A Job Well Done

Friday, the last day, when we look upon what we have done and say, "How awesome is that!"  And it is.  Craig is thrilled and amazed with the amount and quality of work we did this week. At our wrap-up meeting, Steve asked his annual question: What one word would you use to describe the week?

Bonding

Here are some of the words and pictures that make "faith" a verb.  

Learning

Empowering

Intergenerational

Connecting...Welcoming...Renewal

Family


Unforgettable....Challenging...Humbling

Happiness

The Pace Accelerates

It could be my imagination, but it always seems that the pace of work accelerates on Thursday.  Reality hits that we only have two more days to make as much progress as we can before we run out of time. 

At Hoxie St. on Monday the house was framed and wrapped; inside, the rooms were framed in.  By quitting time at 4 today, the exterior siding was complete on two sides and nearly 3/4 done on the other two (the high, hard parts). Ceiling sheetrock had been hung in all but two rooms, and interior insulation was essentially finished. The house is elevated about  8-10 feet, and we insulated the underside of the house and installed and trimmed out plywood finishing, including boxing in all the exposed piping.

Geoff mudding

Keller St. started fully sided, but the interior was only framed.  The team insulated he entire house, hung sheetrock on all ceilings and walls, and by Thursday had painted most of the exterior. They also finished the underside of the elevated house a la Hoxie.

There's an urge to see certain tasks fully finished: for example, Jim's team at Hoxie would love to end the week being able to see a fully sided house. Sometimes -- maybe most of the time -- it just isn't possible. But we seem to kick it up a notch as the end approaches.

Working without a net

The fun kicks up a notch too, as relationships deepen. 

Birds on a wire?

Ryan and Suzy gave us an assignment on Tuesday that everyone is scurrying to finish before tomorrow night.  Each of us was to write a little-known fact about ourselves on a small slip of paper and put it in a bowl.  Then we each drew a slip from the bowl, with the objective of finding the person described by the fact.  In the process of asking each other these random questions, we learn a surprising amount of other stuff. All will be revealed tomorrow.

We started an Appreciations wall again this year, where folks post notes expressing thanks for something someone else did -- or just for being themselves. 


I hope these photos from the day illustrate the range of jobs we're all involved in.

Believe it or not, there is a plan here.

Meg is s'awesome!

Katie creates a special appreciation for Forbes

James of Arabia

Sharon loves mudding!

Cross-cultural communication deepens

Hump Day

Another cold morning -- 34 degrees -- but all of us were grateful not to be in Connecticut, where the windchill was reportedly zero and below. No wind today, and brilliant sunshine, so the day actually seemed much warmer than it was.  Two great things to look forward to today: Wednesday means treats from the Vietnamese bakery and the evening prayer service at Main St. Missionary Baptist Church.


Jim"s team set to work in earnest to take advantage of the fair weather to continue putting on the siding, while  Min, Hungdug and Sentai finished the underside of the elevated structure, and Rita squirted 8 pounds of caulk around the edges of the siding.

Meanwhile, Doug's group pretty well wrapped up hanging drywall in their house and started on exterior painting.  

"Look, Ma, I'm on scaffolding!"

The always-reliable St. David of the Pastries arrived at both worksites promptly, bearing turnovers oozing with cheese and fruit filling.  

For Tara, it was just too much...

It's a testament to our commitment that we could actually drag ourselves back to work after these treats.

Dinner tonight is burgers and dogs, courtesy of Dr. Ron, Hal, Rick and assorted others supervising.  Then it's off to Main St. Missionary Baptist Church for our annual visit with Pastor Haynes and his parishioners, who always give us a warm welcome.  This time, David introduced our group with special mention of our Korean partners, who brought their own greeting.  Gary Williams once again delivered an inspiring message, and we were in fine voice on Is It I Lord, accompanied by Ryan on BBM's new guitar.

Another great day in Biloxi. 

A Remarkable Day

It was 34 degrees this morning when we decamped from BBM at 7:30 -- we always seem to bring some wintry temperatures with us when we come down here.  How to write about this day? So much was accomplished at both sites, as the teams really found their rhythm.  But there was something more...In my experience, bonds develop over several days, but for this extraordinary group it seems to have happened even more quickly.


I asked a number of our group members to share one thing that amazed them, excited them, made them laugh or was a revelation to them today. Here are some of their answers, to which I have applied some editorial license:

"Hal told me BBM was his favorite place in the world."

...Our intrepid Jane goes dumpster diving

"Hearing what brings people back." (Revealed during a meeting we had this afternoon with Shari Prestemon, BBM's Executive Director.)

