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Showing posts with label IDES. Show all posts
Showing posts with label IDES. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Help Sandy victims
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Joplin MO
Last Sunday after church, we traveled to Joplin MO to work with I.D.E.S. This is the second time I have gathered up a team to go assist in Joplin. The majority of our group were homeschoolers, graduated homeschoolers or moms of homeschoolers. OK, 99% of the group--we had one young adult along who was a public schooler.
This trip, we painted the exterior of a home--siding and trim, hung garage doors, painted a 3 bay garage, did some clean up, hung sheet rock, moved insulation and supplies, dug holes for deck footings, put up furrowing strips, helped put up window trim, checked for water leaks prior to an inspection and a lot more. We had 18 in our group this time, consisting of 1 male adult, 5 adult women, and 12 older teens. We had a great time, the kids learned some new construction skills, and found out we had some muscles we didn't know we had.
Of an evening, we came back to the Westside Christian Church--the church that hosts us (it turns into a dorm for IDES volunteers during the week) to shower and eat. After a wonderful nightly dinner, our routine was board games and bringing out the guitars, piano and violin. One of our volunteers, Maggie, did the majority of the nightly cooking--we even had pork loin one night!!!
This trip, we painted the exterior of a home--siding and trim, hung garage doors, painted a 3 bay garage, did some clean up, hung sheet rock, moved insulation and supplies, dug holes for deck footings, put up furrowing strips, helped put up window trim, checked for water leaks prior to an inspection and a lot more. We had 18 in our group this time, consisting of 1 male adult, 5 adult women, and 12 older teens. We had a great time, the kids learned some new construction skills, and found out we had some muscles we didn't know we had.
Of an evening, we came back to the Westside Christian Church--the church that hosts us (it turns into a dorm for IDES volunteers during the week) to shower and eat. After a wonderful nightly dinner, our routine was board games and bringing out the guitars, piano and violin. One of our volunteers, Maggie, did the majority of the nightly cooking--we even had pork loin one night!!!
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Heading back to Joplin
Next month, I am taking a group of homeschoolers back to Joplin for a week to help IDES with rebuilding Joplin after the May 2011 tornado. Most of the group have already been, but we are adding some new members to our team.
Last trip, we hand cleared a parking lot of rubble which at one time were part of a church, cleaned up a yard, did some painting, spread gravel, pulled yucca plants, moved wood and rocks, burned a brush pile, and built a storage shed.
Our duties for this trip have not yet been determined, but I am sure Rick and Joe will have plenty to keep us busy. We could be painting, sheet rocking, or doing other inside work, or weather depending, possibly doing some outside construction work, landscaping or construction. No matter what job they give us, these kids jump in willingly and do it.
We will again be staying at Westside Christian Church in Joplin. They host all the IDES teams that come down.
The kids learn a lot, not only about disasters, or construction (hey, we had girly girls using the nail guns like pro's by Saturday morning last trip), getting along with others when it is 115 degrees outside and the deodorant has quit and you are sleeping 6 to a room, doing your own cooking and laundry, but also about people--how God takes care of his people and how they pull together after something like this happens. We talked to several residents who "rode out the storm" and listened to and read about their stories of how they, when hurt themselves, went to help someone else or dig in rubble for a neighbor.
Our last trip was sponsored by Mission Lake Christian Camp--kids, staff and parents gave and gave and gave and generously sponsored our trip 100%, with money left over to give to IDES and for us to buy some tools that we left behind for future teams to use.
This trip however, we will be paying out own way, which is basically buying food and fuel for our vehicles.
We will also be taking down any tools or Lowe's gift cards that anyone cares to donate to IDES Joplin project.
For information on donating tools or if you care to donate gas, grocery, restaurant or Walmart cards to either our group or IDES let me know and I can give you information on how to get it to either us or IDES directly.
Last trip, we hand cleared a parking lot of rubble which at one time were part of a church, cleaned up a yard, did some painting, spread gravel, pulled yucca plants, moved wood and rocks, burned a brush pile, and built a storage shed.
Our duties for this trip have not yet been determined, but I am sure Rick and Joe will have plenty to keep us busy. We could be painting, sheet rocking, or doing other inside work, or weather depending, possibly doing some outside construction work, landscaping or construction. No matter what job they give us, these kids jump in willingly and do it.
