Katrina Missions Trip - March 2006

Sunday, March 5, 2006: The first day of our missions trip in Gulfport is complete. I began the day with a short run along the Gulf of Mexico and witnessed my first signs of real destruction. My heart ached as I ran past stair case after stair case with no house. Then I saw the sun rising over the water and it dawned on me that a new day was starting – especially for one family.

We took a ride along the coast toward the Walmart and First Baptist Church of Gulfport. The photos we see and the news stories we see don't paint a picture of what still needs to be done. The people of Gulfport need our prayers and support as six months have passed since Katrina struck and evidence of her destruction is everywhere.

Pastor Hartwell led us in a morning worship service and spoke about God's protection and the need we have to pray to God to protect us and deliver us from temptation.

Our workday started shortly after church. We needed to demolish a house so a new foundation can be laid tomorrow. Removing a house is a daunting task. To do it in a day seemed impossible. God provided. About forty men and women were available to God. The roof came off. By lunch, the walls began to fall. An hour before sunset, only a pile of debris was left. God gave each of us the strength to finish the day. The greatest joy didn't come with the hot meal or shower, but rather with the thankfulness of the homeowner, who has been living in a trailer on the property – unable to sleep in his own house.

Our work at this residence is not complete. A new home, ready to be moved into, is our goal before we leave. Please pray for our Riverside team as well as for the teams we've joined from Boston and Wisconsin. Pray that the weather holds so that it doesn't interrupt the schedule, and please pray for our safety as more difficult tasks lie ahead. A new day is dawning for one homeowner. Only by God's grace can we succeed. Only by God's grace can this homeowner's life be restored.

-Dan Marks

The group tearing off a roof		Tray Duffy on clean-up duty
Some work, some 'supervise'		John Harvie hauling some debris
Pastors Harvie & Hartwell dropping the hammers		Jason Naper: not afraid to show off a boo-boo

Monday, March 6, 2006: What an amazing day! Our team of 16 guys worked together to drywall the majority of a 1,200 sq. ft. house. I have been so proud of our guys as they have all come together and become a team. There is laughter and fun as they work side-by-side. They are serving the people of Gulfport who are still reeling from Hurricane Katrina even though six months of past, but our work is providing so much encouragement and amazement as people stop to watch and to see what we are doing. Please keep the men on the trip in your prayers - they are working hard and tired, but we have 3+ days of work to go.

Today we helped Bessie Wesley, a 70-80 year old lady, and her son Robert Earl who is in his late 50's. The picture of the unfinished home we showed the Sunday before we came and in the Sunday program is their new home. The joy in their faces as we walked through the house with them at the end of the day, and they could see the bedrooms and where they refrigerator and washer and dryer would go, was something we should all experience in our life. I know that our work today also brought joy to God because I was reminded of Matthew 25:34-46 where Jesus talks about feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty and he says, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."

The men have all been overwhelmed by the devastation they have seen. We assume that since all these months have passed and it isn't in the news as much that things are better, but people are still hurting - looking for hope. In addition to finishing the inside of this house, we will partner with the team from Boston to erect three new homes by weekend. The task seems daunting because of some unexpected and unavoidable delays, but thankfully our God is into doing what we consider impossible. There is a TV reporter here from Boston doing a nightly story for their 10:00 News. To see clips from the stories you can go to www.wb56.com

We are staying strong, staying positive and working hard. Pray for us that God will be glorified in all that we do.

-David Pearson

Justin Campo working the spackle		Attaching drywall to the ceiling

Wednesday, March 8, 2006: Today was the middle of our workweek, and it turned out to be an interesting day. Our team split into several different directions to accomplish the goals of the day. Most of us ended up putting up drywall at one location or another. We are blessed to have some experienced guys with us who can tell the unskilled guys (like myself) what to do. We all worked through most of the afternoon and then cut out a little early so that we could drive into New Orleans in the evening.

Seeing entire neighborhoods that were completely abandoned and homes that were torn open was an interesting experience. Also, seeing the amount of water that surrounds New Orleans made it easy to see why flooding was a problem. It was fascinating to look at, but at the same time you had to be aware of the fact that people's entire lives were standing there totally devastated before your eyes.

All throughout the week I have been amazed at the way that million dollar homes can be ripped apart while a tree standing beside them can be perfectly fine. I am sure there is some sort of parable there about the temporary nature of things made by man and the permanence of the things made by God - like maybe the home built on the rock vs. the home built on sand.

We are having a great time and the group is really bonding and growing closer each day. Over the next two days we will be working hard to try to finish some of these homes before we leave…but it is all in God's hands and we are trusting that he will use us as we remain his willing servants. Thanks for your prayers and support!!!

-Ezra Strickhouser

Viewing the scene at a levee break		Framing out walls of a new home
Matt Murphy unloading some timber		Dan Marks, Bill Boyland, Mike and Justin Campo (L to R) enjoy some beignets at world famous Cafe du Monde in New Orleans' French quarter
A damaged home in New Orleans

Thursday, March 9, 2006: When asked to come to Gulfport, I had mixed feelings about it. I had a lot going on that week and wasn't sure if I wanted to spend a week with 15 older guys I don't know that well. But, I was persuaded to come down by my mom who was more enthusiastic about the trip than I was. This experience has turned out great. The people who we are building for have lost their homes in the storm and are thankful for us to pause things in our life to help them out by building them a house. I just took a week off of school, but some people took off a week from work and their families. That's pretty cool.

Everyone down here wants to help out as much as possible. Today we helped build a house starting at the foundation. Pretty much all the riverside side guys didn't know what they were doing, but tried to help out with whatever they could. There was a couple of times my job was stolen from me. Somebody would ask me to get something for them and before I could move, someone would jump on it. It shows that people really care about what we're doing here. If they set up another missions trip, I would definitely would want to come down and bring someone new to experience what I have.

-Von Muller

Prepping a new wall		David Pearson carrying part of the frame
Bill Boyland helping out with the roof