Katrina Relief Trip (November 13-18, 2005)

Our trip revolved around responding to four points of scripture:

1) Acts 2:44-47
2) Mathew 28:19-20
3) 1Peter 4:11
4) Psalm 115:1

Sunday, November 13, 2005 - The four of us (Stan Brandon, Mike Dierks, Nick Mosca, and Doug Sosnowski) attended the prayer and worship service this morning at Rock Valley Bible Church. The message was particularly applicable do to our group setting out for Mobile, Alabama that afternoon. The message focused on the Great Commission (Mathew 28:16-20). I could not help but think that as we had heeded the call to "go," the church family was just as involved in the call as they were called to pray for us and the trip often.

We left Rochelle, Illinois at about 6:30 pm. We planned to drive through the night so we would arrive early in Mobile and begin work right away. Stan was going to drive the first leg. Mike drove next followed by me, then Stan again and me. The trip was made difficult by some poor weather conditions and our lack of sleep. But God was faithful and we arrived safely at Christ Fellowship Baptist Church around 9:00 am.

Monday, November 14, 2005 - We arrived at Christ Fellowship Baptist Church around 9:00 am. We unloaded our clothes and put them in the room where we would be sleeping. We were surprised to find out we would be bunking with several other groups, totaling about twenty five guys. We then check in with our contact Danny Chance. We were given some updates and an overview of the work to be done over the next week. We load the van with tools and set out for Pascagoula, MS. Pascagoula is about 40 minutes west of Mobile, AL. Upon coming to Pascagoula we first took a tour of the area so Stan and Mike might be able to see first hand the destruction that had taken place. Much of the trash that we had seen on our first trip was gone. We saw many FEMA trailers, many houses that were gutted, and many people working on rebuilding their homes. Many businesses still remained closed. After the tour we decided to get lunch. We stopped at a McDonalds that was in the area. They too were affected, but were able to clean up and reopen with a limited menu. They also were understaffed; this is a great problem with many businesses that are open in the area.

After lunch we headed for our fist home. This was the home of Jack. Jack has a FEMA trailer but is waiting for the sewer and water to be hooked up and inspected before he can live in it. We had become familiar with Jack's home on our first trip as it was one that we had cleaned out and torn the drywall down. Jack's daughter was there again and remembered us from our first trip. Jack had started putting up the drywall but was not physically able to continue. The church had additional drywall delivered prior to our arrival. We started to hang drywall and do the mudding. It was evident right away that we were not professional drywall installers.

It was in this time that we learned two valuable biblical principles:

1) We are to be very forgiving, just as drywall is.
2) That we should do all things as unto the Lord.

After a short time we began to improve and made good progress. We arrived back at the church in time to get cleaned up and eat dinner. We took time that evening to read the scriptures according to the program that Mike and his family were doing. Some made an early night of it, while others stayed up late.

Tuesday, November 15, 2005 - We returned to Jack's home to complete the hanging of drywall. We concentrated on getting it all hung. Jack has stated that he can do the mudding. For many just the sight of drywall being up is a great encouragement. Jack has many health problems and is not able to work for long periods of time but will mud little by little. Jack did treat us to lunch via the Red Cross "meals on wheels" program. We had many times to share the Gospel and encourage Jack. We shared our church picture with him and explained that our work is not of just four men, but rather an entire church family that is praying for him as well. We completed the house around 1:30 pm.

We then moved on to our next project. This was home of Jimmy and Pam. They have two children, a sixteen year old son and a younger daughter. Jimmy had recently suffered a stroke and is partially paralyzed on his right side. Pam has battled breast cancer and suffers from depression. People suffering depression has greatly increased since the hurricane. They currently live in a FEMA trailer. They had about 39 inches of water in their home for four hours. The house had already been gutted out and was ready for drywall. Stan and Nick worked on fixing an outside wall while Mike and I put insulation in the walls.

After a day of hard work, we left for the church and enjoyed the evening meal. We then continued in our Bible reading. Nick found enjoyment in playing whiffle ball with some from the group that came from Florida. Mike and I went to Panara's again to check email. Paul, a member of the California delegation, came withus. We learned that in California we would be called "Blue Faces" because we were using our wireless from the parking lot and not from inside the store were we would be making a purchase.

Wednesday, November 16, 2005 - Today we returned to Jimmy and Pam's home. We put up about twelve sheets of drywall (this is all that was there, more was to be delivered tomorrow). We finished about 1:00 pm. Jimmy was kind enough to treat us to lunch. He made his world famous chili, it was very good. Stan was able to speak with Pam for a short time.

After lunch we went next door to their neighbors, who are an older couple, Robert and Donna. They too are currently living in a FEMA trailer. Robert has had to deal with depression as well. Thankfully they have been able to treat it through the use of medication. They have several children in the area that have also lost everything due to the hurricane. They help with the grandchildren while the parents are at work. A church from Kentucky has adopted this family and is financially committed to the rebuilding of this home. We spent the afternoon insulating the walls and hanging drywall. We worked till about 4:30 pm. We had to leave so we would make the evening service.

The service was excellent. Pastor Lawson preached from Ezekiel chapter 3. He spoke of feeding on the word and our responsibility to share the Gospel with others. We ended the service with a season of praying. The members of Christ Fellowship Baptist Church are all so kind and are constantly giving praise to God for the many willing servants. It is a blessing for me that so many people remembered Nick and me from our first visit. After the service we had dinner. We continued in our Bible reading. Nick and Mike played whiffle ball tonight. I rode along with Paul to check email.

Thursday, November 17, 2005 - This morning we returned to Robert and Donna's home. I had an opportunity to speak with and pray with Robert. We continued to put up drywall through out the house. We finished late in the afternoon. We then went back to the home where we worked yesterday, as drywall had been delivered earlier that day. We started hanging drywall again.

We left for the church around 5:30 pm. We enjoyed fish today. The fish was scheduled to be served on Friday, but do to our leaving on Friday and Stan Brandon's enjoyment of fish, the cook served it tonight instead. As it is told, Stan likes fish and his wife does not, so they rarely have fish for dinner. This meal was very good and we are thankful for the cook's willingness to serve us by changing the meal schedule. We again enjoyed sharing in the reading of the word. No baseball game or email trips today.

Friday, November 18, 2005 - Although the labor is taking a toll on our bodies, we have decided to stay another day. We started the day by attending a men's Bible study. It started a 6:00 am in the morning. There were approximately fifty men in attendance. Dr. Lawson spoke from the book of Romans. The title of the study was "All of Grace, All of God." It was another excellent time in the word. After the Bible study we head out for the Jimmy and Pam's home. We continued hanging drywall till about 1:00 pm. Dr. Brandon was able to frame in a closet for their daughter. We were able to get about half of the house compete before having to head back to the church and prepare for our trip home. We spent a time praying with the men from the two houses we have helped.

We left, wanting to make a couple of stops before heading to the church. Our first stop was at Sam's home. This was one of the homes that we had been involved with when we came down on our first trip. His home had also been adopted by the church from Kentucky. They had spent the week finishing the drywall and putting up trim. Sam recognized me right away and was very excited to show all the work that had been done including the removal of several doors and a change in the hallway configuration. We took several pictures so that the first team could be encouraged. We then continued to a couple other sights to take pictures to demonstrate the progress that had been made in the area. We then headed back to the church to get cleaned up and pack.

We left the church about 5:30 pm, and headed for home. This would be another long night of driving. Stan, Mike and I took turns. We arrived back around 10:00 am on Saturday, November 19. We praise God for his wisdom, strength and protection for ourselves and our families during this trip.

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