A Tremendous Thursday

Back to work.

 

Yesterday we returned to our regular schedule starting with breakfast at 6:30 and a day filled with work, play and worship.  Everyone was a bit relaxed from the day before and it wasn’t until we reached the colonia iglesia (church) before we were fully ready to dive into the work at hand.

 

The work-sites building houses worked on painting their walls and building trusses.  Truss building in one of the most difficult and frustrating parts of building these houses that takes a crew of four and a special jig.  Kudos to Allen W who single-handedly built most of the trusses for his work-site - without a jig.

 

After building 9 trusses, the teams installed them on top of the walls.  Most teams were then able to nail plywood sheets on top of the trusses so that all they need today is to add the tar paper and shingles.  Other tasks for today include installation of the gables, finishing the painting, mounting the door and completing the trim.

 

The work-site at the church divided between a paint crew who continued painting the exterior and a construction crew who removed the forms from the concrete pillars poured on Tuesday, replaced some sheetrock and built wall extensions inside the pastor’s house.  We were excited to see that the name of the church had been added on Wednesday to the front of the church we had painted on Tuesday.

 

Two of our members received gifts from friends they have made.  Dana received a wooden animal from a little girl she befriended at VBS.  Doyle received a glass from the woman whose home she is building.  These gifts were very touching in that they obviously came from the hearts of the givers who have obviously been touched by God’s love being shared through our service.

 

After returning to the hotel, another energetic water polo game was held.  A little later, a group headed over to Sorianas to fill some critical sugar needs that had popped up.  After dinner groups met as usual to plan today’s construction and VBS and to prepare sandwiches for today’s lunch.

 

Worship was another outstanding experience, with music led by Brittany’s worship team and our message given by Pastor Lonnie.  At the end of worship a number of us got up and told how this week has changed us.  There were some moving testimonies – including from some siblings.

 

Siblings also played a part in our only injury of the day.  Not to be outdone by her sister’s black thumb, Erin added a little cut to her foot during an impromptu Mexican Hat Dance game after worship.  Callie said something about their bond as klutz sisters.

 

Today we wrap up our jobs at the work-sites and “turn over the keys” to the houses to the families.  We plan to take pictures with the families in front of their new homes as we present them with a cross to hang in their homes with signatures of the work crew.