Biloxi 2 team photo

We had a guy take this picture our last day there. We had already worked in the morning and we were getting ready to go to the shoe fly to eat lunch.

Top to bottom back row: Vicki, Ray, Bob, Barb (a friend we met from a Pennsylvania team that we shared the dorms with- we included her in several things our team did), Linda, Bruce, Lewis, Rod, Gary, and Howard is standing on the ground.

Top to bottom front row: Roma, Judy, Darlene, Rose, Barbara, Pat, Lou, Corrine, Deb, Robin, and Barb

Biloxi2- the homecoming

I got an email from Ray describing what happened when they got home.
I will copy it here:

Rod,

Just a quick e-mail to let you know that the Hale/Gordonville team
arrived home to a fan club of 20 or so people that had been waiting in
the church parking lot for us. They had coffee ready for us and they
did most of the unloading of personal bags for us. After the
unloading, we went in to our sanctuary and had a wonderful time of
prayer and sharing of brief stories. We were all tired and needed to
get home so we were very fast. Today, five of us met back at the
church and completely cleaned the trailer and church van. Gary and
Barb Obey invited Vicki and I to lunch at little Ray's (really it's
called big Bob's). While we were in there eating, your Aunt and our
good friend Darlene came in to meet with a client. We had a wonderful
time sharing our stories with some of the Halites. The pastor of the
Baptist church and his youth pastor were among the crowd that heard
some of the stories. They talked about a group of people that they
called Samaritan's Purse that was doing some work down there. Of
course that just opened up some more stories. They got excited about
us talking about a return trip next spring. Who knows??


the Minnesota half of the team got up on Sunday am. We left about a
half hour later than we were going to. - Bruce asked if we could
stop in Hannibal, MO to see the town attributed to Mark Twain. They
happened to be having a street festival. It was cold, and I was
walking around town in shorts and a sweatshirt. Everyone else, it
seems, was in snowmobile suits. I happened accross a restaruant that
specializes in cheesecake, and thinking I would buy a treat for the
folks in the van, I walked in and started ogling the cheesecake. Many
flavors! The owner started talking to me and telling her story.
(There's that word again!) She felt like God called her to make the
best cheesecake in the world. She told God she would if he taught her
to read and write. That was when she was 29 years old. God told her
He would put her in the presense of Kings and Princes. And she showed
me pictures of her with Hillary Clinton, various celebs and
politicians. She and her shop have been featured on CNN as a
successful small business. She said that her hope is that on the Day
of the Banquet, the Lord will say to her, "Well done my good and
faithful servant. Now there's the kitchen. We need some cheesecakes
for the feast." So when we get there, if there's cheesecake, I am
going to go say hi to Dr. Carol. (She has an horary Doctorate now.)

For much of the trip back, I sat in the back of the van because I felt
like I had a bad attitude and wasn't fit for human consumption. I am
still trying to figure out why.

Bruce also asked if we could stop in Waverly and see his son at
college for a couple minutes. He (the son) is part of a planning team
for a student led worship event each week at his school. We stopped
and prayed for him. Deb was even involved, even though she wasn't
there physically. She participated via cell phone. It was a
priviledge to be able to pray for this young man of God that is giving
much of his time to bring people into His presense.

We got back into town around 6:30 pm. Cleaned out the van and trailer
and Howard's truck and were out of there in record time. (about an
hour) Erin was at the church to meet us. Then Linda and I took the
rental van back.

But the trip is not over.

On November 12th. Hale is having a show and tell during church
services at 8:30am and 11:00am at First UMC in Hale. They will be
showing slides and telling stories.

Minnesota is having show and tell with a lasagna dinner at 5:30pm on
Sunday, Nov. 5th.

There is talk of a reunion meeting somewhere in the UP. Better yet, a
reunion tour to Biloxi in the Spring....

The trip is not over.....

Biloxi2 the second Saturday

Hello all! We (MN) are in route back to St. Paul. We (MN) stayed
last night in Memphis. Covenant United Methodist Church. The Hale
team spent the night in St. Luke's United Methodist in Tuscaloosa,
AL. We stayed in contact for some of the commute every now and
then. This morning, the Hale team got up and headed north. When I
talked to them sometime late morning, Roma said they were eating DQ
and shopping. They arrived in Cincinnati and are spending the night
there. This morning, we (MN) had a great morning of sleeping in
until about 8:00am. We went to the National Museum of Civil Rights
which is housed at the hotel where Martin Luther King Jr. was
assassinated. I took Deb to the airport and got back to the museum
before everyone else had gotten finished. - After the museum, we
went to eat ribs at a place called Rendezvous Ribs. Neat place.
Good fun atmosphere. Great waiter. Good ribs. After that, good
roads to St. Louis. We got in to St. Louis, did devotions and
planned for tomorrow.

