Crisfield1 Epilogue

First-  let me say to the people whose emails addresses, welcome!  I added you because you donated to our crowdfunding campaign.  It's pretty easy to not get these emails if you want off, just ask and I'll take you off the distribution list.  And a quick update, this is the last email from the Crisfield trip you donated to.  If you want to read the rest of them, you can go back and look at the blog.  All the emails are sent there, too.  The link will be towards the bottom of this email.  Welcome to the show.  You've been a part of the team.  Now you'll get the club newsletter so to speak.  It only happens a little when there isn't a trip going on, and when there is a trip, it's about once a day.  

Ok-  Now-  a few more housekeeping things:  To the people that donated to our crowdfunding campaign, I realized that a lot of people didn't pay any attention to the rewards for donating at different levels.  Well, we take it seriously so your reward is on it's way.  Kind of.  If you donated at least $20, we said we would write your name on a piece of building material going into the house.  But we didn't work on rebuilding a house....  We tore one down...  Which left us with a conundrum.  Do we write your name on a piece of landfill and call it a day?  Nope.  Not us.  Dale from Louisiana took a few pieces of lumber from the house and knows someone that is going to make it into something nice for the house, like an address sign.  We will put your names on the back of that.  For people that donated over $50, we tried to call.  In some cases, I didn't have your phone number.  In some cases, we only got voicemail or talked to a confused spouse.  If that was you, shoot me an email with your phone number, I'll call you and talk to you about the trip.  We did get most of the people and it was really fun to do!  For those who donated over $100, your t-shirts are just waiting to jump into the envelopes I bought at Target today.  UNLESS, you donated over $200 to the crowd funding, and then we have to wait until we get the picture book printed up also.  Mostly, THANK YOU for being a part of this team and joining us to help get someone closer to getting back in her home.  

Also-  I want to give a big THANK YOU to the Philos Sunday School Class and the Tuesday night small group at St. Mark's UMC in Findlay, OH.  The pulled food and sloppy joes and salads and desserts, and breakfast bakes and fruit salads and muffins were wonderful!  You really made our trip easier by not having to worry about those meals at the end of long driving days, and started us out right by not having to worry about stopping for breakfast right away.  

We got back into MN around 6:30pm on Sunday night.  It was a long and very good trip.  

The feedback I got from the team so far has been mostly good, but a little mixed.    One team member wondered why, when the equipment exists, did we spend a week tearing down a house by hand (and truck), when it could have been done a lot faster and more efficiently with heavy machinery.  I asked how much money we saved the long term recovery agency by tearing it down by hand and they said it was about $6000.  Would it have been better to have another couple bake sales and just sent down the money?  I guess I don't think so because it's not just about the end product.  

As a team, we do struggle with a balance of a few different things revolving around productivity.  Productivity vs. taking time to see the area we are working in.  Productivity vs. relationships with people.  Productivity vs. what the home owner or agency asks for.  Boiled down, I guess it's productivity vs. community.  

As a team, if we believe we are called by God to participate in this trip, then do we trust God to make sure we have the right work assignments?  Do we trust God that we are working with the right agency?  Do we trust God that we are working for the right home owner?  Earlier in the week, I talked about the struggle with being asked to do something we thought was a bad idea vs. just answering the call.  Which do we trust?  The common sense and reasoning skills God gave us, or the authority we have placed ourselves under when we work for another agency.  

So if we trust that God has called us.  And we trust that God has our best interest in mind, is it possible that God's design for our trips isn't completely about the work we do there?  I tend to think that God uses our willing hearts and hands, and that willingness yields results we will never see.  

So when I was talking to my Aunt (the same one that pointed out that the pictures link was not a good one) about crowd funding, and the frustrations that went along with that, she suggested that maybe crowdfunding isnt' just about raising money, it's raising awareness and being able to tell your story more widely.  So in the same way, maybe working on a house isn't just about getting someone closer to moving into their home.  I think it's about building community.  The community we create when 22 volunteers travel from several different states to come join people they have never met and live in cramped quarters near people who snore and have different expectations and different backgrounds and different abilities, but come together in the name of Jesus to do (hard) work for someone they have never met and may never see again.  Really, the whole thing doesn't make sense.  So would it be easier to send more money?  Maybe.  Would it be better for the economy of the area to send money to create more jobs?  Maybe.  But would it create the community?  Not the same way.  

We don't always get to see what God does with the time we are in Crisfield or New Orleans or Minot.  Working on a house is just a part of it.  Giving hope, sharing stories, and being the evidence of a loving God are a few of the likely myriad of facets involved.  I don't think we see all of them.  And I don't think we are supposed to.  We just trust God, when we answer the call, that His plan means something, and that we are honored to be a part of that plan.  I think about how some helped by donating.  Some through encouragement.  Some through supplying meals, some by praying for us, and some by thinking more about service and what it means to help others.  Everyone played an important part in this community.  

So whether it's tearing down a house so another can be built in it's space, or putting the last touches on a house before someone moves in, we will continue to answer the call.  And we are grateful and joyful about your part and presence on this team, and the call that you answer by reading this, and supporting us through words, deeds, or gifts.  

Amen.  