We will again be staying at Westside Christian Church in Joplin. They host all the IDES teams that come down.
The kids learn a lot, not only about disasters, or construction (hey, we had girly girls using the nail guns like pro's by Saturday morning last trip), getting along with others when it is 115 degrees outside and the deodorant has quit and you are sleeping 6 to a room, doing your own cooking and laundry, but also about people--how God takes care of his people and how they pull together after something like this happens. We talked to several residents who "rode out the storm" and listened to and read about their stories of how they, when hurt themselves, went to help someone else or dig in rubble for a neighbor.
Our last trip was sponsored by Mission Lake Christian Camp--kids, staff and parents gave and gave and gave and generously sponsored our trip 100%, with money left over to give to IDES and for us to buy some tools that we left behind for future teams to use.
This trip however, we will be paying out own way, which is basically buying food and fuel for our vehicles.
We will also be taking down any tools or Lowe's gift cards that anyone cares to donate to IDES Joplin project.
For information on donating tools or if you care to donate gas, grocery, restaurant or Walmart cards to either our group or IDES let me know and I can give you information on how to get it to either us or IDES directly.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Our week in Joplin MO
You probably noticed I have not been on here much this summer. All summer, the girls and I have been home for a week, then gone for a week.
Last week was our last "gone for a week" week. At least for awhile.
We spent part of our summer in Texas, then on to Flaming Spirit Christian Camp, then Mission Lake Christian Camp, then Girl Scout Twilight Camp, then VBS followed by a family reunion. Then, last week we were in Joplin MO for 6 1/2 days.
After church, I headed up a group of homeschoolers to go to Joplin MO to work with IDES to assist with the tornado damage from the May tornado that removed between 30% and 40% of the structures in Joplin, including a huge hospital. My church was good enough to let me use the church van to take the bulk of the group in, and then we met another family in Harrisonville and headed on down to Joplin. IDES has their base camp set up at the West Side Christian Church in Joplin. We slept in the church, and IDES has built portable shower houses, a laundry room, and tool sheds in the church yard. In addition, they also have set up a lumber yard and 2 semi trailers full of supplies and tools.
Each week, a different team takes turns coming in and helping out, often taking up where the last group left off. During our week, we did landscaping, cleared and burned brush, dug up a unwanted zillion yucca plants (which the kids gave me a hard time about as I drug a bunch of the better looking ones home to replant), removed a fence that was to be relocated later, removed bricks and mortar off of a house wall so that siding could be put on, helped with some roofing and siding chores, picked up glass, rocks and nails from a yard, primed the trim of a house, moved gravel by hand (2 huge piles of it), and in 12 hours time cleared a huge parking lot of the debris left from a concrete block church maintenance building. We also removed some flower beds and enlarged the floor of an old shed site, and erected a new larger shed at the site.
The work was not easy--all pretty much hard labor and in high temperatures. One day we had a heat index of 113 degrees, but we kept drinking water and kept on working.
Last week was our last "gone for a week" week. At least for awhile.
We spent part of our summer in Texas, then on to Flaming Spirit Christian Camp, then Mission Lake Christian Camp, then Girl Scout Twilight Camp, then VBS followed by a family reunion. Then, last week we were in Joplin MO for 6 1/2 days.
After church, I headed up a group of homeschoolers to go to Joplin MO to work with IDES to assist with the tornado damage from the May tornado that removed between 30% and 40% of the structures in Joplin, including a huge hospital. My church was good enough to let me use the church van to take the bulk of the group in, and then we met another family in Harrisonville and headed on down to Joplin. IDES has their base camp set up at the West Side Christian Church in Joplin. We slept in the church, and IDES has built portable shower houses, a laundry room, and tool sheds in the church yard. In addition, they also have set up a lumber yard and 2 semi trailers full of supplies and tools.
