ALABAMA AID- HANDS ON

The staff of HisHands2Go ventured up to Hackleburg, AL, last week (5/23 - 5/27) to assist in the relief efforts.  The devastation in Alabama resulted from a powerful tornado ripping through the town of Hackleburg and it's outlying areas.  Homes were left in shambles- most resembling toothpicks tossed in piles by the roadside just waiting to be picked up and taken to the dump.  The folks of Hackleburg found themselves without home, several without cars, without the convenience of a grocery store, and the burden of cleaning up the overwhelming mess.

After awful events- most often natural disasters- an amazing thing happens... people of all ages, races, and ethnicity pull together.  They now have something in common and work together to clean up the mess, rebuild their homes, and care for each other by providing food, drink, and encouraging words.  Food tents were set up all around the devastated area.  We actually went to one for lunch everyday.  Portalettes were easy to find, and construction workers drove tractors, skid loaders, and other vehicles around the town offering assistance where it is needed.  I absolutely do not wish for disasters to occur, but I long for the raw atmosphere that follows a disaster.  Love and kindness are genuine, and the grace, peace, and hand of God are undeniable and exposed.  It's an amazing experience.

While volunteering in Alabama we worked alongside a special (especially to us) team of hard-working, mid-western volunteers from German Valley, IL.  This team spent numerous hours, days, and weeks assisting the residents and churches of New Orleans in the rebuilding process after hurricane Katrina.  The two teams combined to take apart a church building that the tornado ruined.  The work was hard and resulted in many scrapes and bruises, but to be able to bless a pastor who is trying to hold the church together amidst personal loss as well was definitely worth it.  Below are pictures of the devastation in Hackleburg and the work done on the church.

Please continue to pray for the folks of Hackleburg as well as those in Joplin, MO.

The church that we took apart.

Rich and Aaron on the roof.

Even the cooks came out to help!

The machine that deserves A LOT of credit for the clean up. 

The master mind behind the machine, and his young assistant driver.

Hard worker!

Larry Swift- director of HH2G, and Dan Miller.

Rich, the slave-driver of the roof crew (I was on that crew :-)  A wonderful person to work with!

The owners of the "salvage company."

My battle wound- I was kissed in the head by a steel beam.

The sanctuary of the church.  Where angels trod.

The sanctuary when the clean up was finished. 

ALABAMA AID

You have all heard of and possibly seen the devastation that resulted from the tornadoes that swept through the south these past few weeks- with Alabama suffering the worst of the damage.  New Orleans has received an incredible amount of assistance from folks around the country, and we look forward to repaying this kindness by assisting those affected by the storms in Alabama. 

HisHands2Go will be sending a team from New Orleans 5/23 - 5/28/2011 to Alabama to lend our assistance and determine how we may be able to provide meaningful long-term aid.  We look forward to connecting with a team from Crossroads Church , IL, that has volunteered through HH2G in New Orleans many, many times. 

 Please pray for us as we seek God's direction concerning HH2G's role in Alabama. 

And DON'T FORGET that we remain active in hosting teams that continue to rebuild New Orleans.  Stay tuned for further updates.

Planting Love and Harvesting Hope

 
One of the privileges of working with HisHands2Go is to see the effects of the changes happening in people's hearts as a result of their experience rebuilding in New Orleans.  Volunteers of various ages, races, cultures, and backgrounds are susceptible to this change.  There's just something amazing that happens in a person when they've spent significant time- their own personal time- investing in another person.  In the setting of HisHands2Go work, people are rebuilding homes for people who have lost much.  They are loving them by hammering nails, tearing down rotting wood, and listening to the stories of the people they are assisting.

The Harvest Bible Chapel team from Illinois has returned for a 3rd year of working alongside HH2G.  For several high-schoolers this was their 2nd or 3rd trip here.  Though we do not see them between their trips, we see a change in they way they work, how they interact with the homeowners, their leadership with the other students.  What a privilege we have.

The Harvest Bible Chapel team picked up the work where the IU team left off with Mr. Desoto "Bobby" Jackson and Mr. Cambell, and even started a new job- a demolition job!  Right off of Canal St. a home was not only damaged by the hurricane, but nearly burned down completely.  A large group of the students attacked the garage out back and cleared out the bushes and weeds on the property.  I just love those kinds of jobs!

Thanks Harvest!  Ya'll did an awesome job this week and we look forward to seeing you next year!

Good Ole' Midwesterners

 
The Midwestern folks of America are known for their hard-work ethic and generosity towards their neighbors.  You can imagine how excited we were to host a team of 48 people from Indiana University!  This team combined of guys and girls from IU worked efficiently to complete several jobs, and to bring a few other jobs close to completion- working for homeowners such as Mr. Campbell and Mr. Desoto "Bobby" Jackson, and the rehab center Teen Challenge.   

We at HH2G enjoy facilitating a memorable experience for the volunteers that work alongside us.  One of the ways we do this is to encourage trips to other parts of the city that they are not rebuilding in, partake in beignets and chicory coffee at the famous Cafe du Monde, and of course get a taste of the authentic cajun food that southern Louisiana is known for.  The IU team fortunately joined us in the month of March, smack dab in the middle of crawfish season!  Before this team left New Orleans they were treated to a shrimp boil in the bywater, and the next day we provided them boiled crawfish- yum!

Thanks to the IU team for their hard-work, you've completely raised the bar to the other Midwesterners coming down to the Crescent City!

SPRING BREAK 2011 kick-off

University of Central Florida shipped a team over to New Orleans the second week of March- consisting of many volunteers who had never been to NOLA before.  They spent the week painting for a Mr. Campbell (who treated them to yummy lunch food everyday- luckies!), and for Teen Challenge of New Orleans.  They were joined by a team from Pennsylvania- a group of gentlemen with one lady among them.  The Penn. team focused on a roofing job.  They found (as volunteers here in NOLA often do) that as they peeled back the layers of roof, they discovered more and more rotting wood and needed repairs.  They were up for the job though.

In addition to hard work, these teams enjoyed experiencing the multiple cultural facets of the city- from the ninth ward to the French Quarter and Uptown.  The excitement of being in New Orleans was at least doubled- as they came during the week of Mardi Gras!  Parades were running night and day and the streets were filled with party-goers.  An exciting time to be in the city.

Thanks so much to these two teams who kicked-off our spring break!

Thoughts for Pondering

The flood of volunteers that typically overtakes the city of New Orleans during spring break has not disappointed in 2011.  As I drive down the road I see multiple homes being restored and rebuilt by the generosity, sweat, and love of volunteers.  The home across the street from my office had volunteers working inside and outside last week.  When I passed them on Friday they were cheering and clapping- no doubt celebrating the accomplishment of bringing a home-owner much much closer to being back in their home.  Not just their house... their home.  Maybe they were the ones to put the finishing touches on the house and were handing the keys over to the homeowner.  Now that is definitely something to celebrate.  I wonder who that homeowner is.  I'm sure they have a story to tell- everyone does you know.  Not just stories about their experience through hurricane Katrina, but about their lives before and after.  I hope the volunteers were able to hear those stories.  They may have rebuilt a home, but they have made an impact on more than just the hurricane aftermath chapter of the homeowner's life.  The effects of their kindness will carry on through the rest of the homeowner's life.