Friday, October 29, 2010

October 29th

Hi friends back home- today found us working with our sweatshirts and fleece on until noon, hard to believe! It turned out to be a wonderful day to work,bright blue sky and a gentle breeze. The home is almost all painted, only the front needs to be finished. Work began on the soffets today,the frame work for the porch railings was started, thr air baffels are completed ans the air and heatingman was on the worksite today. Tonight we were ate dinner (wonderful stuffed pork roast) with a group conected with Project Homecoming. George C. from Third,their cook, issued the invitation. What a fun evening! Our work day ended withus saying goodbye to some of our friends from St. Louis as part of their group is returning home in the morning. Perhapswe will cross paths again. That is it from this tired but happy RHINO worker. KVN

Thursday, October 28, 2010

October 28th

The weather moderated today -- a welcome change! We convened as usual at 7:45 at the home taking shape on Green Street. Work began on soffits, preparation for insulation, and the final areas of siding. We are all gaining new skills and finding new muscles. We ended our work day before noon. We were treated to an informative tour of the areas of the city inundated by the flooding. Every time we pass the Dome the awful memories of the human suffering return. Then we were hosted by members of the St. Charles church. They had come from Washington state to do a week of volunteering then made the decision to move to NOLA for a year. They now have been here for 5 years. For two years Mark worked for Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. Now both Mark and Tamara have positions at a school in their neighborhood. After a wonderful meal of creole rice dessert included creole kisses aka "pecan crack" -- very habit forming . . . Reflections ended our day.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

October 27th

Another very hot and humid day! At least, we are supposed to get some weather relief for the rest of the week. We did more painting, more moving of sand, some caulking, and began putting some of the final touches on the framing. We also got to know some of the people from St.Louis better. This evening we had dinner at the church again. It was the 5th anniversary for RHINO, and they had special homemade cakes for dessert -- and live entertainment. It was a duo with one guy on piano and one on the clarinet, and they were really good! They played authentic New Orleans jazz. For dinner we had fried chicken (not that KCF variety), red beans and rice, salad, fruit, and did I mention wonderful desserts? Now we're back at the hotel, and had our devotions while the laundry was in, and we're all pretty sleepy. Oh, one more thing - Louise J. found out today that one of her parishoners passed away, so she will be doing a funeral on Monday, after arriving home very late on Sunday.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Tuesday, October 26th

Our first day of work! And the heat broke a record. It was 90! and also quite humid. We painted, nailed, and shoveled sand, and got a respectable amount of work done, considering the conditions. This evening, we had a delicious dinner prepared by members of St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church. After coming back to the hotel, we had a very nice devotion led by Tom Swartz - these sessions allow us to get to know each other better. However, we're all rather tired after working in the hot sun all day, so it is bedtime!

Monday, October 25, 2010

Monday, October 25th

Wow, that was an early alarm that got us on our way at 5:50 a.m.! It was raining like crazy when we got to Atlanta...the plane got hit with lightning but no one seemed worried. After a slight delay we were on the next flight and on the ground in New Orleans by mid-morning. Where else would we go but right to the French Quarter for lunch at the Red Fish on Bourbon Street. Ned is getting the hang of driving the NO streets and we easily met the rest of the work crew at the Land House this evening. We work side by side with a nice group from St. Louis. Our site is on Green Street. This is a tired group tonight, but we are faithfully sharing devotions (and frozen fruit bars!)

Thursday, October 21, 2010

New Orleans, Here We Come!

A new RH2NO team prepares to depart for New Orleans on Monday, October 25th. The plane takes off at a horrific 5:50am - some of us don't even plan to sleep the night before. Why bother! There are 6 of us going - three veteran relief workers and three folks who have always wanted to volunteer, and now the time is right. We'll be working in conjunction with RHINO (Restoring Hope in New Orleans), a ministry of the St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church. We'll be staying at the Brent House, an extended stay facility (re: hotel!) and will work with the New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity (NOAHH). The Ferry Street project is complete and this fall, Habitat returns to the Pension Town neighborhood to tackle the much-anticipated Green Street project. RHINO recently received a national award from the Presbyterian Health, Education, and Welfare Association (PHEWA) recognizing the ministry’s transformative impact on New Orleans. We're excited, and yes a little anxious, about our week ahead. At our orientation, we promised to be faithful and diligent in all we do, and to be an example of Christian love. Please pray for our safety during this journey, and for the strength to carry out our promises.
Your mission team workers: Louise Armstrong, Louise Josephson, Ned Kavanagh, Carol Santos, Tom Swartz, Kay VanNostrand