Pictures-  I put more pictures on the Picasa website.  And I added captions to a bunch that were there.  And I tried to put them in mostly chronological order.  The link to that is:  click here for the photo album on a Picasa website.  If it doesn't work, (we struggled with it earlier in the week), some people sent me requests to view the album and that worked, but I think it should all be public now.  

The blog-  Click here for the blog site

And finally-  Facebook-  search for River Bend Mission Team or,  I think if you click here, it will take you to our FB page.

You prayed for us for several things.  Please keep praying for these things:

Continued thanks for the opportunity we have serve Him in this awesome way

Lewis's leg-  that the docs figure out what's wrong and are able to treat it.  

Gary's dad-  health issues

The next trip

Ok-  next trip is April 26th- May 4th.  Going to New Orleans (Slidell), LA.  If you want to be a part of the team that goes to the Gulf, the sooner you let me know the better.  It is already shaping up to be a team with a lot of new faces.  Pray about being one of them.  

Get on the bus!

Rod

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

Crisfield 1 photo link

Thank you to everyone that sent feedback about the photo link.  I think that it has something to do with Google changing the way they do photos lately, And our photos have just been posted on a picasa site.  -  

Try this link:  photos for Crisfield Mission trip.  Let me know if that doesn't work.  I tested the link and it appears to go to the right place.  

We all are home now.  the MN team arrived in MN around 6:30pm.  

Soon to put more pictures on line, and sum up the trip.  

Thanks, all!

R

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

Re: Crisfield1- the last day and some travel towards home

Good morning Rod!  The National Park where you saw the ponies is Assateague Island.  You passed through the barrier island of Chincoteague and crossed Chincoteague Bay to get to the National Park of Assateague.  Each year in July there is something called the Chincoteague Pony Penning where a certain number of the ponies are auctioned and sold.  There is a wonderfully charming book that came out in the 1940's or 1950's called "Misty of Chincoteague".  I believe it was made into a movie.

I hope you arrived home safely and thanks again for all the help.  Joe Pinto

--

Crisfield1- the last day and some travel towards home

Keven and Joe made it home on Thursday night.

Friday morning, Dale and Milton took off for home in Louisiana at 4:30am.  

Gary and Doug left around 9:00am for Kentucky

Roma and Ray left right after that for Michigan

The rest of us went to see what Crisfield is all about.  We went to the local museum, a local United Methodist Church, a confectionary where they mix the syrup with the soda for your pop, and then we went to Ocean City where we hung out at the ocean for a little while.  Rob fell in .  Ginger almost fell in.  

Then we went to a National Park (sorry, can't remember what it's called) where there are wild ponies living.  Saw some wild ponies.  stood on the beach again.  Watched a wild pony steal something off someone's picnic table at their camp site.  Watched the sunset.  

Ate dinner in Ocean City and then headed back to Crisfield.  We didn't get back in until after quiet hours, and so we couldn't do any preemptive packing and cleaning.  

Mark left for Arlington

Got textes from everyone that had left earlier saying they had arrived home.  

This morning we wanted to leave at 7:00, but got out around 7:45.   

We stopped at the memorial for Flight 93 that crashed on 9/11 in Pennsylvania.  It was pretty interesting.  Made me think about what I would have done in the same situation on that plane.  But mostly made me hope i would never be in that situation.  

We got to Findlay, OH about 8:30pm.  Sandi H. had dinner waiting for us.  Oh-  and a surprise birthday cake for Lewis, whose birthday is Monday.  (chocolate sheet cake-  holy buckets.)  

Lewis did devotions.  It was a very compelling message about how we see others, and the importance of looking at them through the eyes of Christ's love.  It was timely and stuck some of us in places we didn't want to be stuck.  I thought we should have heard this message on Monday, but then, maybe we weren't ready to hear it, then.  

Getting ready to leave in the morning.  Early.  I want to get home and see my family.  I think we all do.  

More reflections on the week at the next and last update.  I didn't post any new pictures, but you can see the ones we have posted on www.picasaweb.com/rodscofield/crisfield1  (my Aunt says she couldn't see those pictures-  does anyone else have problems?  I am thinking that Picasa might not meet the needs for this anymore.  Feedback?)

Thank you for your continued prayers as we make the final run tomorrow.  

Cheers!

R

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

Re: Crisfield1- the 4th Work day

Good morning Rod-I do hope you enjoy seeing Crisfield other than tearing down a house.  In terms of the oyster and clam shells under the house, back in the 19th century much of what is the lower part of the town was then water.  Oysters and clams were so plentiful, after processing them, the shells were used to build up the land and extend out into the water.  Low lying properties, such as the one where you tore down the house, were raised by filling in the area with oyster shells.

Have a great day!  Joe Pinto

Crisfield1- the 4th Work day

Today was mighty good.  

We finished the demo job around noon today.  There is now no house standing where there was a house where we started.  And if anyone knows why there were thousands of clam and oyster shells under the house, I would like to know why.  

Bob took a small team to work on a lady's fence.  They cut down a lot of brush around the fence so the next team can work on repairing it.  It is a much bigger job than anyone thought when the agencies agreed to do it.  

