Double "WOW" Days

Every once in awhile there are those days where both Monty and I have a "WOW" day together! Yesterday was one of those!

Yesterday Monty started his day with a 2 hour trip to Bloomfield, IN to pick up some jacks that were donated to our ministry. These jacks will allow us to lift and straighten walls in homes or even flooring if need be. We are so thankful to this company for not only seeing our request but going above and beyond in their donation!

I was working in our Outreach center just doing some clean up when the phone rang and it was the local group of case managers asking if I could come and help them with some things. That was before 9am and it was nearing 5pm before I got back! All operations are being handled through donated space at the local United Way building. It used to be a factory when I was a little girl here. My mother told me she used to work in that building! Nearly all of the case managers are nurses who are unable to work in the hospital since it is closed. The hospital is continuing to pay them to do disaster work. Case management is what they normally do but this is a bit out of their scope. I am amazed at how well they are doing and how far ahead of the game they really are! Go Girls!!

The evening brought a surprise visit from one of my brothers! What an amazing thing to be back in my hometown where my family is and actually be able to see them and have them come over for visits! I haven't experienced anything like this since I moved away 35 years ago. What a blessing!

Today I returned to the case management side of things. FEMA joined us for most of the day. The announcement hit the newspaper that FEMA trailers were coming to town -- with the option to purchase them after 18 months! The phone calls started as well as our process of trying to determine who will be offered a trailer. We started with a listing of who is still temporarily housed in hotels. The phone lines were constantly busy with the case managers dialing number after number and in some cases heading out the door to make visits.

We also got all of our case management forms ready to go. This isn't an easy process but everyone jumped in and the files are now complete. Getting all of the proper signature forms together is nearly an act of congress! With all case managers operating from the same location we will be able to all use the same forms and thus make the process so much more organized!

Monty spent his day in the church outreach center helping them relocate everything into one area. The front entry of the church has been used since the beginning but with the rebuilding in the beginning stages that area needed to be cleared out. Everything was moved into the Youth area and it really looks great! The members of the church have been great in donating their time to come and work.

The church pews are also being taken apart and disassembled. This is quite the job as there are alot of pews! Some sheetrock started going up in the entry also. Progress!!! It's great to see!

We also finalized plans for our first incoming team -- Maryland will be on their way Sunday after they are sent off from their own church. They should arrive Monday morning and we have an "array" of things they will be doing. The church pew thing has their name written all over it as well as some work in a retired Pastor's home and another home nearby. We always tell teams that the key word is "flexibility" and since part of this team made 3 trips to the south I think they've "got it." They will be quite spoiled as my mother's church will be making and delivering their lunches to them daily! Everyone jumping in and doing something makes the whole project so much more blessed! Thanks Mom!

We hope that alot more teams will be following Maryland. We realize there are disasters of all kinds all over the place and just pray that you will go someplace!!! Go and be a blessing and be blessed beyond your imagination!

Until next time . . . Susan and Monty