Thank You Maryland

I'm not sure what the problem with photos is but there definitely is a problem! I hope to find out and get it corrected asap!

Yes, we said our goodbyes to our men from Maryland on Friday evening. They had transformed Robert's home and were still sanding the sheetrock finishing late into the evening. There are some teams who come in and just do what needs to be done and this team did just that. We found them mowing the lawn and working in the yard also! What a difference little things like that can make, not only visually but to the homeowner! And while they were working a man came to them saying this family had attended their church in North Vernon, about 30 minutes from here, and they wanted to put together a team and come and work in this home and wherever else they might be needed. When the team told him about Monty and I and that we could coordinate their trip he was thrilled. He called us right away and they will be sending a "test" team for a few hours this Tuesday night and then returning for a Saturday work day! A great example of ministry coming from teams!

We also received word that our home church is sending a team to do 3 consecutive Saturdays of work. Rob, who orchestrated 2 trips to work with us in the south, will be doing the same thing here. It's about an hour drive and we are really excited for them to return. Rob is a contractor and a priceless addition to any home we land him in! Thanks Rob!!

Late on Friday we headed home for a short weekend. We had more donated items to pick up from Walmart on Saturday and wow were we surprised when they pulled the cart from the back of the store! The boxes filled the bed of my truck! It was obvious that the word had spread through the employees and they were excited at what was going on! Thanks Walmart in Bloomington and thanks again to Shelley for making it all happen!

This morning we picked up the cleaning and personal hygiene kits that our home church had put together. Keep up the good work folks, these are wonderful to give out and people are still coming and needing them!

Our trip back here this evening was rough! Not only was the truck filled to overflowing, even packing what we could behind the front seats and barely leaving room for the dogs, we got caught in a storm unlike anything I have driven through before! The sun was shining when we left and a little over half way the skies got really dark, the winds starting swirling (literally) and Monty kept his eyes peeled on the sky while I did the best I could to just keep the truck on the road. I have driven through many a storm but this one was the roughest. It was all I could do to keep it on the road. The winds would send me to one side only to then push me to the other! There were a few minutes where I thought I should pull off the road but there was nowhere to go. We did make it back in one piece and praised the Lord for that miracle!

Tomorrow starts off bright and early with a meeting with CRWRC, a relief organization that comes into disasters and does door to door, extensive assessments of homeowners and renters. We are excited to have the opportunity to work with them and hopefully keep as many as possible from "falling in the cracks" and getting lost in the system.

There will be 3 teams coming and going throughout this week, 2 from Indiana and 1 from Ohio. Please remember to keep them in your prayers for safe travel and blessings while they are here. As always, they will come in as strangers and leave as family!

We were thrilled to see the progress made in the sanctuary. The sheetrock finishers showed up and accomplished ALOT!! They will also be returning bright and early tomorrow morning and make it nearly impossible to keep up with all that they are doing!

Pray that I can get photos on here tomorrow!

Until next time . . . Susan and Monty