Gary also started the demo on the next house.  They tore out about 3/4 of the interior walls.  

This morning, Kevin and Joe left for New York.  They sent me a text around 5:30pm that they had made it home.  They sure added a great dynamic to our team.  We look forward to working alongside them again in the future.  They take a team down to New Orleans in the summer.  I'm thinking if anyone wants to go with a great team, let me know and I can hook you up with them.  You should search and "like"  Missions of Helping Hands on Facebook.  

Tomorrow, we have the day off to see what the town of Crisfield is all about.  We believe it is important to see and get to know the town and the people we are working for.  Tomorrow we get to see the town that isn't just on the way to our job sites.  A couple people are lobbying for going to Delaware to say we've been there.  It's about an hour away.  

I posted more pictures on our picture site www.picasaweb.com/rodscofield/crisfield1

There isn't anything different in the blog, than what is in this email, but for future reference, if you want the link to our blog, it is, www.rodscof.blogspot.com

Search Facebook for Riverbend Mission Team and "like" us.  (there are things we do on FB that we don't do in these emails.-  more pictures, etc.)  

I can't say enough about how cool it was to do this trip with the support and love of all of you.  I read your emails that you sent back to us to the team and it has given us a lot of joy to share this trip with you.  It is unlikely I will be able to post tomorrow night, but will get to it again before it's all done.  Thank you for your love and prayers.  

Rod and team

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

Crisfield 1- 3rd work day

The house we are knocking down is on the ground.  All we have to do now is pick up the pieces and put them in the dumpster.  Learning how that happens was pretty fascinating.  

I think when we do this, and all we write about is the good and happy joy joy smiles and sunshine, then it's telling the wrong story because in real life, things happen that stretch you.  Here's what happened:

We were asked to send half of our group to another house to start demo-ing it.  After a little group discussion, we decided that we preferred to stay on one house and assure we would finish.  Afterwards, I was called out on it, and I am grateful for the feedback from the concerned team member.  Really, our response should have been "whatever you want us to do.  We are here for you.  Whatever you think is best."  That's something we pride ourselves on.  But when it came down to it, I was more interested in being (more) assured we would finish a project.  (which is also important to us, but should be secondary)  Maybe a pride thing.  Maybe a team-unity thing.  I'm not sure.  But we stayed at the first house.  

We DID send Bob and Ron to a house on the next block to fix a fence.  It's one of those jobs that at first glance seemed easy squeezy.  But when it came to doing it, on closer look, there was more to it.  They started by cutting down some trees that were encroaching.  Tomorrow they will work more on propping up the lagging parts.  

Oh we had medical drama today.  Matthew stepped on a nail and punctured skin. We took him in to get a tetanus, but they didn't update it since it had been done eight years ago.  (I thought it was three years?)  He's fine.  His foot hurts a little, but they didn't have to cut it off.  

So back to the first house-  we started with half the roof on the house and all the walls, etc.  First we got the rest of the roof off.  Then we started knocking down the walls-  pulling them down, really.  Kevin from New York hooked up a chain and pulled a lot of them down with his wife's Chevy Truck.  He hopes she doesn't see this or the pictures.  

Met with the Pennsylvania team for dinner tonight.  Pretty delectable.  You would think it would be easy to find seafood on the Chesapeake Bay, but this town is pretty small and most of the restaurants are closed for the winter already.  We went to a place called "Little Ditty's"  which had decent food and a big enough room we could all eat in.  

We think that tomorrow we should be able to load up everything in the dumpsters and get the foundation out.  

Corrine and Krissy had to return to the Twin Cities today since they couldn't get the whole week off.  We miss them already.  They added a lot to our team.  In the morning, Kevin and Joe from New York have to head back to New York.  They have been great assets to our team and we are going to miss them AND look forward to working alongside them again sometime.  

If you want to see pictures, you can go to click here to see pictures

If you want to go our blog, or share it with people, you can click here for the blog

We also think it would be dang cool if you liked us on Facebook.  Search for "Riverbend Mission Team" And then encourage your friends to like us.  

As always, we are grateful for your partnership with us.  We think it is great that you are part of our team.  Don't be a silent partner.  Let us know you're there.  (I read your emails to the team at our devotions time a couple times each week.)  

God is good and we are amazed at what He is doing on our team this week.  

Prayer requests:

We are getting tired.  Prayers for energy to get us finished strong.  

Thanksgiving prayers for Matthew not being seriously injured, and safe arrival back in the Twin Cities for Krissy and Corrine.  

Prayers for safe travel for Kevin and Joe returning to New York.  

Prayers of thanksgiving for a really good trip.  We are a strong team with a lot of talent and a lot of unity and we are having fun together.  

Amen.

R

 

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

Re: Crisfield Mission trip- the 2nd day

Rod you and your team are amazing!!! Keep up God's good work!!!!

Sent from my iPhone

Crisfield Mission trip- the 2nd day

Hi all!

Another good day.  A lot of waiting, though.  

Kevin hooked up his truck to the back addition of the house with a chain and pulled it's legs out from under it.  Then we spent time breaking it down and putting it in the dumpster.  

Dale and Milton worked with various people throughout the day on taking off the roof.  

