were able to be here for most of a month and we tell them we are seminary students. I have, in the past two weeks, talked with at least five volunteers who have been considering seminary for themselves.

Shortly, there will be some pictures posted of the distribution center where Ruth Ann works. I went over yesterday to join her for lunch at the BBQ place two doors down from the distribution center and took some pictures. If you come to Ocean Springs to volunteer and you like good BBQ, try Pleasants BBQ. I don't think you will be disappointed.

We cleaned off the work table!

While lots of volunteers have been available the past couple of weeks, we have been trying to help clean up the warehouse and sort out many of the mysterious pallets of assorted "stuff" which has been in storage for weeks or months. This meant that for several days, our big central work table was covered with boxes of clothes, hangers, toys, linens, and household items. The clutter seemed completely out of control.

The good news is that with the patient steady work of several folks, we managed to sort through the pallets of clothes and toys, arrange the linens (including about 300 blankets and bedspreads that arrived today), relocate most of the household items, and even clean off the table!

Next week's major task will be to finish sorting the household items, which probably means that the table will be covered again for a few days, but I think we can get those under control as well. Or at least that is my goal for my last week here.

Keep in mind that while all that sorting is going on inside, we are also filling about 150 orders a day in our drive-through line outside - which means that volunteer workers must also be assembling kits of food, cleaning supplies, hygiene items, baby food, and paper goods. Plus there are people who keep the pallets of goods moving out to the front line, and others who spend most of their day collecting trash and flattening boxes. All in all, it takes about 30 people to run the distribution center and sort supplies on a busy day.

It is hard to believe the week is over. It has been a very busy - I even took a turn leading the morning chapel service yesterday morning. I'm glad that today was a bit quieter in the distribution center, and we will be closed tomorrow. I plan to take some time to rest and do laundry.

TGIF (again)

Another Friday has rolled by. As with last week, there were several groups leaving today - some left this morning, others packed up after lunch, and yet another packed up and left after supper. It is wonderful to hear the stories some of these groups tell about their interactions with the homeowners they have been helping.

This weekend will be a bit of a challenge - there are still about 150 volunteers here, many of them staying at the church, and there is a wedding tomorrow afternoon at the church and an Eagle ceremony Sunday afternoon. Christus Victor is trying to regain some normalcy to their schedule, which is great, but how normal can things be with 150 extra people floating around???

We begin the countdown on our last week. By this time next week, we should be home and climbing into our own bed - what a wonderful thought! In the meantime, we are wondering who our replacements will be and how much time (if any) we will get to have with them before we leave. Hopefully, these replacements will be identified by mid-week so we can pass on what we know and have learned. It seems that several key people will be changing over the next two or three weeks, so it will be a big challange for everyone.

Thursday, Jan 12

You probably noticed that we did not post anything yesterday-we were sooooooo tired last night that we were in bed by 9:30. Yesterday just seemed to be one of those days where many, many things went wrong, we were both extra busy, and by the time we finished dinner, we were too tired to do anything except climb into bed.

Today was a better day - for both of us. Still busy, but things seemed to go better. Several of the large groups finished up today and will head for home tomorrow. We'll be sorry to see them go, but getting the number of volunteers back to under 200 will also be a relief. Have had almost 300 volunteers for the past 8 or 9 days has certainly pointed out weak points in the plans. There were tools I did not have; there was not enough room to get everyone loaded in the mornings; we pretty much had to eat in shifts (more than usual); housing was an issue; parking was an issue; keeping everyone busy was an issue; showers were a MAJOR issue for some. These are some of the issue that I am aware of - I am sure there are others. Since LDR is hopping for 1000 college students to come to this area for Spring Break (see www.ldr.org), this was a good test of the system to see what flaws need to be addressed before spring break.

Today is day 16 of our stay here in Ocean Springs and we are beginning to count down the days till we can head for home. Hard to believe that I used to be gone for two, three, even four weeks at a time and now, a week away from home seems like a long time. I think I miss sleeping in my own bed.

Quiet day

From the tool side of things, this was a pretty quiet day. Most every group seemed to leave this morning with what they needed and many of the groups seemed to finish a bit early today, so most of the tools were back and put away before supper! Most days don't go that smoothly.