I am tired and a little crabby. (not as much now as I was driving in
Arkansas). I am hoping to not have to drive too much. (Those that
know me know that I MUST be tired!) We are all anxious to get home.
The trip is not over.

Good night.

Biloxi2- Friday of

I am typing this from a computer in Memphis. Quick note here to say that we are in Memphis. We accomplished a LOT today. It seems like a different day that we got up this am and hustled over to our worksites to get some last minute things done.

Things I'll write about when I get time:

1. Rod and Lou fixing a roof (not really)

2. The two new work assignments

3. Lena's and Ida Mae's and Nate's

4. Rodney's -

5. Lunch and last devo's

6. The trip to Memphis - The trip to Tuscaloosa

7. It is late and There will be more info later-

Trevor- call me, I have your book- we are planning on going to the Civil Rights Museum and maybe out for ribs- I'm sure I can get your book back to you.

Karen- I'll tell Roma about her desk via Nextel -

Biloxi2- Thursday

Tonight I offered people free beer. I didn't get any takers, so there
were none that were disappointed that it was root beer.

Today was another long day. We did the assignment at the Pippens-
which is what I called Whiggens yesterday. Ray had a good insight.
Mr. Pippen is a man we have never met in person. We have only talked
to him on the phone. Today we went to his house, left unlocked, fixed
his ceiling and installed his light, and left. We left him a card and
a little money. And we named his cat. (Robin called it Lucy, I
called it Spot.- it's an orange cat.)

Ray worked also on an electrical project at Ida Mae's. Her case
worker stopped by. Very cool.

Howard worked at Nate's today. He hung a door. It took awhile
because the house is old and doesn't have common measurement standards
that most use today.

The crowd at Lena's worked hard and got a lot more done. And still
there is more to do. We are going to do as much as we can tomorrow
before we leave.

Our big news for the day was the block parties. I (rod) set up the
tents at both sites. i was a little worried about the wind, but they
were great. There didn't turn out to be a lot of people that showed
up at the block party we had out in Pass Christian but the people that
were there had a good time. In Nate and Isaac's neighborhood, the
participation was a lot higher. Ray and others went out and invited
people spontaneously to the floats. Ray played with the kids while
most others talked to the parents and other adults and heard lot of
stories and listened and cared. They guess that they had around 70 or
so people. Judy says that what was important isn't the amount of
people, but the interactions with the people.

Tonight's devotions were with Jim Parry. We called him on the phone
and he shared with us via speaker phone. What a wise man and a good
friend. Ray hugged the phone because Jim said he would like to give
us all hugs.

Pray for rest for us and safe travel and good attitudes and unity.
Prayers that we can accomplish what we are supposed to.

God is good.

R

Biloxi2- Wednesday

So When Bruce arrived at his site today, there was a police officer that pulled up to him and asked if he'd heard any gunshots....

He hadn't and hasn't. Bruce said that needed to be the quote for today.

Again, a very action packed and full day. I have been given time tomorrow to step away from the painting for a few minutes to type this up when I have a little more energy. So for tonight, I just want to say:

1. Howard's team finished all we can at Ceecee's.

2. Weather was great all day until evening when it rained a while.

3. We worked hard at Lena's (Tanicia's mom's) and got a lot of mudding and sanding and taping and priming and painting done. This is where the majority of our team has been working. It is pretty far out from Biloxi (about 20 miles). This creates logistical challenges with lunches and getting people to their worksites, etc. The team that was there before us had great hearts, but less than good skills and we are having to fix a lot of their stuff. (Like drywalling over top of electrical boxes, etc.) We are getting a lot done, but it doesn't look like it.

4. Yesterday, Darlene met a young couple with a baby and a financial need. We met the need and the baby. They stopped by today to thank us again.

5. Howard went over to Nate's (from last April's projects) and helped him with some doors. Then at the end of the day, we all ended up over there to see Nate and Isaac. I think the Michigan folks enjoyed meeting them. Robin agrees (she is standing next to me as I type- making sure I don't tell you about how Darlene said the 'h-word' at the restaraunt last night.)