VERY EXCITING!-  Sometime during the night, the chimney collapsed.  All that was left was what was above the roofline, so Milton and Tom (from the Long term Recover Agency) got up on the roof and took it apart brick by brick.  We all had to wait outside the house incase it fell in.  It went just as planned.  

We started calling the people that supported us on our crowdfunding campaign today.  realized that most people that donated didn't care about the rewards had no idea we promised to call from the job sites.  It was fun connecting with people and including them in the team today.  

Ginger and Barbara brought us ice cream sandwiches today.  The little things mean a lot.  

There is a peacock that roams around the block we are working on.  I've heard that the Mayor gave them immunity.  Word on the street (at McDonalds) say he may be named, "Fred." 

Mark and Krissy and Matt and Rob and Gary and I went to McDonalds to send the email where there is a wifi.  While there (here right now) we talked to a couple girls from town who told us about the town.  They said they thought Crisfield had "recovered."  But then talked about another house they knew of that needed demo.  (which was a house Gary went to look at to see if he thought we could finish this week.

We were offered another job site so we could split up a little bit, but we think we are going to turn it down because we want to finish the house we are working on now.  

Excited for tomorrow.  

Prayer requests-

Continued safety on the job site.

Continued team unity.

Safe travel for Krissy and Corrine who have to return to the Twin Cities on Wed.  

Thank you again and again for being part of our team.  We are grateful for you!

R

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

Crisfield1 First Work day (no photos)

For those of you getting this twice, I apologize-  I tried to attach photos, and the email got blocked from too many places, and didn't post to our own blog....  So here is the version without photos.  

Traveling from Findlay, OH to Crisfield was a beautiful drive.  Connecting with Ray and Roma and Bob and "The Colonel" was good.  It was neat leaving with another vehicle.  Then we met Keven and Joe from New York not far past the Pennsylvania line.  Took the wrong turn a time or two and got in to Crisfield about 8:00pm.  Gary and Doug got in about an hour later.  Dale and Milton got in just before 11:30pm.  Mark pulled in this morning about 8:00am.  Our team of 22 is complete.  And what a team it is!

This is a very powerful team.  We have a lot of people with construction experience.  And a lot of people that like work.  More on this.

The project they have given us is much different than what we have done for hurricane relief in the past.  They have asked us to completely demo a house.  

The house was damaged by the flood in Hurricane Sandy.  The home owner is Patsy and we got to meet here.  She is currently living in a relative's house right across the street.  The house is two-story, building built a long time ago.  

We started by taking out all the stuff.  And there was a lot of stuff.  The home-owner told us not to save any of it.  Then we broke down the walls, and ceilings.  Ripped out all the kitchen cabinets and plumbing.  Filled four roll-off dumpsters.  

When they told us we would be demo-ing, there was some talk about how that was not a good idea, not the best use of our skills, too many people in one space, unsafe, etc.  And Ray told us all to remember that we are here for them.  We just do what they ask us to do.  And do it gladly.  And we DID!!!  

We worked VERY well as a team today.  We got a LOT done.  There are a lot of skilled workers on this team.  Each one kind of took a section of the house and people just jumped in and helped.  It was realllllly neat to see the Body at work.  

Tomorrow we start taking off the roof and chimney.  

There are so many good stories still Stay tuned.  

Prayer requests:  

--  Safety on the job site

-- Glory to God for an AWESOME day.  

-- Our friends on the Crossroads Church mission trip in New Jersey/York

--  Continued team unity.  

-- Lewis's leg is bothering him.  

Here are some pictures:  Some shots of the house we worked on.  And us working on them.  To see more pictures, you can go to Click here for pictures of Crisfield1

You can go to our blog (which is right now just a copy of this email, but some other members of our team can post to it.-  and they might without me knowing it.)  Click here to go to our blog

You can also search Facebook for River Bend Mission Team and "Like" us.  

I mentioned how we have an awesome team.  You are part of that team!  We are grateful for your participation with us.  Thanks to those that sent us notes.  I have shared them with the team.  This team is one of the best we've had.  And you are part of it.  Thank you!

Last thing-  there is no wifi at the place we are staying.  I had to go to McDonalds to use their wifi.  I might not be able to do it every night.  Thank you for praying for us again!

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

Crisfield 1- the first travel day

What a good day.  We left town only about 15 minutes later than we planned.  That's pretty good.  The trip was uneventful, although amusing watching Rod St. drive through downtown Chicago.  

We got into Findlay, OH a little bit before 8:00pm.  Sandi H. from Findlay coordinated a meal for us.  This church is very much a blessing to us!  

Ray B. and Roma B. from Hale, MI met us here.  It is exciting to have them on our team again.  Bob N. from Indianapolis and Carolyn N. from Dayton, OH also met us here and will travel with us the rest of the way.  Also good to have them with us again.  

This is a great team which seems to be cohesive and looking out for each other.  

Tomorrow Kevin and Joe from New York, Gary and Doug from Kentucky, Mark from Michigan, and Dale and Milton from Louisiana will meet up with us in Crisfield.  We are praying for them as they travel.  

We are also praying for the mission team from Crossroads Church in Lakeville, MN as they are also serving on the East Coast this week.  Safe travel.  Effective ministry.  Growth.  

