Report emailed on Sept. 23...

The team left Epworth UMC Toledo @ 1:00 PM on Sunday September 21, 2008.  We arrived in Delphi Indiana around 6:00PM.  Our beautiful home away from home was the vacant middle school gym.  Each of us found our sleeping spots on the wrestling mats except those that had a private room with air conditioning.  We used the back of the concession area for our breakfast area, team meeting and sack lunch preparation center.  

Our first day consisted of two teams, one team was assigned repairing holes in a roof and putting on asphalt shingles.  The other team started a dry wall sanding project. 

The roofing team consisted of Dirk, Dave, Devin, Bob, John and Wes.  The first part of their roofing project was to fix and repair the rotten wood in the roof decking.  After that was done, they started the drip edge, starter shingles and tough card, next came the shingles; a bunch of shingles (two ½ days worth). 

The dry wall sanders and “mudders” including one chamois girl (ask Polly) were Dick, Polly, Barb, Jo, Marlene, & Marilyn.  They worked in the home of a single mom with two teen age children and an invalid mother.  She is a member of the Army National Guard and will be retiring soon after 20 years of service.  She’s been in the house and has been flooded on two different occasions in the seven years she’s lived there.  They have been mudding and sanding and will prime the walls of seven rooms.   She has had very little assistance until this team arrived, she’s a very hard working single mom and very appreciative of our help.    

A world class painting crew consisting of Marlene, Jo, John and Bob worked up a nice sweat painting the interior walls of a home along the Tippecanoe River.  Their modest one-story home had been badly damaged by the sudden flood last January and has remained vacant. Virtually all of their furnishing were lost. Three days after the flood they received joyous news that they were expecting a baby.  However, “T.J.” the prospective mother had difficulty as the pregnancy progressed and was bedridden toward the end—and could not help her husband fix-up their home.  They were trying to do everything themselves, including complete tear-out of the old drywall.  They did receive financial help which they used to purchase all the new drywall and paint.  The DANI (Disaster Assistance of Northwest Indiana) coordinated a group from Canada to install and finish new dry-wall.  Our small (but mighty) team began the painting process---with hope that the interior will be finished in the next two days so the young family can begin the move-back process.  They have been living with their in-laws since January.  Although we have not met the family ---we feel they will know we are Christians by our love.