6. Ray bought linoleum for Ida Mae's floor. Installed.

7. Ray bought a light fixture and etc. for a family we call Scotty Pippen. (Really, it's Curt and a last name that starts with a 'W') He will install and fix their roof tomorrow. You can pray for this family. The Storm not only broke their house, but their marraige. When Curt and his son and his wife were going to come back after the Storm, the wife wouldn't return. They are in divorce proceedings now.

8. We made and passed out the flyers inviting people to the root beer float block PARTIES we are gong to have. - two sites- The company I work donated the use of two 10 by 20 party canopies. We are going to set one up in Isaac and Nate's neighborhood, and one in Lena's neighborhood and hand out root beer floats. Pray that we can use this time mightily as God draws people in.

9. We saw Rodney today. (Did I tell you about him?- and the vacuum cleaner?- Yes, I think so-) We gave him a sandwich and invited him to rootbeer floats. He promised he would come because he hadn't seen a root beer float since the "Frosty" closed down several years ago. He was riding his bike (barefoot) to some place to try to get an ID.

10. Last night we took Ida Mae out to eat at a restaruant called, 'Lil Ray's" I had a Po Boy. Darlene said the 'h-word.' Ask her about it. When Howard ordered his sandwich, the waiter asked if he wanted it "dressed." Howard asked, "It depends. What does it look like naked?" Everyone in the shop (and all over the Gulf) have thanked us and thanked us and thanked us for coming down. It was a great time full of laughs and joy and fun.

11. We saw real live elephants today.

12. Gary stayed back today because he needed a day to rest after a VERY hard day yesterday. People are getting tired.

13. Had a great time of prayer with the Hale group that met at the church and prayed for us and our needs. We all got a chance to talk with them over Barb's speaker phone. And they amplified over the church's P.A. system. Then Jim P. from MN called and they were also meeting at Salem UMC. What a blessing to know that so many people are praying for us and are a part of the Body.

14. We went out to dinner with another work group that is here through the United Methodist Church from Minnesota. We had Chinese buffet. Met their team. Met a woman that wanted to pray for and bless us. People came up and talked to us all the time. (We are hard to miss in our neon-lime-green shirts.- )

15. Devotions at the beach by Deb.

16. More stories to tell more of tomorrow.

The blog address is www.rodscof.blogspot.com

We love you.

All of us.

Biloxi2- Tuesday

There sure was a lot going on today. It's a little late and there is
so much to tell. It was good. I'm just going to make a list. And
I'm hoping that when the team get's back, they will explain some of
these stories by adding to the blog.

I got to see Nate and Isaac today. They both seemed discouraged to
me. Nate said that our group is the first group to come back. - or
at least to return to follow up with him. Jim had called me today and
asked me to donate some money to Nate and Isaac both. We'll try to
connect with them again before we leave. I honestly don't know yet
how that will happen. Howard did go back to Nate's today and started
to hang a couple doors. It's not an official work assignment from
Mississippi Disaster Response, but it was an official work order from
the Lord. Amen?

Tonight, we took Ida Mae (Ray's floor project) out to dinner to a
place called Lil' Ray's. It was a seafood restaraunt in Long Beach.
Tanicia's mom recommended it to us. We had a great time. Ida Mae had
a great time. We all laughed a lot. It was a very good time for us
as a team.

We are not done at Tanicia's.

More stories from the neighborhood tomorrow.

Running on reserve battery power now

Gotta run

Goodnight.

R

Biloxi2- Monday

Today was slow going.

I try not to compare the two trips, but today, something new threw me
off for a little while. There is a woman here that does the
orientations for the groups. It took a long time and covered things
we already knew and had gone over as a team. I felt like we were
wasting valuable time. Then she didn't know we were coming and didn't
have work assignments for us and would need an hour to get them
together. Hurry up and wait. Then the assignments she gave us were
all over the county. And not close to each other, which is very
different from last time. And they wouldn't take all week. Being the
flexible and obedient people that we are, we rolled with it and
finally left our camp for our three sites around 11:00am. Judy and
Barb O. did an awesome job divying up the lunch rations that we had
all brought. Pat commented later on how much a God thing it was that
Minnesota seemed to have what Michigan didn't, and Michigan seemed to
have what Minnesota didn't. And it all worked out well. The work
sites were in Pass Christian (about 20 miles away from Biloxi) and
Gulport (about 15 miles away). Howard's team went to Cece's house
where they are installing cabinets, tile flooring, and painting.
Bruce, Lewis, Robin and Rose went with him. Ray's team went to
Gulfport to Ida Mae's house to asses the needs for replacing part of
her floor. They called and asked me if they could spend a couple
hundred dollars to buy the materials and do the work. Ray, Gary, Bob,
Pat, and Barb worked on that house. Here's what Barb says about it.:

"We had an awesome day. We met a beautiful little 73 year old woman
who loves the Lord. She's got such a simple faith. She is content
with what God has given her, which isn't much by our standards. But
she knows God is taking care of her. She is a shining example of
faith in her neighborhood. And we are shoring up her floor. We are
very glad to be here. We had wonderful trip down. We met some great
women from Pennsylvania that we are sharing a dorm with. It's a
blessing." (Barb)

Roma's team was given a house out in Pass Christian that needed a lot
of mudding and drywall sanding and taping and painting. We spent the
better part of the time we were there fixing mistakes of the team that
was there before us. The home owner wasn't in (her job requires her
to travel) but we met her daughter, Tanicia. Tanicia told us about
how her neighborhood flooded more than 17 feet high. 14 people from
the neighborhood tried to ride out the storm but didn't make it. Two
people that tried did make it by spending 8 hours on the roof and then
swimming out. Tanicia is an insurance agent and would like to
transfer to their Birmingham, AL branch once her mom is settled back
in. Both Tanicia and her mom have small FEMA trailers on the
property. Roma's team also included Vicki, Linda, Judy, Corrine,
Barbara, Darlene, Deb, and Rod.

After dinner, we had a very good time together with devotions led by
Judy. We spent a lot of time telling our stories and praying
together.

What we prayed specifically for:
Corrine's daughter, Lori, who is ill.
Bruce and Judy's daughter, Robyn, who has limited supervision this week
Robin's daughter, Morgan, and her health AND for Robin apart from Morgan
Sandi, Karen, Jim and Barb, who are leading prayer for us off the road
Rodney from Pass Christian who stopped and talked to me (rod) -
doesn't have a job, sold us a vacuum cleaner for $20.
Angie (see last night's email)
The homeowners we are working for.
Roma's son, Vance, who does NOT need surgery (!)

The day started out frustrating for me. I wasn't patient. I thought
things were going way too slow. I had a crabby attitude. By the end
of the day- by God's grace and Sandi's brownies (which I DID share!)
and prayer and just having work to do and doing it and being a part of
what God is accomplishing, it turned out great.

"I have leaned to be content in all situations..." (The Apostle Paul)

Thank you to everyone who is praying.

Rod

Biloxi2- Sat. and Sunday

Saturday morning, the Hale group got up very early and met at the
church at 4:15 am if you can believe it, and even if you can't. They
picked up Pat at the Gordonville UMC in Midland, Michigan. There,
they were met not only by Pat, but by a team of prayer warriors who,
like the wise men, came bearing gifts. No gold, or myrrh or that
other stuff that starts with an 'f' that I can't even begin to spell.
They brought cookies and coffee and encouragement. From there, they
traveled and traveled and grazed and traveled and grazed. They ate
lunch in the Meijer's parking lot. They had to stop at a Meijer's in
Indiana to buy an adapter for their van. It didn't have a CD player,
just a cassette. Then they drove and ate and drove and ate some more.
Bob's chocolate chip cookies didn't make it past the Michigan border.
I (Rod) asked (tried to demand) that they make more in Nashville, but
so far, I haven't seen any. When they arrived in Nashville, they
camped out at Antioch United Methodist Church. They went out to
dinner at Shoney's, where they were greeted by several people over the
course of their dinner, thanking them for the work they were doing.
One woman told them a story of HER story as a volunteer worker in
Biloxi. Her husband had been a Parkinson's patient for some time.
When she arrived and got her work assignment, it was to plant flowers
at somebody's house. She thought that seemed like a frivolous job,
but it turned out that the person living at the house was also a
Parkinson's patient…. Amazing what God does.