Someone asked about our blog site-  The only thing that is on it so far is just a copy of the same email I have sent out.  But the address for it is:  www.rodscof.blogspot.com.  Soon, we will have pictures to share also.  Rob took some from the van as we went through DT Chicago.  Not sure if anyone else has or not.  Our picture site will be up and ready soon.  (when I put some new pictures in.)  -  

Thank you to those who wrote to us today.  I will share those emails with the team in the morning at devotions.  It means a lot to know we are surrounded and supported by an amazing cloud of witnesses.  We are honored that you have come alongside us for this trip!

Onward!

r

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

RE: Crisfield 1- The night before

MUMC looks forward to seeing you in Crisfield!!!!  Safe travels.  I’m sure we’ll see you Monday morning at the orientation. 

Crisfield 1- The night before

Helloooo!

I can't believe it's already time to hit the road again.  First let us say thank you a billion times over for supporting our team on our crowd funding campaign!  We met our goal and have enough money to get out out and back.  It was an interesting learning experience to try a crowd funding campaign.  

Our next trip leaves in the morning.  We had our Commissioning service by Kim O., who has been on one of our trips and a long time supporter of the River Bend Mission Team.  Her message was one of Hope.  I will remember the phrase, "Hope is not a strategy," meaning we have to put action and prayer toward what we hope for.  

This trip is different than our previous trips in that half of the team is from MN and half is from other states.  We are representing Minnesota, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, New York, and Louisiana.  This powerhouse team will accomplish a lot and create a really neat society of missionaries in Maryland.  

I spoke with the work coordinator from Maryland today.  He said he may put our whole team on a house demolition.  We'll see what happens when we get there.  

We leave in the morning and head to Findlay, OH, where we will be staying at the United Methodist Church.  They are providing us meals while we are there.  And my godmother makes AMAZING brownies...

We are grateful for your participation as we head out again.  Please pray for us.  Let us know you are alongside this week.  We look forward to meeting and serving the homeowner(s) we will be working for.  We look forward to sharing Jesus in tangible, practical ways.  

How can you pray for us?  Pray that we will be be able to accomplish the work God wants us to accomplish.  Pray for safe travel.  Pray for the people that have come alongside us through our crowd funding campaign.  Pray for the home owners we will be working for.  We are grateful for your participation.  

I'll post pictures once we get going.  There is no wifi at the church in MD we are staying at, so I might not get to send out each night.  

Like Riverbend Mission Team on Facebook for more updates about our trip.  Let us know you're along for the ride.  

The photo is of the logo that is on our shirts this trip.  

Here we go!!!

Rod

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

NOLA 7 Days 3 and 4

Lots to cover!  

In this issue:  

1-  Meet our new home owners and read what their house is like and what we're doing to it.

2-  Howard falls through a rotted floor and gets a big gash on his arm

3-  What was accomplished at Ash Street

4-  What was accomplished at Bob's site, which is a homeless shelter, food shelf, clothes closet, and why Erin Clayton will never touch another tile again.  

5-  Why Louie took a team to start a new house today and what they got done. 

6-  What is left to do.

(maybe not all in that order)

Over the past couple days, we have accomplished much.  

On Wed, Louie's team and Howard's team combined and went to work at a new house on Ash Street.  I will call it Dennis and Josie's house (not their real names)  Dennis and Josie are living in a house that Josie inherited from her mom, but it is in very bad shape.  It was devastated by Katrina, and then again by Isaac.  The house has no electricity, no plumbing, no interior walls (just studs- and those of dubious value)  The exterior walls are -  well, something we worked on-  Their hot water tank and well water storage tank were stolen (they keep those on the outside down here.)  I haven't looked up the word for squalor, but I may have seen it.  By whatever reasons, whether victims of circumstance or victims of the consequences of their own choices, they have a pretty hard living condition.  They have a four year old daughter that has been taken out of the home because of the condition of the house.    Once the house is deemed "habitable," they can try to get her back.  "Habitable means a functional bathroom, a kitchen sink with running water, and electricity.  I assume there is something there about a roof, etc., but I can't remember.  

The house is in seriously bad shape.  It would be better to knock it down and start over.  But to do that would cost two to three times the amount to replace/rebuild piece by piece.  To knock it down would require the new structure to meet all the newer codes, which include that it must be raised off the ground a number of feet.  (sorry, can't remember how many-  maybe 8?), different/more permits, etc.   Our job was to pull out the exterior walls on two sides of the house, and replace the framing and new external siding.  Later, they will replace the roof and floor.  Some of the exterior walls had been replaced by previous teams.  We also had to caulk the seams, a few minor things, and put a coat of primer on the house.  

We tore off the back wall and replaced it with wooden siding.  We leveled a corner of the house and replaced a floor off the back porch.  While working on that floor, Howard fell through the rotted floor and got a good gash on his arm.  Mal is one of our "nurses" and ran to the first aid kit, and got Howard all patched up.   (Howard thanked Mal later by bonking her on the head with the handle of a sledge hammer.)