A couple of new groups arrived today, and 2 or 3 groups finished up today and are leaving in the morning. Our numbers will stay up for most of the week, then next week should be a little more normal - about 150 volunteers.

Thursday night will be my first turn at leading chapel. We had a lot of pastors here last week, so there was never a problem getting someone to lead chapel; this week, we have lots of college students, but only a couple of pastors so Ruth Ann and I are both being pressed into service. I picked the evening service because things are so hectic in the morning for me trying to get tools out and all of the work teams on their way, but evenings are pretty quiet.

This is day 14 - we have been here a full two weeks. Time has flown - it seems like we just got here, but also like we have been here for ever. I don't even get lost as often!!! Being able to get from Ocean Springs to Gautier or Biloxi, or Moss Point is pretty easy - I even know a couple of short cuts. I can also tell you an awful lot about wheelbarrow maintenance (which you probably really don't want to know).

The spirit of the volunteers is unbelievable. There are some here now who have returned - three times. There is a young man who came with a college group, but is in the midst of thinking he wants to go to seminary - and had an encounter today with a client that seemed to reinforce his sense of call. There are so many opportunities here and so little time in each day.

Distribution "Blues"

We filled orders for about 190 families today, which is a pretty average day. Most of those orders include a box of food which is designed to feed a family of four for three to four days, some cleaning supplies or hygiene items. Plus, we are now able to provide towels, pillows and blankets, some dishes, pots and pans, and even furniture. So my day was spent directing traffic, locating special items inside the warehouse, and helping locate and move furniture!

Unfortunately, I don't get time to talk with many of our clients. But I do get to talk with many volunteers. It is great to hear the stories about their congregations, their trips to Mississippi, and their experiences here. I found a large tub of bubble gum which was donated, so each afternoon, I circulate among the volunteers, offering them bubble gum and checking to see how the day is going.

I'm alway glad when someone comes in to work in the distribution center who is willing to take charge of an area to sort and organize. Some wonderful folks have spent days (and days and days) sorting clothing, toys, and miscellaneous household items.

In case of any future emergency, I have one piece of advice to share: Do NOT send used clothing!! We are now spending hours and hours sorting out clothing that was sent to this area. It is an incredibly labor intensive process. We place warm clothing or new clothing, outside in boxes for people to look through. (Imagine a very large rummage sale with no price tags.) If it is worn or stained, it is unfortunately ending up in a dumpster. At the end of the day, we bring in the boxes, and will refill them and put them back out again tomorrow.

The weather, which has been great most of the time we have been here, continues to present the biggest challenge. The roof of the warehouse was damaged by Katrina, and leaks in MANY places. With rain forecast for last night and tonight, we must get all boxes up off the floor onto pallets and then cover everything in the building with big blue tarps. As some of you know, blue has never been my favorite color. Now I have discovered that I really am not fond of "FEMA Tarp Blue"! When we walk back into the building tomorrow, we will have to pull back and roll up all of the tarps before we can begin our usual day. Plus, if it rains outside tonight, it will 'rain' inside all day tomorrow, as the water finds its way through the roof!

What a day!

Trying to keep 280+ volunteers supplied and busy is quite a task. A couple of groups are traveling by bus or large van and had to be split into separate work groups today - which meant running around mid-day to move some of them from one jobsite to another. I put a lot of miles on the church van. I also pretty much ran out of tools. We want each group that is working in a moldy house to wear respirators, but we ran out. We only have enough to supply about 125 volunteers, and we needed almost twice that many.

Tomorrow will be better - one of the large groups is taking their bus out to a camp that is being built for volunteers and will be working outside all day tomorrow - that means I can re-assign their respirators and tools to someone else. We also had a couple of good sized groups finish up today and they are leaving tomorrow. By the end of this week, we will have had 250+ volunteers every day for about 10 days - and while they are getting a lot of work done, it will be nice to see the numbers back down to about 150 for next week.

Today was one of those days where there seemed to be several problems crop up - probably more noticeable because we were all a bit stressed trying to deal with so many work crews. Most of the problems seem to get resolved, but the stress is showing.