The Minnesota team didn't leave quite so early. We met at the church
at 7:00am and left at 8:00. Before we left, Bruce prayed with us and
did devotions for us. Erin C. from the first Biloxi trip brought
muffins for our breakfast. What a blessing. (more wise men gifts!)
We drove and ate and drove and ate and drove and ate and ate and ate.
This was a recurring theme from both teams on Saturday. We got a call
from Troll wishing us well. That was a really neat gift also. For
lunch we pulled off expressway thinking we would just find a neat
spot, and we did in some abandoned turn off. No wind. Good weather.
We arrived in St. Louis about an hour after Hale got to Nashville. We
checked in at our church and walked down the street to eat some pizza.
Throughout the day, we kept in touch with Darlene and Deb. (Deb flew
to Memphis on Sat. am.) Barbara did devotions for us before we went
to bed.

Sunday morning, Hale got up and were on the road again by 6:30am.
They wanted to be able to worship St. Luke's UMC in Tuscaloosa at
their 11:30 worship service since that is one of the churches they
will be spending the night in on the way back. From what I heard
Roma, the 10 folks almost doubled the attendance in worship. There is
a great spirit in the church. Darlene will tell you the story about
that church when you ask her. They had lunch in the church parking
lot and soaked up the 80 degree temperature. They got on the road and
arrived in Biloxi around 6:00pm.

Minnesota got up and were on the road by 7:00am (7:10 if truth be
told). We had a great drive down to Memphis, stopping for breakfast
and gas and then heading out again. The trip was uneventful until we
got to Memphis. Rod was leading and Lewis was driving Howard's truck,
following. There was some construction and traffic and we had to go
to the far side of Memphis to pick up Deb. (who had spent the night
at Trevor and Heather's house- THANKS!- she spent Saturday evening
on Beal street.) When we stopped, Lewis asked if I remembered he was
pulling a trailer. I told him yes, and I started out trying to be
considerate when changing lanes, but after awhile, my thoughts changed
to, "I wonder if Lewis can do this…" We picked up Deb, and headed
south- stopped for lunch at a rest stop, and headed on down. Corrine
drove for awhile and Linda drove Howard's truck. We got into Gulfport
around 7:00 and met the Hale team for dinner at CiCi's Pizza. -
suggested by Gary and Barb. It was funny because we passed each other
on Highway 49 looking for this pizza joint. The first meeting was a
great one. Our teams met and meld well together. Ray and Rod seem to
have a lot of energy and similar sense of humor. (much to the dismay
of everyone else- I will be teaching him the "wanna buy a duck?"
game.) After dinner, Rod and Linda went to the airport to pick up
Bruce and Judy. Everyone else piled into Hale's van to head back to
Seashore. Bruce and Judy's flights were uneventful, EXCEPT that Judy
sat by a woman from Ocean Springs that thanked them more than once for
coming down.
Back at the camp, we did devotions. Some people that we are sharing
the dorms with came and hung out with us for that. Toward the end, a
woman came up and talked to us. She was hard to understand, but
eventually, we came to see that she needed a place to stay for
tonight. She didn't come right out and say it. We didn't know what
to do. The camp is not ours to offer, but there is a need and we
maybe have the means to fill it. As Angie (the woman) walked away, we
all had a sense of something was missing. We prayed for wisdom and
then I asked people what we should do. Vicki was sure we were
supposed to let her stay with us tonight. Vicki and Ray and Roma and
Lewis went out to find her, but couldn't. Some of us had a sense that
we had failed an important test from God. At very least, we all felt
like Angie was an important part of what we were suppoed to see here
and not miss what God puts in our path. Please pray for Angie and her
situation. We don't know much about it.

"We truly have seen God's hand at work EVERY step along the way, and
in only ways that HE could orchestrates. That is an overwhelming
sense that I have about who's together and why we're together. And
that's before we even have families (work assignments to help with)
yet." (Darlene)

Thanks God for everything. Your blessings on this trip alone are
numbered higher than we can count. Your favor on us has been more
than we could ask or imagine. What an awesome God you are.

Biloxi2- Departure Eve (OR- The Friday Before)

Hello to all- new people and people that have been here the entire
time. If you are new to getting this, you are getting it because
somebody requested I put your name on the list, or I remembered your
email address. If you prefer not to get it, let me know and I'll take
you off the mega list.

Also-- probably not tonight, but soon. I'll post these on the blog
site along with pictures, and you can read the other entries/letters
about what we are doing. Probably not tonight because I am at
Carribou Coffee, and they just closed and I don't think I have time to
figure out how to post them yet.

I continue to be amazed already at what God does. And we haven't even
left yet.