Part of replacing the back wall was framing out the new wall.  Dale Kimball, who is the director of the agency we are working for (The Epworth Project)  showed Mal and Mel how to frame up the walls and then put the new siding on.  Mal was ready to lead that part of the project.  

Part of blogging, or reporting, I think, is being honest about the rough times, and showing your warts, as it were.  We learned the hard way why too many people is just as bad if not worse than not enough.  We have a lot of very talented people on our team with ideas about how things are supposed to go.  Mal got Bogarted out of her position of leading the framing project by people that wanted to take over.  She got Bogarted out of her position of leading the lifting of the siding by people that had opinions about how it was supposed to go.  There were several people on the team that worked on the Ash house on Wed that left the site at the end of the day with a lot of frustration about how the site went.  The "too many cooks in the kitchen" sentiment applied.  There was power struggle.  There were harsh words, there were hurt feelings and frustrated missionaries.  I knew that another day with that many people on that site would be counter productive.  When we got back to the headquarters, I asked if there might be another site we could send part of our team to.  

And so it was that today, Louie led a team of Ginger, Annie, Diane, Mal, Mel, and Leanne on a new  site for a house that needed drywall.  We called them, "Louie's Ladies and at the end of the day, they reported that they accomplished a lot and had a very satisfying service experience.  

We also were more deliberate about praying for unity for our teams.  We also pulled a name out of a hat and anytime we felt like grumbling, or any time we noticed we were sweating or got hungry or thirsty or just plain thought about it, we would pray for that person whose name we drew.  It helped us get past ourselves and think about someone else, and to pray for that person.  

Today at Howard's site, Pastor Paul, Rod (me), Lewis, The Colonel (Carolynn), Krissy, Rob, and Ron worked on finishing the siding, some insulation work, some taking down some framing inside the house, some insulation to cover the holes, and started painting.  All we have left to do is the coat of primer to put on the house.  

Today at Bob's site, they team worked to do more tiling and grouting.  Word on the street is that they didn't have any drama.  :-)  This team has accomplished an amazing amount of work.  The floor is almost done.  They will not finish it completely this week, but they got done more than was expected.  They were late for dinner each night, but the people at the center they were at sure are grateful.  Erin has wiped off more grout and cleaned off more tiles than she ever cares to do again.  Her house, when she owns one, will probably have carpet.  

Today went much better than yesterday.  Thank you to all who prayed for us and sent encouraging words.  I love what we are doing.  

Tomorrow we are only working a partial day.  The Epworth Project asks us to cut out early on Friday because they want their tools back.  We will take a half day to go into New Orleans and walk around.  

I probably won't get a chance to write again until we get back.  Please keep us in your prayers especially on Saturday and Sunday as we drive back to MN.  I will put more pictures on the picasa site:  www.picasaweb.com/rodscofield/nola7

And you can look at our blog at www.rodscof.blogspot.com/  I think I will try to put this email in there, but add pictures specific to the sites.  But honestly, it's late at night and I need to go to bed pretty quick.  I may not get to it until we get back to MN.  -  

Again, thanks!

R

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

Day 3 on the work site

Short and sweet -

Lots accomplished

some drama

Breaking into the first aid kit.

Cafe DuMond

More details later.  

It was a long day yesterday, and I fell asleep uploading pictures.  I just couldn't type anything up last night.  -  And I just didn't have the time this morning to type it up.  

More details later

Prayer requests:

Team Unity

Safety

Susan's family

Ken Ward

More later.

R

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

NOLA 7 Day 2

Today was a day of accomplishments! 

Howard's team finished their drop ceiling in the battered woman's shelter.  They also were able to meet some of the women and hear their stories.  (they were working on a battered women's shelter.)  They got done early and will get a new assignment tomorrow. 

Bob's team took on a mammoth tiling project and finished it with enthusiasm.  They are returning tomorrow to do more tiling in other parts of the building.  The building that they are working on is a food shelf, clothes closet and homeless shelter.  It really was a herculean effort and they pulled it off.  (Louie's team stopped on the way back to the base and helped for a half hour or so--  More on this in a few minutes.)

Louie's team banged out one of the houses they have been working on.  Tomorrow they only have a few small projects and cleaning to do.  They will probably get a new assignment and split up for a while.

The thing that struck me was how Louie's team affected Bob's team when they showed up to help.  Bob's team was worn out and I wouldn't say "despairing," but they were thinking they were going to be there for a lot longer to finish a part that HAD to be finished before they could leave.  When Louie's team showed up and infused a few new people and hope and a little more energy, the change in Bob's team was visible.  And I wondered if there is a parallel to our faith.  Sometimes when we feel alone and facing troubles and are discouraged and despairing and wondering if there is ever an end to our toiling.  And then another believer comes alongside and helps carry the weight and encourages our soul.  We are not alone.  The burden is not to be carried alone.  God is always with us, and I believe He sends people to encourage us and work with us.  Hard times are best handled with others.  

On the blog today, I'll post some thoughts by Krissy.  Plumbing.  You can get there by clicking www.rodscof.blogspot.com

There are a lot of pictures on our picasa site.  You can see them by click www.picasaweb.com/rodscofield/nola7

You can also see pictures on our Facebook page (Search for "River Bend Mission Team"

Thanks to those who sent notes of encouragement.  I will share those at devotions on Wed. morning.  

