Our Last Day

It's our last day and we're working hard in the distribution center. We're sad to see the week come to an end, but it's rewarding to see all that we've accomplished!

Kentucky Ave.

Carrie is here and jumped right in! We got back to our roots working on Kentucky Ave. yesterday, helping Stanley. He was in his home with his dog Sparky when the tornado hit. His house is destroyed and will soon be bulldozed but he had a great spirit and sense of humor. He was happy to have help and an audience. All he wanted was his rosebush!

Harlem Ave.

Yesterday we started working on a yard on Harlem Ave. We tore down a shed that had been severely damaged and cleared it from the yard. We also helped city clean up by sorting shingles, wood, metal, brush, and garbage debris into piles on the curb. The owner of the home is 75 and his adult daughter lives with him. We will be helping them sort through their damaged sunroom today.

Shower Trailer!

Here's some pictures of the Christian Appalachian Project's Shower Trailer! We've been getting a steady amount of people come to use the showers and do their laundry. More and more have come each night and we've had to extend our hours. Helen and Bill have been manning the trailer all week, with the help of a few other Apostles here and there. The community seems to really appreciate having the trailer!

Mercy Village Site

For four days we worked at Mercy Village, a retirement facility right next to St. John's Hospital. We helped residents pack up their apartments and load up Pods that their belongings will stay in until the facility is fully repaired. It is estimated that it will take 9 months to repair all of the damage.

Meeting and working with the residents was a labor of love. All were incredibly grateful for our help and were so surprised that we had come all the way from Kentucky. They had a deadline of last Saturday at 5:00pm to be moved out, so we all had to work together to get everything packed up and out. We finished by 10am on Saturday!

This is Patty. She is 74 years old and had lived in her apartment for 5 years. She said that she was the only one who had ever lived in her apartment and she was very proud of the decorating that she had done to make it home. She was dusting her apartment when the warning for the tornado came on the TV. She knew that she had to get to the first floor immediately. She grabbed her purse and headed down the stairs.

She remembers it raining really hard, and when the tornado came, all the residents were in the hallway, crouching down and covering their heads. When the tornado had passed and it was safe to leave, all residents were taken to a shelter that had been set up at Missouri Southern University. She says there were all kinds of people staying at the shelter and she remembers being scared. Luckily, her neighbor from across the hall was sleeping in a cot next to her and that brought her comfort.

The day after the tornado had hit her family arrived to take her to their home. She had been staying there for a week and a half until she was allowed to come back to her apartment to collect her salvagable belongings.
This is where we met Patty.

I had the honor of packing up one of Patty's most prized possessions, her living room hutch that was full to the brim of all her old photos and memorabilia from her life. I sat with her as we wrapped glasses in newspaper and looked through photos of her when she was just a baby. I got to hold in my hands her birth certificate, marraige license, and her 3rd grade report card. I got to look through postcards her mother had collected. It was an incredible experience to share with Patty.

Patty is unsure of her future. She has just moved in to an assisted living community and is hoping to shortly move into her own home provided by Habitat for Humanity. She admitted that she was a little scared to start over, but she was full of hope for the years to come. She was looking forward to playing bingo, going on outings, and maybe even meeting new friends, both in the assisted living community and the street she hopes to live on soon. - Kelly

Joplin Family Worship Center

While we're not on site we're working at the distribution center helping families shop for items and keeping stock.



and the food is really good too!

Day Two Reflection

Today I helped an older woman move her things. When I was done she gave me a little hug and offered me $5.00 and I told her I was not there for money. I told her I came there to help her and others. She told me she had to move back in with her son and she didn’t want to.  She had tears in her eyes and a smile on her face.

After we were done we went back to the church. It was hot and it was a long day. Rudy was sitting down doing what he was doing. I saw a rope and I tied him in his chair. I had to find something funny to do. We got pictures of him. We all worked real hard today, just to help out.  It felt good to help people with anything they needed.  

