The end of our first project!

Well!  We have come to the end of our first SOWER project.  We have had a great time working and getting to know the people here and the group we are here with.

We will be staying here for another project month but the other two couples will be leaving for Tennessee. 

Our group leaders. Cornie and Wilma Dykema are headed to eastern TN then back to Vermont and the farm for the summer.  Great leaders!

Bob and Patty Carrington are headed to central TN, and if the snow melts in northern PA they too will head home for a short spell.  Great workers!

Then there is yours truly.  We will be here for another month (I guess we didn't learn enough the first month).  Really, this is a great place to work and learn about what we are doing and we relish the extra time here.  We just learned that the other couple who was scheduled to be here has had to cancel, so now we will be here by ourselves, alone together!!! 

(The view from the back end of our home)

It will be a tough assignment but we will persist!

Shocco administration building.

OUR GOD IS SOOOO GOOD!!!!!

We SOWERS are really a clean lot!

Everything needs careful attention and cleaning.

Some work in familiar locations!

Here we are, back to keeping everyone clean and pressed.

Ah!  The room is nearly complete.  All it needs is a little carpet.

This should make the carpet stay in place.

And, someone is always causing sparks!

There is fun and relaxation as well as work!

The next three pictures are some of the product made at AIDB, Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind.

They make every tie worn by the military.

They also make steno pads with the aid of someone we know and love.  This machine is operated by a blind man.  He asked if anyone would like to give it a try.

This is a look across their sewing floor.  Sewing machines they use cost $10-15,000.

We also toured the Blue Bell Ice Cream manufacturing facility.

Here is the real benefit of this tour.  OOOH!  Moo-llennium Crunch!

Doin' the work!

Everyone listens when the Boss is giving instructions.

That smoke alarm won't make a funny noise anymore!

Do you put the glue on the wall or on the molding?

This is an understatement!!!!!

Look at the concentration.

Are we supposed to screw this thing to the wall?

The laundry never quite gets done!

It has been a very beautiful week at Shocco Springs.  Not a day below FREEZING!  We were even able to walk around the grounds (779 acres).  This is a great location and they are filling a great need for the people of Alabama and the city of Talladega.  We were blessed to be able to spend an evening with the director of the camp in his home on Wednesday night.  He told us the story of how Shocco came to be and the opportunities they have to work with young and old alike.  They have as many as 55,000 guests per year attend conferences as well as camp.  Look them up at ShoccoSpringsBaptistConferenceCenter.org.

Meet the SOWER crew

We would like for all of you to meet the entire SOWERS crew at this project.  In the rear is our group leader, Cornie Dykema and his wife Wilma.  They are farmers from Vermont and have been working with SOWERS for a dozen years.  Next to them are the Carringtons, Bob and Patty and like us this is their first SOWER assignment.  Last you will see the Wakemans.  We were spending an evening together dining and laughing.

Sunny Alabama????

Well, it is spring here!  At least that is what the calendar tells us.  Today is it supposed to be in the 50's.

Job Pics

This is Bob.

Here is the room 1/2 way through the process of remodel.

This is Patty.

Here is our group leader Cornie.

This is what the room looked like before we started.

First Day

Today was our first day of work. We are still a bit tired from traveling and trying to get everything unpacked but I don't believe that there are more than a few boxes left to unpack. Of course, there are still a couple of boxes in the barn on the farm that we packed when we moved to Watertown 14 years ago. Duh! Do we have too much stuff??? Today we started renovation on a building which is used to house youth when they have a retreat here. We stripped everything form the room, including base board and light fixtures then started cleaning and painting and replacing everything. I replaced the light fixture in the bathroom with two can lights and Billie helped to move and label furniture so we can get it all baack in the same place once the renovating is complete. Sorry, I didn't get any pictures today, will try to remember tomorrow. Love you all. Bob & Billie

On our way

We are finally underway. It was 12 below on the farm this morning and we couldn't get the Trakker started. Finally the starter kicked in and we were off loading the ALFA. The engine started OK but I couldn't get the generator to take hold. We started out anyway. We made it to Nevada, MO and are here for the night. We should be able to get a good start in the morning as I finally got the generator running and we will let it run through the night and keep the furnace running as well. Hope to get way closer to Alabama tomorrow. Just watching the weather, we may be headed into freezing rain as we head south and east. We trust that the Lord has it all in His hands.

IHN Bob & Billie