Howard picked up the trailer from A to Z rental in West St. Paul.
They gave us a remarkable deal on it. I delivered a tent donated for
us to use by Midway Party Rental (where I work)- I picked up the
rental van. And I think I will go back to Boyer Ford for the next
rental. It was a busy afternoon and I still wonder what all I have to
get done.

At the Commissioning Service, we started out with a little music.
Then Deb told two stories about how God is at work in her mission
endeavors. Deb sent out support letters to friends and relatives.
She received three checks from that- to equal EXACTLY what we are
asking for the cost. Barb L. and Erin (from the Biloxi1 trip) gave us
crosses that the Sunday school classes had made and prayed for for us.
Each person got an amazing handful of crosses with prayers written on
them, hanging on a piece of yarn. The Elementary kids made a prayer
chain with crosses hanging on the yarn, each cross representing a
prayer. VERY cool!!!!! Then Rod Stemme, the Pastor from Faith UMC
read some verses and encouraged us and commissioned us. He was
fantastic. God had the right person available for this commissioning.
I was glad to hear Rod's heart.

Did I tell about the housing situation? When we are in Biloxi, there
are currently room for 12 women and 10 men in two dorms. That means
we are sharing the dorms with people from another group. We have 13
women. I just laughed when I heard that. I KNOW God is at work. I
KNOW God will provide. He has called us. He will make the way.
There will be a bed for all our women. (I just feel bad for whichever
woman from the other team can't come.....)

That just isn't as funny written out as it was when I told Darlene
that on the phone yesterday.

We are leaving in a few hours (ten). I have to pack. And finish the
laundry and the dishes and bake a pan of brownies. (brownies might
not get done)

Prayer requests: Praise God for making all things fall into place.
Understanding bosses and families that accept, if not understand, our
calling. For finances to come together. For allowing good to come
from bad. For His calling in our lives to be the Body at work.

Amen and amen

Rod

Biloxi2- The Thursday before

I hope you like the new format. Yahoo didn't want to send the email
to everyone and someone suggest G-mail might work better. So here is
a new email address for me. I think I will try to use this mostly for
Mission trip. I might play around with it a little.

Later today, I will post this email and the others I sent to the Blog
I started after the first Biloxi trip. I will try to post pictures
there as we go, also.

In Minnesota, we had our last team planning meeting before we actually
go. I am finally starting to "feel" the energy. I am very much
looking forward to combining forces with the Hale team.

Corrine told a story about how she went to United Methodist Women's
meeting to present a little about our first trip and this one. She
was late because her replacement at work showed up late. When she got
there and did the preso, (taking more than the 10 minutes alloted to
her) she thought maybe they might give a little money, maybe $10 for
the trip. When she got the check in the mail, it was for $350.
Amazing.

Speaking of money, God has surely provided.

A prayer request involving the housing: I got an email today from the
camp administrator who wanted to verify our numbers. She said they
have 12 spots in the women's dorm and 10 in the men's. We have 13
women going. I looked at that and laughed. I am excited to see what
God is going to do with that. Who says God does not have a sense of
humor? Linda- make sure you bring your cot!

Personally, I miss Fred and Polly and Margaret and Jerry and Erin and
Troll and Kristen from the first trip, but I am excited to be meeting
new people from Hale, and getting to know Judy and Lou and Lewis
better. I think in some ways, even though we haven't met as many
times as the first trip, we are more prepared. Polly talked at the
end of the last trip about the second one not meeting our expectations
because it was such a great adventure the first time. I am beginning
to see that God is going to exceed our expectations. It is hard NOT
to compare trips, but I think this trip many of it's own merits that
have nothing to do with the first- The Hale contingency, the rootbeer
float party, etc. I think if we go in expecting to experience God and
His work, we'll be amazed again.

Our verse for this trip is from the Message version. And part of it
says, "Watch how I do it." Amazing.

Logistics are falling into place, but I still feel like there are of
lot of details that are "hiding" from me.

Hale is leaving at 4:30 am (see Rod shudder...) Minnesota is leaving
at 8:00am.

Minnesota as a commissioning service Friday night.

Thank you for your prayers and support.

Peace!
rod

Biloxi2- The Monday Before

First things first-  I've added a lot of new people to
this distribution list.  If you aren't interested in
receiving it, please send an email to me and I will
take you off. 
 
