the mountain, so there was lots of work to be done and projects to complete.
With our bellies full and site lunches made and packed into coolers, we headed out to our
work sites.
A large group went to the Houses site to complete the work there. At the house that got the new roof,
the peak cap was put in place, the ceiling was painted and an old toilet was removed. The poor folks
moving the toilet got a very unpleasant surprise in moving that from the house. The toilet still had
raw sewage in it. It totally grossed out the entire crew on the site. We made sure those poor souls were first
in line for showers upon returning to the church. At the other house where the floors were painted, the floor
was waxed and a new steel door was put in the bathroom.
A unique thing about the Hand in Heart Homes is that the bathroom in each house also acts as a storm
shelter. All of the ceilings and walls are constructed of concrete with a steel door to close the room. This
is what the family uses for protection in severe weather. They could not make these homes affordable to
the people who need them if they were constructed with a basement. So this is the next, best solution.
So no tick hunting would be neccessary on this day.
The Playground crew resumed work on finalizing the structure, this included competing construction
on the fence, painting it and spreading woodchips around the structure.
The Footer crew ended up cleaning the back of the warehouse and weeding the garden. They got a good
lesson in hoeing from our bus driver, Robert. He told them the importance of having sharp tools and shared
with them that he did this work in the 1950's during the summers when he was growing up and was paid $3/day,
which was less than his white counterparts were making for the same work. His story definitely made an
impression upon them. Lots of lessons learned on this day, by this crew.
The Cannery crew kept busy cleaning the inside of the Parish Center until Tami the Cannery Queen arrived.
Tami knows here stuff, she is a geat project leader. On this day, the crew made peach/green tomato jam.
Everyone was busy as bees doing all the work to make this batch of jam. This included washing and
sterilizing the jars and caps, prepping the green tomatoes and peaches, sifting sugar and pectin together,
cooking the fruit, putting the cooked fruit in jars, cleaning the jars and then finally placing the jars in a pressure
steamer to seal the product. This too tasted lovely, like peach flavored honey.
So I think it is safe to say that our last day of work was "fruitful".
We returned back to the church to cleanse and feed our bodies. We were treated to another amazing
James meal consisting of salad, cold cucumber soup (prepared with garden fresh cucumbers which
Tanya gave to us), and pasta with greens and handmade pork sausage. We all rolled away from the table
more than satsfied.
After dinner we went to a beautiful bluff that overlooked the Tennesee River. We got there just before
sunset and had a grand time basking in the beauty of the setting sun. It was an exquisite way to end the week.
We returned back to the church for small group time and bed. Saturday will be a travel day with a stop at Mammoth
Caves and one last overnight stay at a church on the way home.
This week all of us were touched and inspired by the community we served and by each other.
I think it is safe to say that we "saw God" on a daily basis. We learned that as a community and with the
help of God and prayer, great things can be achieved.
"I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received". ~ Ephesians 4:1
We heard the call and answered it loudly. Thank you for all your support in giving us the opportunity
to be in service this week.
--
Deborah Wood
Senior Art Director
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