Pray for safety on our jobs sites and production.  Please also pray for our friend Susan's mom.  (Susan was on our third trip, and helps behind the scenes as we get ready for our trips now)-  Her mom is in the last stages of her life.  Expected, but still hard.  

Again soon!

R

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

NOLA 7 - The first work day

We have 4 job sites, but two of them are right next door to each other.  

Howard's team is doing a drop ceiling at a battered women's shelter.  He has The Colonel, Lewis, and Pastor Paul with him.  Someone from the agency they are working for gave Pastor Paul some crawfish.  nobody else wanted to partake.  They reported getting a lot done today, and they should be finished tomorrow.  

Bob's team is fixing and expanding a VERY large tile floor.  They have had to redo some of the tile laid by the people before his team.  Bob's team has Rod St., Erin, Dhoods, Vince, Shirley S., and Paul A.  They are working at a site that was and going to be returned to a homeless shelter/food shelf/clothes closet, and case work.  There are pictures on our picasa site that show them tiling.  

Louie's team is working on two houses that are next door to each other.  Each is very close to being done.  The things that need to be done are a lot of touch up work, and just putting finishing touches on,-  and adjusting the doors so they close correctly,   Louie's team also has Ron C, Leanne, Mel, Mal, Rob, Krissy, Diane, Ginger, Annie, and me.  

 

I am not getting as many pictures this year because everyone is taking photos with their phone.  I can't  just plug their phones into my computer, so it's harder to get the pictures.  As I get them, I'll post them.  

Go to www.picsasaweb.com/rodscofield/nola7 to see our pictures.  Or go to our FB page.  

I REALLY like this team.  The new people have added in very well.  And I found out tonight, that you can make cole slaw with half miracle whip, half cool whip.  Who knew?  

Erin, Rob, Krissy, Mal, Mel, Erin, and Diane, and Leanne (that I know of,) went to Waffle House tonight to hang out.  They were maybe going to go try to witness to unbelievers, but I doubt it.  I think they just wanted waffles.  They asked if I wanted them to bring me back a waffle, but I opted for a Diet Coke instead. 

We are praying for Susan's mom, who was getting better, went back to her nursing home, and then fell again.  We are also praying for Diane's cousin Jill who had successful surgery today.  Pray for Ken from Epworth project for healing.  Pray for the battered women's shelter that Howard's team is working on, and the Christian service center that Bob's team is working on, and the family where Louie's team is working on their two houses.  

Thank you everyone for your support and encouragement and support!  

 

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

NOLA 7 - The first work day

We have 4 job sites, but two of them are right next door to each other.  

Howard's team is doing a drop ceiling at a battered women's shelter.  He has The Colonel, Lewis, and Pastor Paul with him.  Someone from the agency they are working for gave Pastor Paul some crawfish.  nobody else wanted to partake.  They reported getting a lot done today, and they should be finished tomorrow.  

Bob's team is fixing and expanding a VERY large tile floor.  They have had to redo some of the tile laid by the people before his team.  Bob's team has Rod St., Erin, Dhoods, Vince, Shirley S., and Paul A.  They are working at a site that was and going to be returned to a homeless shelter/food shelf/clothes closet, and case work.  There are pictures on our picasa site that show them tiling.  

Louie's team is working on two houses that are next door to each other.  Each is very close to being done.  The things that need to be done are a lot of touch up work, and just putting finishing touches on,-  and adjusting the doors so they close correctly,   Louie's team also has Ron C, Leanne, Mel, Mal, Rob, Krissy, Diane, Ginger, Annie, and me.  

 

I am not getting as many pictures this year because everyone is taking photos with their phone.  I can't  just plug their phones into my computer, so it's harder to get the pictures.  As I get them, I'll post them.  

Go to www.picsasaweb.com/rodscofield/nola7 to see our pictures.  Or go to our FB page.  

I REALLY like this team.  The new people have added in very well.  And I found out tonight, that you can make cole slaw with half miracle whip, half cool whip.  Who knew?  

Erin, Rob, Krissy, Mal, Mel, Erin, and Diane, and Leanne (that I know of,) went to Waffle House tonight to hang out.  They were maybe going to go try to witness to unbelievers, but I doubt it.  I think they just wanted waffles.  They asked if I wanted them to bring me back a waffle, but I opted for a Diet Coke instead. 

We are praying for Susan's mom, who was getting better, went back to her nursing home, and then fell again.  We are also praying for Diane's cousin Jill who had successful surgery today.  Pray for Ken from Epworth project for healing.  Pray for the battered women's shelter that Howard's team is working on, and the Christian service center that Bob's team is working on, and the family where Louie's team is working on their two houses.  

Thank you everyone for your support and encouragement and support!  

 

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

NOLA 7- Getting there

Hi All!  

Well we made it to Slidell tonight.  A few hiccups and a few funny things along the way.  

When we left on Saturday morning, it was snowy/icy.  Howard said it was the worst roads we've ever experienced on our trips.  The only other time I remember it snowing when we left was in 2008.  There were a lot of cars and trucks in the median.  Because of snow and a couple more stops than normal, we got into Cape Girardeau a little later than usual.  We had a little dinner, did devotions and some "get to you know you" and headed to bed.  There was no wifi in the part of the building I was in, so I couldn't send an update.  