We are getting pretty close to set to go on our
Biloxe Bound 2:  The Challenge.  Our team is made up
of 10 people from the River Bend churches in
Minnesota, and 10 people from First UMC in Hale,
Michigan.  We were slated to go to Camp St. Paul in
Ocean Springs, but some things came up and and God is
good, and we got moved to Seashore Assembly again,
which is where we were the first time.  Our Team is
made up of:
 
From MN-
Rod, Bruce and Judy, Linda, Deb, Howard, Lewis,
Corrine, Barbara, and Lou.  Lou joined us during the
Sweet and Sloppy Variety show fundraiser we held.  We
are mighty glad to have her on the team.  From the MN
team that has helped out but is not going is:  Jim,
Barb and Judy. (more on Judy in a few minutes)
 
From MI-
Darlene, Ray and Vickie, Barb and Gary, Bob and
Rose, Robin, Roma, and Pat.  Pat is a friend of
Darlene's from Midland.  On Hale's team not going is
Sandi and Karen who are coordinating prayer warriors,
Keith, who coordinated an amazingly successful and
tasty spaghetti supper fundraiser, and Pastor Pat. 
 
Hale has been meeting on Monday nights.  They were
commissioned during church yesterday.  They are
meeting at 4:30am on Saturday to head out and are
driving as far as Nashville.  I suspect they will be
leaving mighty early on Sunday am and beat us to
Biloxi.  They have a trailer to use and a church van. 
On the way back, they are stopping in Tuscaloosa and
Cincinnati, where the churches are not only allowing
them to sleep on their floors, but providing them with
a meal!  Karen and Sandi have coordinated a prayer
meeting on Wednesday night of our trip at the church
at 7:00pmEST.  If you are around the Michigan area and
are interested in participating, 7:00pm at First UMC,
Hale. 
 
Minnesota has been meeting on Tuesday nights.  They
have a commissioning service this Friday night at
Salem UMC in InverGrove Heights at 7:30pmCST.  (all
are invited).  MN has had a couple fundraisers, a
garage sale spanning two weekends and a variety show. 
Both events were fun for those that participated and
raised a little more than $1700.  MN is leaving from
Salem UMC on Sat. am closer to 8:00am.  They are
spending the first night at Kirkwood UMC in St.
Louis.  Then picking up Deb in Memphis in the am on
Sunday and heading on down to Biloxi.  Bruce and Judy
are flying down to Biloxi on Sunday pm so that Bruce
can preach on Sunday am.  They rented a van and a
trailer, which Howard is going to pull behind his
pickup truck.  On the way back, the MN team will be
spending the first night in Memphis and the second
night in St. Louis, returning to MN in the afternoon. 

 
If anyone in MN is interested in helping coordinate
the after-trip-van-clean-out, please give me (Rod) a
call or respond to this email.  I think in Hale they
are going to make the youth pastor clean their van. 
(that's a joke.)
 
Specific prayer requests for the trip are: 
 
That the team is physically, mentally, and
spiritually prepared for the trip.  Personally, I have
some sleep catching up to do between now and then. 
Also pray for our health-  There is a cold going
around MN right now.-  season changing things, I
guess.
 
For all the planned logistics to fall into place and
for anything we missed to fall into place
 
For safe travel for both teams
 
For Sandi that she has time to bake a pan of her
famous Brownies for Rod (Bruce-  you're crazy if you
think there will be any left for you!)- 
 
For whoever and whatever we are leaving behind for
the week to function properly without us so we don't
have a lot of catch up to do when we get back.
 
For the people assigning jobs at Biloxi to match us
up with the site(s) that God has appointed us to. 
 
For us to be able to see God all over the place as
we get ready and go and work and return.
 
For me (Rod) to know what to do next in terms of
another trip.
 
Thanks!
 
Again- if you don't want to get these updates, let
me know and I'll take you off the list.
 
Peace!
Joy!
rod
 
 
 
 

Some catching up to do:

As I write this, I am behind. (go figure)- I am going to post the emails I have sent out to our prayer team for the Biloxi Bound 2 (The Challenge) mission trip. As I write this, I am standing outside in Biloxi at Seashore Assembly in front of the administrative office where there is a WiFi hot spot. It is about 10:30pm and it is about time!

I am just going to cut and paste the emails I sent out. You can respond to them here or send me an email reply. I have about three email addresses now, so I'm trying to get things figured out. We'll see how it goes, eh? Watch for pictures and etc.

Cheers!
rod