We're home!

It's hard to believe the last two days went so fast, especially since they were both spent on the bus ... 1100 miles!

We were so lucky to have Earl, the best bus driver in the world, taking care of us behind the wheel. And we couldn't have made the trip without our really terrific adult chaperones.

But even when the week got frustrating (such as when the work didn't go as smoothly or efficiently as it should have), the kids were always great to be around. They were respectful, helpful and responsible. They took care of each other and included everyone. They were funny and insightful. Parents, you have some fabulous kids, and I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with them.

We'll have lots more stories and pictures on Sept. 12, 9:30 a.m. at the fall's first Adult Forum. Come join us ... and keep the people of the Gulf Coast in your prayers.

USA Today article

Check out this article from USA Today, documenting the work that Lutheran Episcopal Services in Mississippi has done for the area. Reflections are shared from the Mission Director of Mission on the Bay, Rev. Elizabeth Wheatley-Jones. Sue, the homeowner that I have previously shared about, also shares what she thinks about the volunteers. "It's a blessing," Sue says. "These people are worth more than any money, any gold, anything. They're just wonderful. They're filling in big gaps." What a gift that our Zumbro group was given the opportunity to be a part of this ministry.

a note from Josh K.

Ending Bittersweet:

The trip down here in Mississippi has been such a great experience, but now with the trip winding down I have a bittersweet taste, not only from the good lemonade, but because I love the fact that I did so much in such a short time. But this ending has also put a bitter taste in my mouth that I have to leave this place with all the work still needing to be done. This trip has helped me to feel that giving yourself for the needs of others can lift you in so many ways and to help those who really need it makes the work so much more motivating and special. I felt the discomfort of not sleeping in my own bed and not always having a reliable shower for this one week and I can only imagine not having that for five years. I now feel that others’ needs can rise far above your own and this trip has enlightened me to seek out help for me to do for others in and outside of my community. I strongly recommend to spend a week just helping others for God and to see what others really go through.

a note from Alex H.

This trip to Mission Bay is life changing. You will never look at your house the same. You will think that you are so lucky to have what you have. 95 percent of people lost every thing they had. And some even lost more. People have lost family and friends. Some even died on top of a Wal-mart. When we think something gets bad and then I think of how five years later there are still people who need homes and still live in small cramped campers. It’s a feeling that hits you hard. When that feeling hits you it's like a ton of bricks. You wish you could spend more time down here and that more needs to be done. I really hope someone will pick up where we left off when we're gone. I miss home but I don’t feel like it's my time to leave. But I made a difference in this person's life and that’s what matters. I enjoyed my time down here and if I could I would do it again.

We survive New Orleans ... and New Orleans survives us

What better way to end a week of hard work than by having a little fun? After another hard morning at the job sites, we cleaned up, hopped on the bus and headed to New Orleans. Our route took us through the eye of the hurricane, along the Lower Ninth Ward, and along Canal Street into the French Quarter. We had dinner at the Crazy Lobster ... crab, crayfish, oysters, shrimp, even a lobster or two. Yum!

Top: Megan N. and Courtney O. dressed appropriately for dinner!

Middle: Dylan A. and Madi L. with the seafood bucket "for one" (though it could have fed about four!)

Bottom: Emily L and Nicki Y. show off Emily's new accessories.

do justice, love kindness, walk humbly

I have visited the Gulf three times since August of 2005 to do mission work with Zumbro groups, but it wasn’t until this week that I really saw Hurricane Katrina for the first time. I’ve seen homes destroyed, foundations left empty, and once bustling beach communities turned into ghost towns. But this week I saw Hurricane Katrina through the face of Sue, the homeowner of the house my work crew is working at.

Fellow chaperone, Sue Jenkins, and I had the chance to meet Sue on Wednesday. Immediately she apologized over and over again for not coming out to thank us sooner for the work we had been doing. “You must think I’m the rudest person in the word,” she shared. We assured her that we were simply happy to be there, and so she led us to the swing in the front yard. As we sat together and visited, Sue told us how hard it was for her husband and her to have workers at the house; how ashamed they were that they couldn’t fix it themselves.

Sue paused as we were talking and looked in the house where the kids were sanding the walls to perfection. As tears formed in her eyes she looked at me and told us that she went into the house and sobbed and sobbed the night before after we left. For the first time since Katrina she saw real walls in her house and had hope that she would be able to move back in.

Quickly, her tears of joy turned to tears of fear. “Have you heard of the storm that is way out there now?” She told us of how her friend had just told her about how there could be another storm starting up in the Gulf again. She didn’t need to tell us how scared she was; we could see it in her eyes.

During Katrina and for many days that followed, Sue and about 8 other members of her family, including young grandchildren, took shelter in this bus that was buried in their yard (top two photos). For days they stayed in that bus together fearing the unknown. When they came up from their shelter they found that the winds had ripped the roof off of their home, and that the rains had subsequently ruined all that they had. Eventually they received a FEMA trailer, but after an unknown amount of time FEMA took the trailer back because they weren’t allowed to have two dwellings. The other dwelling, besides the FEMA trailer, had been their home that was without roof and destroyed on the inside.

Following that Sue and her husband of 38 years lived in this storage container on their property (bottom photo). They rigged up air conditioning and lived this way for several years. Today they are living behind their home in a trailer provided by LESM and Mission on the Bay. We are hopeful that Sue will be able to return to her home before Mission on the Bay closes its doors.

Please continue to pray for those living along the Gulf. They have such deep scars, emotionally, physically, and spiritually, from all that they have survived. We must all be reminded that there is still great work to be done in this region. “He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6:8

a note from Alex H.

Today started off dragging myself out of bed to go make a lunch and eat breakfast. When we got to the worksite we worked hard in the morning. But I decided to go fishing during lunch so I spent lunch and about a hour after lunch fishing. I caught so many fish but then I got to thinking. I thought about how this place will close down soon and that I want to go home but I also want to stay. Leaving without finishing I will go home feeling incomplete. But I miss home also. I thought about how this seems like nothing to us but it means the world that we are helping them. The lady our group is fixing up the house for is so nice and deserves this house. She brought me an umbrella to sit under because she did not want me to get sun burnt. I feel bad leaving the nice people and beaches but the hardest part is leaving an unfinished job that means the world to this person. I am praying that someone finishes our jobs and that they get these homes they deserve.