With a bumper crop of Nomads still here at Faith this March, the list of completed tasks is growing longer each day. Some days it’s hard to keep track of all that’s being accomplished. Our numbers also swelled for a day with an energetic group of UT students on their Spring Break trip.
Project Work
With a dozen volunteers staying here at Faith, we have our hands full keeping them organized onto tasks and supplied with needed materials. There is a group of 3 or 4 whose primary focus has been powerwashing and painting / staining. This group has transformed the courtyard deck and picnic tables, refreshed the peeling paint on the front of Asbury Hall and Peeler, and various smaller touchups around the campus.
With a dozen volunteers staying here at Faith, we have our hands full keeping them organized onto tasks and supplied with needed materials. There is a group of 3 or 4 whose primary focus has been powerwashing and painting / staining. This group has transformed the courtyard deck and picnic tables, refreshed the peeling paint on the front of Asbury Hall and Peeler, and various smaller touchups around the campus.
Another 2 or 3 focus on electrical tasks, which range from small tasks like replacing a GFI outlet to major ones like installing the new service for the planned storage areas in the Peeler building. As the containers arrived that are to become Peeler’s new annex, Ron, Karen and Pat worked steadily for several days through the weekend to install lights and the main circuit panel before Ron and Pat had to leave for their home in Iowa.
The rest of the team moves around as needed, including both of us. There is a lot of ground to cover – literally and figuratively. Karen and Cathy have been working their way through the irrigation zones (there are 8), and replacing or adjusting the sprinkler heads so that they will water the grass, not the sidewalks or parking lots. Three have been done so far. Dave and Ken have spent several days attempting to clear a blockage that has developed in the drain for the new day care sinks. So far with no good success, but certainly not for lack of trying. We have sorted and organized tools, replaced glass in broken windows, installed shelves, replaced thermostats, and even assisted with the return of residents displaced by the fire last December back to their apartments, including washing a dozen loads of musty clothes and linens. When one of the church members built a new 6ft cross to install on the church grounds, you can guess who was there to dig the hole to install it and to run the power for the lights. That’s right.
While our list of finished tasks grows steadily despite the occasional aches and pains, it was still impressive to see what a dozen motivated college students could accomplish in just a morning. Sponsored by World Relief, the group of University of Tennessee students on an Alternative Spring Break trip arrived on a cold (for Florida) rainy Monday and were undeterred by the inclement weather. Divided into 4 teams, they attacked their respective tasks with enthusiasm and good humor. We dismantled an old shed that used to cover the well, mowed the grass in the field next to the Burmese garden, picked up half a dozen large bags of trash ( including a Walmart cart from the creek behind the campground), and dug out the valve boxes for the irrigation system that had vanished in the year since they were installed. It was hard to keep ahead of them. And they were a wonderful group to work with.
Boat Stuff:
We continue to squeeze in boat projects. Cathy finished the new windshield for the boat and began working on a couple of side panels. In the meantime, Dave inspected the navigation and anchor lights on the boat and cleaned connections as necessary to ensure they were working reliably.
We continue to squeeze in boat projects. Cathy finished the new windshield for the boat and began working on a couple of side panels. In the meantime, Dave inspected the navigation and anchor lights on the boat and cleaned connections as necessary to ensure they were working reliably.
Parting Shots
I know. Another cat picture.
We received an unsettling reminder that these creatures we think are so loveable have a dark side. When several birds flew into the windows and didn’t survive, the cats – even Hemingway – couldn’t resist “playing” with them.
We received an unsettling reminder that these creatures we think are so loveable have a dark side. When several birds flew into the windows and didn’t survive, the cats – even Hemingway – couldn’t resist “playing” with them.