 – David

The stories I hear have been great. The first person to take a shower was so very grateful. Each person I speak with has such amazing stories, if I wrote all of them, I would have a complete book. There is one story that I will never forget, and each time I tell it I am reminded of how god has a reason for letting us live.

A five year old child was found in a town about 5 miles away from Joplin walking the streets. When asked where he lived and how he got there he replied, “The angels picked me up in the wind and placed me here. They told me not to be afraid.”

The town is bad and I may never be able to comprehend the death, hurt, and pain that was suffered here, but one thing for sure is that seeing people come together in unity, helping one another is a great feeling. And knowing I have had a small part in helping is great.

– Mary June

Reflections on the First Work Day

It hurt to see how bad it was out there. Today knowing that people lost everything that they worked so hard for and there was not a thing I could do or say that would change things here in Joplin. I could feel the hurt and pain that I saw in some of the faces. I had a bad day and pray that my day tomorrow will be better.

- David

To see the destruction that happened here in Joplin was very upsetting. In fact it brought a tear to my eyes, and an ache to my heart. To see houses destroyed and the trees stripped of the bark, was just unbelievable. To understand what this does to your mind, you would have to walk in our shoes to see what we see.

- Helen and Bill

Roadtrip!

SOME of us saw the sights...

At each stop we made along the way we were bombarded by local support! Everyone stopped to find out who we were and what we were planning to do. People were even talking about the blog! Having so much support energized us, even along the long and exhausing road.

We arrived at the Joplin Family Worship Center, where we will be helping around 7ET. We toured their church and were amazed at the mounds of donations that they have recieved and how quickly they are distributed out. Looking forward to adding to the mounds when the truck arrives!

From the Worship Center, we took a quick drive to see the area devastated by the tornado. Everywhere you look there are signs of damage, and yet, there are so many signs of hope and of the community coming together to help one another. We can't wait to join them!

Finally, we made it to the Gathering Place, the beautiful home that we will be staying in for the next week. We met so many new friends from all around the country. We'll post some pictures of it later. It was late when we made it in!

The Send Off

Many of our volunteers, WKYT, members from Christian Appalachian Project, and Father Norman, came to the Community Inn to give us a proper send off. We recieved a blessing, shared our hopes for the week, and prayed together. What a perfect way to start our adventure, with the people who supported us the most!

Pre-Departure Festivities!

Earlier this morning Sherry Buresh, our partner from the Christian Appalachian Project, came to train the team on safety and how to deal with disaster relief. She shared stories of her experience in the field and presented a PowerPoint full of photos and information. The twelve Apostles of Hope were attentive, and will be more than prepared for the week to come.


The crew listens as Sherry Buresh discusses safety precautions.

 Catherine Permin, nurse practitioner from Paragon Family Practice gave each Apostle a physical and updated them on tetanus shots. Not only are we mentally prepared, but we're physically prepared for the hard work ahead of us!

Some of the Apostles, guests at the Community Inn, and Volunteers, put in another hard and successful day at the semi. Thank you to all in the community who donated and supported our cause. The semi is packed and ready to hit the road!

The guests at the Community Inn held a prayer service for the twelve Apostles of Hope, holding hands and surrounding them with love and support. Prayer services such as this will continue nightly at the Community Inn while the Apostles are away. Knowing there are people back home thinking of them will strengthen them in their endeavours in Joplin.

Finally, the Apostles had their final group meeting before departure. Candace Sword and little helper Eleanor from the Christian Appalachian Project stopped by to hand out our Homeless Sharing Hope t-shirts. So excited to debut them tomorrow!

Tomorrow is the big day! Thank you to everyone for your overwhelming support. We could not have done it without you. Time for us to get some rest for the early rise.

Meet the Apostles of Hope!

Ellis

Brother Thomas

Jay

Kelly

 Helen

 Bill

 Christina

 Tim

Rudy

Mary June

David

Mary