Shop on Wheels

You might wonder what we use and how we get things done on site. Here's the answer, a photo of the back of JoEllen and Tom's pickup truck. Inside you can find one of almost anything: table saw, band saw, chop saw, drills, circular saw, air compressor, nailing guns and ammo, drywall tools, hammers, etc., etc. Each day on the job site we unload in the morning and reload in the evening. And, as you can see, they've learned how to back it quite neat and very full!

Tuesday began with unscheduled rain. It was annoying, because at one site most of our cutting is done outside. By 9 AM the skies began to clear, and soon we were going full speed again. It was a day of tiling, laying flooring, plumbing, more baseboard work, filling nail holes, adding a new door, and framing -- there's always another window to frame.

A Time to Rest, and Then...

The weekend brought a change of pace -- relaxation, exploration, extended time together. On Saturday some went on a Swamp Tour, hoping to catch sight of a few alligators. (And did.) They also walked a boardwalk through a colorful cypress swamp, replete with Spanish moss and bright yellow burr-marigolds flowers. Sunday's events included a Beignet run before worship at First Presbyterian, but not just a beignet-run; it was a comparison tasting Beignet run between two cafes. Food ended the day, too, -- a surprise birthday cake and ice cream to celebrate Debbie's special day.

Reinforcements were added to our number over the weekend. These included Rae Louise Tate (Star Lake), Marvin Spinner (ALbany), Linda and Peter Foss (Scarborough, ME). And arriving on Tuesday: Jack and Susan Abbott (Lake Luzerne).

On Monday we returned to work -- a prime coat on Yolanda's bedroom, continued tile and window trim work, some dry wall, baseboard, and finishing touches on AC and heating systems.

At Royden and Lina's a growing awareness of completion was in the air -- baseboard work continued, the last doors were hung and adjusted, the kitchen cabinets were leveled, tile sealing began, and windows prepared for painting. As the day was ending, the FEMA trailer was being prepared for removal. Completion will be a while, yet, but not long.

They're the NYS-FITS+

He comes from New York or Penn State or Maine
She arrives by car, or by truck or by plane
They’re a student, a preacher, a clerk
They are here to do some hard work.
They’ve the NYS-FITS+


They wear their tool belts with pride
Their energy quite allied
They want the owners back at home
This is the reason they come
They’ve the NYS-FITS+

Each morning at dawn they arise
Rubbing the sleep from their eyes
After breakfast (by George) they will leave
Wearing their faith on their sleeve
They’ve the NYS-FITS+

They install doors, sheetrock and trim
And whether done by a her or a him
Each piece they install is with love
And confirmed by God up above
They’ve the NYS-FITS+

Those who came were not on their own
They got aid from the folk back at home
With their dollars and cares
And with all of their prayers
They’ve the NYS-FITS+

All too soon they will finish and go
And in each of their hearts they will know
That they gave it their best
They could do nothing less
They’ve the NYS-FITS+

by Tom Parsons, Lake Luzerne, New York

A Good Day

We had a good day for construction -- sunny much of the time, temperate weather. The weather report had led us to believe we would have cloud cover and cooler weather. Delightfully wrong!

At Yolanda's house grout and trim work went forward. Our teachers included Ted Tate and Allen Mater. Marilyn was sanding and puttying. John worked on the AC most of the day. Ron Pedersen was responsible for cracking the whip! Most of the baseboard has been cut and ready for installation.

At Royden and Lina's Roland spent most of his day in the closet -- finishing the flooring. Kevin enlarged the size of the bathroom door from 24" to 30." JoEllen and Tom, envious of Roland, spent their day in another bathroom, alledgedly working on baseboard and quarter round. Deb was on her knees, pushing pink spackle into tiny little nail holes, then following up with a piece of sandpaper. Seth Honeyman was running the show, and Eric, though present, kept hiding from Seth's supervision -- when caught he helped Roland.

Hitting Stride

By Wednesday we have begun to hit our stride. Three home sites are being worked on, but our focus is really on just two of them. We hope to complete the rebuilding on at least one of the two.

At Royden and Lina's various floor and baseboard issues have been resolved, the threshold has been corrected, the sink has been centered, the cabinet installed above the stove, molding around the side door has been installed, the hallway and boy's bedroom flooring is almost complete. Seth seems well pleased with his crew!

At Yolanda's, interior window framing has continued, issues with the air conditioning system have been thought through, master bathroom has been sanded, drywall around the tub finished, taping and mudding underway, a door jam expanded to prepare for the baseboard molding, and the baseboard molding was continued. As you might have guessed, Ron is elated!

