A shift in the weather as a front blows in!

I thought this was an appropriate title, as our team worked indoors most of the weekend due to a week of rains that have soaked the grounds and swelled the streams again. We waited impatiently all day for a warm, dry front to blow in (and blow it did as we fought 45 mph gusts as we traveled from site to site).

We also experienced a shift for our ministry -- With a place to stay in Winona (thanks Pastor Moore and St. Martin's for the use of the school gymnasium and church dining hall over MEA weekend!), we had some real continuity as people could continue jobs for several days. Some nearly 60 people came in and out over the weekend; 18 of them staying all three days. The team is made up of all ages from all over the state. Churches include Woodbury Community Church, New Heights Community Church in Inver Grove Heights, Peace Lutheran Robbinsdale, Woodbury Lutheran, Good Shepherd Lutheran Circle Pines, Zion Lutheran Cologne, and Grace Lutheran Rochester.

I had a LONG day yesterday as I commuted from the Twin Cities and visited all our work sites in Rushford, Stockton and Minnesota City. It was amazing to witness the Body of Christ working!

We started by delivering two van loads of supplies for the Lutheran Disaster Response camp under construction at St. Mark in Rushford. A couple of members of Trinity Lutheran in Hudson arrived while we were delivering the supplies. They were bringing kitchen cabinets that had been donated from their church. Donated appliances have miraculously arrived as well and Pastor Merlin appears to be a bit overwhelmed but grateful for the outpouring. Our laborers on this site included an electrician and several sheetrockers, so it was exciting to see the progress they had made on the electrical and showers for the camp. We would have had more laborers at the camp if there had been room for all who wanted to work on the project.

I met with Rolf of LDR who will be coordinating workers, and introduced Gary and Karen Schmidt, members of Peace in Robbinsdale, to the LDR organization in Rushford. They worked with LDR projects to get a feel for how their jobs are organized. They were pleased with their job assignment and the day.

Pastor Moore of St. Martin in Winona reached out to Minnesota City in a very visible and needed way as they paid for a community dumpster that our volunteers are filling with debris they pick up in the neighborhood. The damage in the Gunderson subdivision is stunning; as bad as anything I witnessed on the Gulf. Even when you see it, it is nearly beyond comprehension. I can understand the despair the residents of this community are expressing.

I met and prayed with Peter Horton, who had several volunteers working on his home. He is a junior high teacher with two daughters, one 15, and a wife in hospice with MS. His home was totally gutted and all contents destroyed, they had no insurance, but the community has stepped up with volunteer help and his home is well on the way to recovery. Lynn and Patty Zellmer of Zion Cologne helped several of Pete's coworkers with sheetrock and a dozen of our team members picked up debris. What joy to bring hope to someone with so many burdens!

The repainting of the fellowship hall at Grace in Stockton is complete, thanks to Stacy Glocke and her children Zachary and Hillary from Good Shepherd, Circle Pines. Grace can begin using the hall again. A kitchen is still needed to complete the project, but their progress is a testimony to the faithfulness of this congregation (especially but not limited to Bev Potter) who has worked tirelessly to get their church and parsonage restored.

It was a great day, and the progress is visible and heartening. As Lutherans do so well, the members of St. Martin provided a fabulous potluck offering and fellowship Friday night, with plenty of leftovers for lunches on Saturday. When I left after team sharing and prayer, many from the group were starting a volleyball tournament in the gymnasium. Tireless, absolutely tireless!

Today, as I get ready to start my day at home in the Twin Cities, I am praying for the outdoor work on the schedule today. Two additional churches with another 14 laborers were going to join the group. Several team members were going to finish up their work at the camp in Rushford, some were rebuilding a garage in Minnesota City, still others working on replacing a roof in Winona, helping Pete Horton replace his siding, sheetrock in homes in Minnesota City and Winona, and continuing to pick up debris in Minnesota City. Many hands make the burden so much lighter and we are SO thankful St. Martin gave us the opportunity to coordinate the MEA weekend.

What's next? Pastor Moore in Winona is interested in a sheetrock blitz in Minnesota City. We'll keep you posted!

Photos from this weekend will soon follow. Watch for them! You'll love Will, our six-year-old "muddy buddy" who worked like crazy with debris removal for three hours in mud-soaked Minnesota City.

Recovering

I taught a class on Thursday to a group of junior high students and we explored the 3 "Rs" of disaster (response, relief and recovery). Recovery is not the responsibility of the federal government, or the Red Cross (they are responsible for response and relief) or the Salvation Army (relief). Recovery is a personal and community responsibility, so it falls to us as individuals and the church body to bring people back to wholeness.

With God's favor, we are quickly moving from Disaster Relief to Disaster Recovery as rebuilding starts. These are exciting times. I continue to receive 3-6 new phone inquiries a week from churches "kicking the tires" to see how their congregations might get involved in disaster assistance and am encouraged to see the fire to serve others spreading.

Last week volunteer count was small (to be expected after the blitz on October 6) but there were six members from St. Michael's Bloomington who helped finish the walls in the Stockton parsonage and did sheetrocking in the church. They are well on the way to completing the painting of those walls. The kitchen has not yet been completed, but the fellowship hall is nearly ready for use. Several of the men also helped John Regan, who returned to complete the sheetrock project at the Fritze house, and it is done. So, we already have one completion from the We Rocked Stockton event. That's progress, and encouragement for the entire community!