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| Removing wood and rocks from a yard that a tornado family was moving to. |
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| Spreading gravel at the IDES headquarters |
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| Our group showing off some tools that were donated. I think by the weeks end we used them all. |
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| The shed we built. IDES builds sheds for tornado families to put their belongings in if they are in a situation where they had to downsize or still have their land but no home yet to store their belongings. |
Each week, a different team takes turns coming in and helping out, often taking up where the last group left off. During our week, we did landscaping, cleared and burned brush, dug up a unwanted zillion yucca plants (which the kids gave me a hard time about as I drug a bunch of the better looking ones home to replant), removed a fence that was to be relocated later, removed bricks and mortar off of a house wall so that siding could be put on, helped with some roofing and siding chores, picked up glass, rocks and nails from a yard, primed the trim of a house, moved gravel by hand (2 huge piles of it), and in 12 hours time cleared a huge parking lot of the debris left from a concrete block church maintenance building. We also removed some flower beds and enlarged the floor of an old shed site, and erected a new larger shed at the site.
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| Still many homes like this one standing--The kids called this photo "cook out?" |
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| This is a pile of debris that we moved by hand. We tried to get a bobcat, but due to all the glass and nails it had to be one on solid tires or tracks--and none were to be found in Joplin. Under the brush is concrete blocks. |
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| Our group. We had 4 adults and 9 teen home schoolers. Rick, the director was impressed by the amount of work these kids did each day. He would make a comment to the effect that if we got done to point A or B, we could call it a day, but each day they kids were determined to get the entire project done. |
The work was not easy--all pretty much hard labor and in high temperatures. One day we had a heat index of 113 degrees, but we kept drinking water and kept on working.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
I.D.E.S. and Joplin MO
In August, I am leading a team of volunteers to go work in Joplin for 6 days. This is to assist with the cleanup and rebuilding from the tornadoes in May. We will be under the direction of I.D.E.S....http://www.ides.org/joplin.html
International Disaster Emergency Service or IDES has been supported by the Christian Churches since 1973. When a disaster strikes, IDES goes in. Various Christian Churches make up the teams. Each team has between 10 and 15 members and go in for 6 days at a time. When they arrive, they take up where the team that just left left off at. The next team to come in takes up where that one left off...So it goes until the job is done. If one project is done, they start another, and keep going as long as the donations keep coming in.
On our way home from our vacation in May, we came through Joplin, just hours after the tornado hit. Originally our plan was to eat breakfast there (as had driven straight through from TX) and then to show the girls Ozark Christian College. As we got off the exit ramp we saw a semi laid over, then every thing was fine again for several blocks. Then, we turned the corner and it looked like a war zone. A friend of mine since early childhood lost his home and vehicle in the storm (He had no insurance on the home). Of course all the contents were also destroyed or blown away.
My team is responsible for raising our own support, as far as fuel to get there and back, and to operate on all week, as well as our food for the week. However, a dorm and showers have been made at Westside Christian Church in Joplin for us to stay at. We will be able to use their full kitchen and laundry area as well.
If you would like to help support our team, contact me and I can give you more information. If you want to send money to ides, their information is on their website for you to donate online or you can send it to their offices in Indiana at:
International Disaster Emergency Service
PO Box 60
Kempton, IN 46049-0060
International Disaster Emergency Service or IDES has been supported by the Christian Churches since 1973. When a disaster strikes, IDES goes in. Various Christian Churches make up the teams. Each team has between 10 and 15 members and go in for 6 days at a time. When they arrive, they take up where the team that just left left off at. The next team to come in takes up where that one left off...So it goes until the job is done. If one project is done, they start another, and keep going as long as the donations keep coming in.
On our way home from our vacation in May, we came through Joplin, just hours after the tornado hit. Originally our plan was to eat breakfast there (as had driven straight through from TX) and then to show the girls Ozark Christian College. As we got off the exit ramp we saw a semi laid over, then every thing was fine again for several blocks. Then, we turned the corner and it looked like a war zone. A friend of mine since early childhood lost his home and vehicle in the storm (He had no insurance on the home). Of course all the contents were also destroyed or blown away.
My team is responsible for raising our own support, as far as fuel to get there and back, and to operate on all week, as well as our food for the week. However, a dorm and showers have been made at Westside Christian Church in Joplin for us to stay at. We will be able to use their full kitchen and laundry area as well.
If you would like to help support our team, contact me and I can give you more information. If you want to send money to ides, their information is on their website for you to donate online or you can send it to their offices in Indiana at:
International Disaster Emergency Service
PO Box 60
Kempton, IN 46049-0060
Please specify where you want your money to go: such as Joplin, Katrina or any of the projects listed on their site.
Please keep my team in your prayers. We still have a few spots to fill on it as well.
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