We had some great news tonight - our host from Ishpeming (last January) called and he and a buddy are coming down this weekend to spend a couple of weeks volunteering. Peter - we certainly look forward to seeing you again. We have met a lot of wonderful people down here - most from church groups (Lutheran, Episcopal, Presbyterian) who are doing great work. The best part is when they come down, work for a week, then go home and either send another group or they collect money and other items and send them down. Once here, they see how real the need is and go home and do something about it. Most are amazed at how much damage there is and few believe that it really will take 7 years to rebuild - until they see it for themselves. As I said in an earlier post, pictures just don't do it justice.

Presbyterian Churches of Oregon - Disaster Assistance: Salem Katrina Team Report - January 7

Presbyterian Churches of Oregon - Disaster Assistance: Salem Katrina Team Report - January 7


This is a link to another group that we have spent time with. The motor home that they brought down caught fire the other night - see the picutre on their blog.

Great story

Saturday we were able to be a part of a great story. A middle aged African American man, who lived in a tent with his 11 year old son for almost 4 months and then in a motel room for another month, moved into a FEMA trailer. Better yet, he also got a job on the same day! Ruth Ann and I and another volunteer went to help him move in. He was so overjoyed at having a key to his new home. This has probably been the high spot of the week.

As Ruth Ann has already said, today we rested, we drove around some, and took some pictures. I have been to many areas around Ocean Springs, but have not always had the camera with me.

We have 282 volunteers, as of this morning! Of course, after many of the college students leave to go back to school, the numbers will drop dramatically. We have had families, church groups, college groups, and even one school that made this trip eligible for J-term class credit! Several of the college students are already talking about coming back for spring break. Not to worry - there will be work to be done for some time.

Sabbath

Yes, for those who have asked, we are getting some rest while we are here. We slept in a bit this morning, then attended worship at Christus Victor. Afterwards, went out to lunch - just the two of us - instead of eating in the parish hall with the other 280 or so volunteers who are here this week.

Ray also took me for a drive, so that I could see some of the places he has been this week. It was a beautiful day - clear, sunny, about 65 degrees, and breezy - it felt like spring had already arrived. Looking out across the white sand and the water of the Gulf, I could almost forget the reason we are here, but when we turned around, we saw again the devastation left behind by Katrina's storm surge.

We returned to the house to do laundry and spend some time on the computer. While Ray was posting photos to the blog, I was making a lengthy 'To Do' list for the distribution center tomorrow. I hope I have lots of energetic volunteers! Finally, we went back to the church to put away tools for today's work crews, copy some fliers for the distribution center, and eat dinner.

All in all, a pretty quiet day for us here in Ocean Springs!

Here is a crew of Presbyterian volunteers from Canada re-roofing a house in Biloxi. While they worked on the roof, Ruth Ann, Lorraine, and I sprayed bleach on the inside of the house. Once bleached and with a new roof, this house is ready for new drywall. 

This is all that remains of what was probably a pretty nice house a couple of blocks from the waterfront. 

This sign is similar to many others we have seen. It identifies the property address for the insurance company and tells anyone who might be looking for them that they are OK. This house was about 100 yards from the Gulf shore in Ocean Springs. 

Who needs a truck? This volunteer is a college student who drove down with some friends and then stayed after they left. Since he was experienced, he would usually get a crew of newbies and take them out on job sites. His favorite was doing a "full gut", where every piece of drywall and ceiling and insulation had to be removed. Since he only had his car, he would load all the tools for a crew in (or on) his car. I kidded him about trading the car in for a nice red pickup truck, but he seems to like his car just fine - even with the wheelbarrow hanging out the back. 

This is the inside of my tool trailer. As you can see, I have lots of tools to keep up with and not a lot of space to work in. Shop vacs are the worst - when they are not out in the field, they have to fit in here and the shelves are not tall enough for them to slide all the way under. Much of my time that is not spent doing repairs is spent sorting things out that have not been put away in the right place. This is certainly enough to keep me busy. 

Lester loading food. Lester and his wife were our only fellow South Carolinians here at Christus Victor. Les spent much of his time at the area warehouse, unloading trucks of incoming supplies and then loading it again to send it to various distribution centers, like the one that Ruth Ann is running. Lester also kept an eye out for tools that I might need and would either bring them to me at dinner time or tell me to come see him the next morning. Lester and Amy left Friday to go home, after being here for several weeks. 

