Something simple from Judi

New Orleans is a city of destruction and despair life hope and a great belief that it will re-emerge as a new and vibrant place with an historic past. It was a privilege to be here as part of the hope. And it was special to discover that there is a famous basketball player from one of the neighbourhoods where we worked named Juju Wright!!!!!

Uh, hi folks! Lyle and I got to work closest to God (that means on the roof). WE spent the week fixing patching tarring, we’ll finish tomorrow. Been a good week, enjoyed it very much.
Dave Tuff
Ps a lot of great convertibles down here!

Good thing, bad thing

Good thing.....the camaraderie (sp?) and level of team work of this group of people. I don't remember a time when I've been involved in a group of this size and different degrees of skills that were/are able to work this well together.

Bad thing....the sick feeling that has been in the pit of my stomach since we arrived. I don't understand why there is still so much work to do....and so few people willing to help out. Who can't take a week out of there lives to help others....every little bit helps. Why does it take a group of Canadians to come all this way when there are able bodies so much closer. I have so many questions that I will never have answers to....guess I'll just have to live with the stomach ache!
Suzanne

Hello everyone!!
We have one day left of work and things are coming along nicely, but still a lot of work needs to get done. My main job I would say has been painting and I am proud to say that fresh paint really does brighten a place up. I think it is important to remember that all tasks make a difference; big and small. The people we have met are so grateful that we are here but I think we are even more grateful to help. It is an amazing and overwhelming experience that I would recommend to anyone if they are given the opportunity.
-Terri Currie

Trevor, Gord and Rob just came in and it is after dark. They were going to work a little bit longer but the sound of gun shots made them think twice. They are here and they are smiling.

We got the siding done around the curve and Ms. June and Vera came in and I talked to them for half an hour and they were amazed and pleased with the progress. We talked about how 50 kids could turn into 150 to 500 and they really loved the fence, the siding and the floor. This made us feel really good. There seems to be a lot of crack in this city.
-Stephen

HI! What other unbelieveable trip. Thanks to your generosity another group of people have been helped in NOLA. The people on the trip have worked long days to ensure that the daycare center is finished before we leave. The enthusiasm and leadership skills of Mike, Mike, Steve, Trevor and Gord have been a great asset to the organization of people and materials. Huge thanks again to Cam for his leadership and support for the people of NOLA.
Looking forward to being back on Saturday and sharing our experiences with you.
Take care,
Lyle

Noone had anything to say yesterday

because they all were too busy working.
So here are some pics instead.

Good Morning New Orleans

It's 6:30 and some of us are waking to our first full day of work. Yesterday was our welcome day, welcomed to Christian Unity Baptist Church, making ourselves welcome at the hotel and in the French Quarter and some of us, due to the generousity of someone at CUBC, welcome to the Jazz Festival. We all were made welcome by a sudden and persistent torrential rainstorm, a little over an inch of water fell in an hour. It was fun and folks adapted, but I couldn't help wondering if that much rain in that little time is a little unnerving for folks here.

Some of you are wondering about our journey here. It was longer than expected. I wrote a little that's included below. We only made it to Dayton OH the first night, which made for a long ride on Saturday. We got here around 1 am CDT. Most of the folks stayed relaxed and patient except for our two oldest workers who kept looking for things to do "Why aren't we working?"

Today we will be.

It was a strange feeling for me when we drove into the Lower Ninth Ward yesterday after lunch, to have our look at the Daycare. At first I didn't notice the level of destruction, something that has always got to me in the past. Then I noticed that I didn't notice and it bothered me that I'd gotten used to it. Then I did notice and felt sick to my stomach. People's lives marked by empty lots and ruins of houses and an idle day care centre. And the look on the faces of our crew, at least the new ones, when they saw the size of the task we've decided to tackle, and the smiles on the faces of those who have been here before and know that what looks impossible at the beginning of the week looks much different at the end.

So a paragraph I wrote earlier:
It’s almost 11 pm on Friday night and we should be coming into Louisville KY, about an hour away from our overnight stop in Elizabethtown. Should be. We left Aylmer with a happy group and great rides at 11:10, almost right on time. A group of friends and family and folks from our churches and Katrina, a young Golden Retriever praying for us and happy for us and cheering us on our way. An uneventful trip and easy run over the Ambassador Bridge and there we were, at 220 pm, at US Customs and Border Patrol with our email granting us permission to enter the States clutched in hand. But lo, the Scribes and Pharisees decried that we must be processed with antiquated software and a tedious process. We were patient and took in the stories of fellow travelers, and finally got on the road at 810 pm. That would put us in Elizabethtown in time for the breakfast buffet. So we will be stopping in Dayton sometime after midnight and have a 14 hour drive NOLA tomorrow. Thank goodness we get an extra hour when we change time zones!

Enough of that. Pictures and reflections of other coming soon. A last word?
We met a woman with a very young baby at church yesterday. Beautiful child. Her name is Hope.