Today we made better time.  Even with stopping for lunch at a rest stop and making our own lunch, we made better time.  We got into Slidell about 6:30pm.  Had dinner, did devotions, and some people went to WalMart and ran other errands.  Howard went to pick up Bob from the airport, and as I am writing this, at 12:45 am, they just got in.  

We have a great team.  

25 people-

Many repeats.  Donna G. is back in charge of feeding us.  She has Kathy B. and Shirley T. helping her.  This is Shriley's first trip with us.  

Howard and Bob N., and Louie L. will be leading the work teams.  

Also new to the team this time are sisters in law, Mel and Mal, Paul M., a friend of Howards we call Dhoods from the Philippines, and Diane from Hector, MN.  

Returning to the team from previous trip or trips are:  Erin C., Rod St. and Ginger St., Shirley S., Ron C., Rob W., Krissy K., Paul A., Lewis Wl, "Vince" N., Annie Z., Leanne C., Carolynn "The Colonel" N., and me.  

This team has just seemed to gel very well already.  Everyone is very helpful, looking ahead to see what has to be done, helping carry things, responsive, and great to be with.  I am really excited about the work we will be able to accomplish this week.  

Tomorrow we find out for sure what our work assignments are.  I told them about Bob's love for cabinets so we'll see if they have any cabinet jobs.  

Prayers for our homeowners, our safety on the worksites, and also for Susan L.'s mom.  (Susan has been on one of our trips, but always helps with the trips behind the scenes).  Please also pray for Barbara S., who has been on many of our trips.  Barbara got a virus awhile back and hasn't been able to shake it.  Also pray for our families that didn't get to come with us on this trip.  

I am trying to figure out how to get more photos from people when they all take them on their phones now.  I have also made Louie L., Krissy K., Rob W., Louie L., and Diane D admins on our Facebook page.  If you follow River Bend Mission Team on FB, and it seems like multiple personalties posting, you are right.  If you're on FB and not following River Bend Mission Team, I would encourage you to do so!  

Thank you to everyone who is praying for us and supporting us.  

Rod

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.

NOLA 7 countdown

Hello everyone!

I have spent a big chuck of time trying to get this distribution list into shape.  If you are getting this email and you don't want to, please let me know and I will take you off immediately.  I think I asked everyone permission to put you on here, and left some on that never responded, and left some on that I haven't heard from yet, and maybe missed taking some off that asked to be removed.  

So update for NOLA 7-  We are leaving on April 13th for our next trip to the Gulf.  We decided to go back to New Orleans because of Hurricane Isaac that hit last summer.  There are currently 27 people on the team leaving next weekend.  I would guess that about one-third are new to our group.  It should be an exciting team and an exciting trip.  

We are having a fundraiser this weekend at Crossroads United Methodist in Inver Grove Hts.  (formerly known as Salem United Methodist)  It is a chili cookoff/silent auction/jazz concert all in one.  Crossroads is on the corner of Upper 55th and Hwy 52 in Inver Grove Hts.  Starts at 5:30pm on Sat. April 6th.  If you are interested in coming and need better directions than that, give me a shout and I'll make sure you get there.  If you happen to have something you think would raise a lot of bucks at our silent auction and you want to donate it, please give me a shout.  If you want to compete in the chili cook off- again, let me know and we'll get you the "rules" and make sure you have a table.  We do have two celebrity judges for the chili cook off.  Gregg Swope and his wife Lois are going to be judges, and former Survivor contestant, Gary Stritesky from Survivor Fiji is going to be a judge.  Should be a hoot.  

After that fundraiser, we are going to start another.  This one is actually going to be looking to raise some big money.  The goal is going to be to jump start our organization into a viable business that can empower groups, equip people, and lead adult short term mission trips.  I usually want to make it a point to not ask for money in these emails.  The goal is not asking for money.  It's asking you to be aware of the cause, encourage you to be a part of the "team"-  even from afar, and pray for us and our cause while we are gone.  However, soon we will be starting a crowd-funding campaign with a website called, "Start Some Good" dot org.  Obviously, to make it work, I have to get the word out.  So I will be asking people that feel like what we're doing is a good thing and something that could be done long term with many groups, and feel like maybe they are supposed to give to it, to give.  I don't usually ask for money.  But the owner of the company I work for has been working on me to be better about not being nervous and nimbly bimbly about asking for what we need.  If we don't ask, we don't get.  Nobody is obligated nor will it hurt our relationship if you don't feel called to give.  I will ask you to pray about it and pray for it.  In the mean time, please pray for God to reveal to me what level to go after.  I've been waffling between going whole hog and trying to raise enough to fund a staff person full time, and operating and start up costs, or just part time and operating/start up, or just start up.  Feedback?  

I am grateful for everyone that shares this mission trip with us.  We will be 27 people on the road, and 200 people praying and supporting and being a part of the team from wherever you are.  

It's going to be good.  

R

--
True faith is never found alone; it is accompanied by expectation.  --C.S. Lewis.