The Final Push!!

Lagniappe, MS Day 6

On the sixth day, God said it was finished, and we agreed. Friday's workday ended as Monday's began: with a torrential downpour, water pouring in through the dining hall roof, flooding roads and parking lots...which gave us a small taste of what the Hurricane Katrina victims must have felt. Though we have had a great yet tiring week working here in Bay St. Louis/Waveland, MS, we are looking forward to returning to North Carolina to all of you who have been keeping us in your thoughts and prayers.

Our electrical team worked in earnest on the big house on the beach knowing full well that they wouldn't finish the job. Three rooms were fully wired, all the electrical boxes were installed, and progress was made in other rooms as well. We had a special treat when our host took us out to the Chinese buffet for lunch. They are wonderful people and we were pleased to have the opportunity to know them better.

The drywall team completed the projects that they had worked on the last few days. Each of them, especially Anna, finished the week a premature grey due to all the dust. The homeowner was so appreciative of their work that the team was blessed by hamburgers for lunch. Everyone on the team developed super-SPBs (sanding pole biceps). Any of you that need help finishing up a room, you know who to call.

The roofing team finally escaped the compound to work offsite, completing the ridge cap on a 8-12 pitched hip roof. The house started 9 feet off the ground, as the new building code requires that each house be built on stilts. They experienced their own hurricane in the form of 4-year-old Troy Jr. It was great to finally have a chance to visit some of the locals and hear their stories (such as a 38-foot storm surge on their property, only 5 feet above sea level). The 2-hour job grew to 7-and-a-half due to an inavailability of necessary materials and Heaven's Friday afternoon bowling league (thunder, lightning, etc.). After a short intermission, the job was completed safely and the team members signed their "John Hancocks" on the omnipresent Tyvek wall coverings of the front porch. Their arrival back at the compound, though delayed, was fortuitous as Benton had been stranded for an hour by the rising tide in the parking lot across the street.

Finally, tools were inventoried and returned from all three groups. The vans have been repacked with our well-used tools, some moist clothing, and we are preparing for the LONG trip home. Though we had planned to wear "the mission trip uniform" while traveling, discretion had the better part of valor, and the only requirement that the clothes worn be clean and free of mold. Looking forward to seeing our Calvary family on Sunday and sharing the goodness of God's mercies during our trip.

Note to readers: if there appear to be any problems and/or issues with photos from today's activities, it is because the Calvary Blogmaster and his family departed for a well-deserved family vacation this evening. BTW - if you also wonder why there is a "missing" posting on the 23rd of June, this is it. We started on the 23rd...

JCD; LWG; LML; WPT