Goodbye, Lorraine! This picture was taken as Lorraine left Christus Victor to work her way home. Her plans were to stop in the New Orleans area for a week or so on her way to meet her sister in Arizona. Lorraine spent several weeks at Christus Victor, working on crews with others and breaking in new volunteers like us. She took us out on our second day to bleach houses that had already had all the sheetrock removed. Safe travels! 

TGIF

Not that it being Friday means a lot, except that more volunteer groups are coming in and some are leaving. Weekends seem to have more transitions, but work still goes on. Since Christus Victor has a Saturday evening service, some groups elect to worship Saturday night and work most of Sunday. Since most groups are only here for 4-8 days, they want to get as much done as they can.

We are actually getting into more rebuilding. There are still houses to be mucked out, but there are others that have been cleaned, bleached, and are ready for drywall to go in and several groups have been working on that. It is really good to see some houses getting to the point where people can live in them again.

On the other had, I had to deliver tools to a work team in Biloxi today and I drove down Howard Ave. In the downtown area, things don't look too bad; a couple more blocks and there are houses with damage, but they are recognizable as houses; then suddenly there are about 3 blocks where nothing is left, just piles of rubble, then you come to one house - the one our group was working on and trying to salvage. Another 4,000 plus homes were condemned in Biloxi earlier this week, on top of the thousands already destroyed or condemned.

Thanks for the comments - remember, if you don't want me to publish them, tell me; otherwise, I will usually publish them for the whole world to see.

Format Change

You will have noticed (at least I think you would have) that we do have an advertisement on our blog. This is by choice - google's adsense program is supposed to pay you if you have one of their advertisements and someone actually clicks on it. I just added a Google Search bar as well.

The advertisements are supposed to match the context of the blog - if they get obnoxious, we'll take them off, but in the meantime - click away and earn us some gas money for the drive home in a few weeks. I don't see that we will get rich off the ad, but if we can earn a few dollars and they aren't offensive to anyone, we'll leave them. Please comment if you have an opinion.

Today in the Distribution Center

Unlike Ray, I'm not seeing much of either the scenery or destruction around Ocean Springs first hand. I am driving one of Christus Victor's vans loaded with volunteers from the church to the distribution center in the morning, back again for lunch, and return once more at the end of the work day. This trip is about one mile each way, so the scenery doesn't vary much! Between times, I spend my day in the warehouse or in the driveway, checking on the crews inside and out - and answering a wide variety of questions.

I have quickly become the resident expert on the location of special items and the proper procedure for handling special situations. I have certainly been calling on some of my business experience in customer service and materials management for this assignment.

Clients drive up, give us their requests for food, water, personal hygiene items, baby food, diapers, towels, blankets, etc. Then a member of our team retrieves the items for them and places it in their vehicle, and off they go. We have ample opportunities, too, to talk with people and listen to their stories about Katrina and the affects of the storm on their homes and families.

Today, I was privileged to talk with some people who were donating goods for others. One elderly couple was bringing in things for others, but also told us how grateful they are to volunteers who have helped clean out, repair, and refurnish their home. It seems that one congregation from Georgia has adopted this couple and are really developing a relationship with them. In fact the couple went to Georgia to visit the congregation over the Thanksgiving holiday! Their story seemed to me to be a perfect model for ministry. Imagine the impact if every family in need was adopted by a congregation...

It is definitely not too late to get involved. Most recent estimates are that it will take up to eight years for this area to recover from Katrina. Enormous needs for supplies and for volunteer labor will continue for a long time to come.

Wednesday, Jan 3

Now we are old-timers - we attended our second volunteer coordinators meeting today ( we arrived just before the meeting last week). While at times it appears that this whole thing is just barely organized chaos, it is really pretty well coordinated. Considering that we have groups arrived every day this week, with other groups beginning to leave by Friday, it is amazing that we can get them in, find them a bed, feed them, and find them jobs every single day, but we do - and with very few hitches in the system.

I went to visit another job site today, and while getting slightly lost, I took a drive along 90 to Pascagoula and then up to I-10 - and was again amazed at how widespread the destruction is. I did not take any pictures because after a while, it becomes apparent that no picture really just justice to what has happened here. In some areas, house after house is destroyed and gone; the next neighborhood is a sea of blue tarps on roofs. One resident that I talked to today told me of riding the storm out in her house, and fearing the cars that were floating around her house more than the water.

