July 31 & August 1.
We had two build days while we stayed in Americus. Those were also quite full days. In Americus, we split into two groups–one to work on a wheel-chair ramp and one to work in the office of the local affiliate of the Fuller Center. They were fixing up a living area above their downtown office. I helped cut down some bushes at the wheel-chair ramp site, and then jumped at the chance to help Grace with running errands. I am really out of my element at the build sites. I don’t see what needs to be done right away and need to be told what to do. But with so many workers and so few supervisors, we rarely get much detail in our instruction.
The best part of the day, though, was a chance to get to work with Thad. He spoke at one of the dinners we had and we learned something of his life. He was a construction worker who was injured when he fell off a truck. He was confined to a wheel-chair, and pretty much hopeless. When he was able to get help from the Fuller Center for Housing, it really turned his life around. He has been a volunteer with the Fuller Center ever since and it has given him a new purpose in life. He is not at all shy about ordering his crew around and telling us what to do. He was really upset that the materials weren’t delivered at the time he had arranged, and upset again when the auger wasn’t on the truck. Grace and I volunteered to get the auger. We had to take some seats out of the van to get it in.
Thad also credits his new-found purpose with the Fuller Center with giving him the courage to ask his wife to marry him! She was a member of the same church as he. She said no the first time he asked. I don’t know how many times he ended up asking, but now they are married.
A bit before noon we went to Koinonia Farm for lunch. Unfortunately, they had not been notified that we were coming. Or, rather, they were notified at some time, but the notice was lost or something. So they weren’t really prepared for such a large crowd. That was uncomfortable since, of course, they insisted that guests go first. When they were afraid that we hadn’t got enough to eat, they also ordered some last minute pizzas.
I sat at a table with some people from Pennsylvania who were there for a year. They had been there before to help with the pecan harvest. I didn’t quite figure out how Koinonia Farm works or what they do now. On the way there, I got a call from my brother that my Aunt Karen had died. He had seen it on Facebook and wanted to call so I found out from him rather than seeing it on Facebook.
On Tuesday at breakfast, I was idly checking Facebook when I discovered that my friend Bob Walters had died the day before. He was out for a bike ride and had a massive heart attack. So that was a terrible way to start the day. We were scheduled to drive to Albany, GA to work on a roofing project.
Bob wrote the book, The Last Missionary, about his bicycle trip in the North Katanga Conference of the United Methodist Church in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. I read it on the plane and during the beginning of the trip. When I finished the book, I let Bob know how much I enjoyed it. I said, “The ultimate compliment–I’m pretty sure I need to read it again.” Bob told me that he was enjoying following me on my journey. He had been reading my blog. It made me really proud to know that he was reading my blog because I am not near the cyclist he was. Bob was a colleague, a mentor, and a friend.
After receiving the news of Bob’s death I didn’t feel like going to the work site. I also didn’t feel like spending the day by myself. So I went. But I stayed off the roof and took charge of the magnetic nail picker for my job.
Once again, our materials were late in arriving, embarrassing the person who had set up the work. She was spending her birthday there helping roof the house!
I didn’t take any pictures of people working on the roof, just Becky holding the home-owner’s grand baby and the labyrinth at the church where we ate dinner.
For dinner, we were invited to another church in the area–about a 45 minute drive. The roof wasn’t done yet and several people decided they wanted to stay until it was completely done. Instead, they stayed until the shingles were gone! But still late. It was late when we got back to our temporary home in Americus.