At the third place, Mildred and Norman's (see photo above), we have been hanging drywall. We had to take down one ceiling -- ughh! -- and then put it back up. About two and a quarter rooms have been covered. Also, two large rooms have been taped and mudded.

Next week when our expanded crew arrives, there are several other homes that we will be working on. The NYS-FITS+ will really be hopping! Stay tuned.

Treading Water in NOLA

Rain, rain and more rain. Because we have been getting so much rain (8" fell today - Monday - in some parts of NOLA -- schools and city offices closed early and Tulane University canceled classes), we began our work day by covering the floors of our houses with protective paper. However if you weren't soaked by the rain outside the house, the humidity got when you were working inside.

Ron and Seth are much closer to having clear lists of work to do, so that we can prioritize our tasks and make clear assignments. In some cases we are undoing work completed earlier, in others we are taking the next step, and in some we are still trying to figure out how to do what needs to be done. We'll begin to roll soon.

We continue to receive information about increasing financial support. Jeff White of Mediapolis, Iowa, has sent money to Bethany in Menands to support our work. Likewise, Sydney Lemire (age 6) had her dad, Jim, forward all the One Great Hour of Sharing money that she had saved this year -- $22.94! These last two push our total up to: $16,218. Never in our wildest dreams did we imagine we could raise this much!

Our last five rebuilders will be here tomorrow - Tuesday. Kevin and Allen have reached Birmingham, AL, and are within striking distance for Tuesday; JoEllen and Tom are still on the road and should be here tomorrow. Marcia should be here any minute - she was flying into TX.

Finally, you need to know that the weather forecast for tomorrow indicates that by mid-afternoon tomorrow - Tuesday - the rain should stop.

Work Site Visits

Leroy, Roland and Eric toured the houses that FPCNO is working on Saturday morning, paying special attention to Royden and Lina's and Yolanda's houses. These are the two we will concentrate on and try to complete while we are here. The other work sites include drywall installation, roofing and some smaller, short-term jobs.

The picture is of Lina's new kitchen. Debbie and Eric began this home in March with Roland's help. They added the new roof that is visible in the photo on the far left. Other work remaining includes finishing installation of the baseboard, painting the walls, hanging a door, grouting and sealing the new tile and completing the bathrooms.

On Sunday we returned to our two main work sites with the lead builders: Seth Honeyman for Royden and Lina's home and Ron Pedersen for Yolanda's. They did work throughs and later spoke with Leroy about their respective houses.

At supper we self-selected ourselves onto work teams for these two places, and, despite the dire forecasts for rainy weather, began planning for our first day on the job. We have alternate plans if the rain descends on us. Please keep us in your prayers as we begin tomorrow morning.

Patch Work

First Presbyterian Church has a "Pumpkin Patch" in the field adjacent to the building. The work and profits are being shared between the Child Development Program (nursery/daycare) and the church. Such cooperation in the "Patch" benefits both groups. In fact, cooperation is what really keeps this rebuilding ministry and so many other things in life going along well.

Teamwork in rebuilding is cooperation. One volunteer team picking up where another left off is cooperation. Think of all the other places this appears: homeowners who have been helped and who then assist others; companies and organizations who donate tools and materials, or allow employees time off to help.... One of our dreams is to plant the seeds of cooperation so that it's fruits may flourish in all the Patches of our lives and in every life we touch.

And as one of our pastor friends says almost every week at the close of the service, "May it be so for you and for me."

Advance Team Arrives

Eric, Debbie, Roland and George will all be in NOLA today to make preparations for the reminder of our first week's team. In some places, things are still about the same, rebuilt homes and barely touched places stand side by side. First Presbyterian continues to work with families who have very limited resources to enable them to return to their own homes. We are in the process of deciding and gathering materials for the projects that we will be working on this first week. Daily photos, we hope, will be posted.

Two Weeks to Go!

We're counting down the days until we start helping with the rebuilding in NOLA being led by Cliff Nunn and Leroy Harbauer at the First Presbyterian Church, 5401 S. Claiborne Avenue, New Orleans.

Last week we had some increases and decreases in our volunteer numbers, but now I think the numbers have settled down. Our average volunteer week will be 22 persons, and we will be sharing the building with just one other group, that one from Falls Church, VA.

We still do not have a firm count on the money we will donate. It really depends on whether or not the Synod Grant we applied for comes through. With it we should be at about the $10k level; without it we will be around $7k. Either way we hope to be prove ourselves good stewards of the funds given by working hard at our tasks and helping families return to their homes.