Tuesday - been here for a week

We arrived last Wednesday, so this is our 7th day. The last large group from last week left after lunch today; two more large groups arrived this evening. We should be back up to 100+ workers for tomorrow.

I ran out of flat tires (at least for now). Today was chain saw day. We have 3 crews going out tomorrow - one of them to a house where there are 15 trees down. All the saws now have nice, sharp blades and are ready to go. I am constantly amazed at the volunteers that come here, and what they are willing to do. Two families traveled down together in a camper, bringing many of their own tools and saws. When they heard about my problems getting chain saws sharpened, they volunteered their electric chain saw grinder and helped me sharpen saws tonight (after a full days work). Not only that, but after seeing the condition of our saws and what I had to work with, told me that they would donate the grinder when they left! Almost every group that has been here in the last 7 days brought something with them that they have left here for us to use - power tools, hand tools, ladders, wheelbarrows, and now a chain saw sharpener.

I went to Biloxi today, checking job sites for crews later this week. I stopped at one house only to be told that she already had most of the work done, but still was so thankful that we were here and helping. She has lived in this area for more than 30 years, and is still in shock over the damage to this place she calls home - historic landmarks gone, friend's houses gone, friends gone who won't come back.

I drove through another area today where the destruction was so complete, that it was hard to believe that it was once a plush golf community. One house was completely gone, except for the concrete steps that probably led to the front porch; and then there was the large boat sitting in what would have been the back yard - and I'm pretty sure the boat does not belong to anyone in that neighborhood - it looks like it rolled and tumbled its way there from one of the marinas, a couple of miles away.

Several people wondered, before we came, what kind of things were needed here. Christus Victor has many things listed on their web site but food, blankets, and money are the main things. There are very few food distribution centers still running in this area. As the temperature has been dropping this week, the need for blankets and sleeping bags has increased. Money to help buy food to feed the volunteers is a big expense. The folks at Christus Victor are feeding anywhere from 50 to 200 people per day - volunteers, people from the community, people from the church who don't have a place to cook for themselves. Some volunteers bring food; others donate to the kitchen fund, but all want and need to be fed.

Time to go for now. Pray for us - all of us - as we try to help these people regain some sense of peace in their lives.

Jan 2, 2006

Wow! First time I have written (or typed) 2006. Happy New Year!

This weekend brought a lot of changes here in Ocean Springs. Several crews that had come down the day after Christmas have all left and new crews are arriving. Today, we only had 3 crews out working, but two new groups checked in about supper time and more are coming. By Wednesday, we'll have 150 people to keep busy. While today was sort of a holiday, we certainly kept busy. After breakfast and sending out work crews, Ruth Ann and I went out to the warehouse with a truck (about the size of a Hertz truck) and helped load 6 skids of food and supplies and delivered them to the distribution center. Since they were not distributing food on Sunday or Monday because of the holiday, it looks like they will be very busy tomorrow.

Five more flat wheelbarrow tires to fix today. It is interesting that most of the skills that I am using so far are the ones I learned in high school - things from shop class, from working at a gas station (fixing flat tires), and working at the grocery store (using pallet jacks to move food around). There are a couple of college students here who are doing most of the computer database work, and the kitchen has been pretty well staffed, so just call me Ray the Tool Man!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! Yes, it is finally me, adding something to the blog! Ray has been doing such a good job of keeping new information added that I haven't taken time (or figured out how) to add anything myself until now. It has been a busy week, but we are taking Sunday as a day of sabbath rest. After seeing the new year in - very quietly - we slept in this morning, rising just in time to go to worship at Christus Victor. What a lively, hopeful, and spirit-filled congregation after all they have been through! The members of the congregation are welcoming and grateful to the volunteers, and the volunteers have so much to learn from these people who are faithful in spite of the difficulties they have experienced. This combination creates an amazing worshipping community! After church, we went to lunch with our gracious hosts, then came back to the house. I will spend the afternoon doing some laundry and reading, while Ray plans to go back to the church for a short time and check in tools that some work crews used today. The weather is warm enough that I hope we will be able to visit the beach before dark. All in all, a quiet day of rest before another busy week begins. Many new volunteers will arrive today and tomorrow, so there will be many crews working in local homes, as well as about twenty volunteers working in the distribution center. We will certainly be busy with our new tasks!