Joplin Mission Trip Aug

Another 106 or 108 day, but good things continue to happen. We have a happiness crew going around using the backhoe and their skills to make plumbing connections. Everyone is thrilled to see them and get flowing again. Bob Shoop went over and helped a volunteer group from California removing a sidewalk in their landscaping project. Yes, everyone is happy to see them, well the gas company is still suspicious. We have concentrated on the one house and site we can work on. The woman whose house we are building came by with donuts. Donuts from Dude's Daylight Donuts, so I can assure you the Dude abides, sweetly. This woman ran from her trailer and ended in the cooler at a gas station. The video recorded on a smart phone was played often in the days following the tornado. She went on down to her church after leaving the cooler to find her minister searching through the debris. Her best friend was found dead in the rubble, they had often worked together in nursery as her friend had been that evening. We have done all the good we could, not all the good we may have done, but coordinating all the volunteer efforts is still an organizational challenge. We have moved the ball forward and will leave Joplin a few steps closer to recovery.

Joplin Aug 2, 2012