From one of our new Korean friends, "People's smiles."

"Seeing the eagerness and willingness of the campers to do a good job for people they may never meet."

"When people told me how impressed they were with my work."

"Seeing our progress from yesterday, and being able to capably use tools I've never handled before." 

Sheetrock Angels

"That I didn't end up on crutches."  (From a veteran of work camp injuries.)

"I learned I should check the drywall in my apartment for dampness."

"Being trusted to carry out some complex tasks that not just anyone could do."

"Watching the crew I trained working confidently on their own."

"That Julia was no longer sick and was able -- joyfully -- to get to work."

"The session with Shari and the heartfelt and articulate reflections of the youth."

"When Ashley spotted a mistake we were about to make that would have cost a lot of time and effort to fix."

"Being useful as a result of being observant rather than being asked."

"Learning we could communicate by drawing pictures, even though we don't speak the same language."

"Seeing my mom use power tools."

"The smart and safe way Suntai, Min and Hungdug work, their craftsmanship and their remarkable productivity."   

"The abundant spirituality reflected in this amazing group of people."

And for those of us at the Hoxie house at lunchtime, Forbes Scissorhands, an unending source of surprise and entertainment.

"Foot warmers!!"

As I reflect on this day, it seems that our new friends from Korea are a wonderful and unexpected gift to us.  We are amazed at how quickly they have jumped into the work, and how capably they do it, and we're warmed by the smiles that result from a communication breakthrough. Min has had a daunting job as translator and worker, all the while learning new skills as understudy to the gifted Messrs. Kim. We have David Taylor to thank for acting on his inspiration to invite them to join us. It has enriched our experience immeasurably.

Patience Monday

We all convened at 7:30 a.m. for a briefing from Craig, who reported that the economic situation in Biloxi continues to be fraught with challenges. Since we were here last time, the BP oil spill rocked the fishing industry, rippling through the hospitality sector as well, as restaurants closed for want of local seafood and hotel occupancy plummeted as tourists cancelled their vacations.  The latest setback actually started in our part of the country, as floodwaters in the Northeast and Midwest upset the delicate balance of salt and fresh water in the marshes and bayous that are home to the wonderful shellfish ordinarily so plentiful here.


To add insult to injury, homeowners have faced property insurance premiums that have quadrupled in the past few years -- imagine paying the equivalent of a second mortgage on your house! The consequence of all of this is a decline in home ownership in the region.

Following this sobering assessment, we paid close attention to Bob's safety instructions, then were off to our two worksites, both of which are new builds.  Keller St. (Doug's team) is ready for sheetrock to be hung, and Hoxie (with Jim in charge) awaits insulation and siding, so we divided roughly in halves and set to work very quickly -- especially for a Patience Monday.


Some images from Hoxie:

Kristen & Hannah

Suntae, Jim, Sungdug, Min

YoungMin

Katie & Meg

This army of workers travels on its stomach, so we are 
grateful for Rita and Sharon's prompt delivery of a 
sumptuous lunch!


Josie stayed back to prepare a hearty and delicious dinner for the ravenous horde that descended on BBM around 5 p.m.  After dinner, David inspired us with Tennyson's A New Year's Poem," which urged us to ring out the "grief...the want, the care the sin" of the year just passed and welcome the "common love of good" the new year promises.


Amazing how everyone drags in at the end of the workday... and now, at 9:30 p.m., everyone seems to have caught their second wind over a ferocious game of Setback.

Arrival Day

This trip, so far, has been blessed.  Everyone showed up at the church at 3:45 a.m. for our caravan to the airport; weather in Connecticut, Atlanta and New Orleans was fine; our flights were on time; and, thanks to our crack Van Man, Rick, we coordinated the transportation pickup in record time.


We collected our Korean partners, Kim Suntai, Kim Sungdug,  and their translator, YoungMin Bae (son of Pastor Bae) and enjoyed lunch at East Buffet (far superior to King Buffet, thank you Sharon).  I'm sure the Kims were delighted to have real Korean BBQ in New Orleans!!


They came bearing a mysterious box that turned out to contain Korean foods....equally mysterious until Min helpfully translated.

Jim has already begun his efforts at cross-cultural communication by forging a connection with Suntai Kim around the universal language of construction. Jim claims to have an advanced degree in charades.

After orientation, our cooking crew treated us to a fabulous taco dinner, contributing to our round-th-world culinary excess for the day. Unfortunately, the starving hordes prevented me from taking a photo.  But by 9:00 even some of the young crowd had run out of gas. We need to get a good night's sleep for Patience Monday....