Back to work at Sunshine Bible Academy

After some time at Barnabas on the Lake, the farm, visiting Camp Bighorn and visiting with family we are back to work.  We have finished the June project at SBA and with the help if Don and Priscilla Schager we got a lot done. 

 

We got started with a meet and greet and have now made two new friends in our Sower family.

Priscilla and---

---Billie spent most of the project painting either in the boys dorm or the cafeteria.

Don learned a new trade, one of laying laminate flooring, and did a great job.

After finishing the new sheetrock on the north wall of the chapel we painted the wall and the sidewalls of the stage area---

---while my master painter did the fine cutting and baseboard.

We also repaired the wall in the entry closet and painted the closet.

Now here is the job that I have been waiting for for several years.  The entry to the old gym was really getting unsightly.  This year a mama raccoon climbed up to the roof, dug a hole through and had her pups in the space above the ceiling. 

After cutting holes through the headers on both sides and inserting a chain---

---and giving it a tug with the tractor, the entry fell away.

After cleaning up the building we attacked the concrete.  Some of the pieces we so large the skid steer could not lift them.  Solution, flip them over onto another piece of concrete and break them into smaller pieces---

---load them into the truck and haul them away.

 We then set to preparing a form to pour a new floor for the new entry.

 After a few years of concrete---

---preliminary scree-ting---

 ---and a final float to finish the  floor.

Another project to complete was removing and replacing the old cross in the teardrop.

 

One of the students manufactured a new aluminum cross and with a bit of work we placed it over the pipe which was set in the center of the new pad.

Then came the task of cleaning up the concrete rubble---

---install a new LED spotlight---

---wire it for service---

---bring in fill dirt and level and compact it.

 

Another project was to pour a new sidewalk for the Dean of Students---

---prepare the re-rod cages for the goal posts on the new football field---

 

---then pour the concrete for the goal posts.

 When we finished the goal post stands the concrete truck driver took a look in the truck and declared he had a few yards of concrete left so we added concrete pads to the front and rear of the shop.

 On a Sunday afternoon we decided to visit the wet lands north and west of SBA.  We were surprised to see that the water level had lowered considerably.  There were still able to watch a pair of American Avocet looking for a meal---

 ---and another wader we are not able to positively identify.  If you have an idea, leave a note.

  On one of our trips back from town we watched a cloud drop a narrow band of rain as it traveled ahead of us.

  Of course we have a bunch of these beautiful guys feeding at our feeder.

As a finisher for the blog entry we leave you with a view of the new cross after dark.  That leaved no doubt as to who is in charge!

A long time between posts

It seems like it was last year since we updated the blog.  We have not been working at a project but it is not that we have not been working---and moving around a lot.

 After returning from the cruise with Barnabas Prep we went to the new camp on Table Rock Lake to help prepare it for Sower RV sites.  When we turned the water on we found a few leaks and had to fix them before starting the site. 

 And the digging began.  360 feet of trench, much of it through rock and that was not really fun.

 The final trenching and pipe connected the new line into the existing sewer line leading to the treatment plant.

 Before we completed all of the digging and covering the pipe, an oil hose on the Case burst so we had to bring the small tractor from Camp Barnabas to finish the job.

 Now it is beginning to look like an RV site.

 We left there and traveled to the Wakeman farm in Kansas to help brother Pat burn some of the old CRP (Conservation Reserve Program) grass

 After disking around the edges the fire was lit.

 It burned through the dead grass---

 ---but not as fast as I had thought---

 ---finally the fire moved toward the motor home and we decided to light a little backfire.

 When it was off over the whole area was black and still.

With all of the black from the fire, the dogwood stood out very well.

The next leg of our journey was to drive the motor home to Denver to visit the kids and grandkids.

 

Our grand daughter and grand son have been learning to accompany themselves on guitars---

---and Grandma willingly sat down to sing with them.

We spent a day at the Denver zoo---

---watching the wonderful creatures of God---

---and wondering where He got all the parts to put them together?

Mother and daughter--the short one is the mother.

After seeing the animals we were thrilled to see some of the beautiful foliage there.

Back at the house we had another concert on the violin by our grand daughter.


We had the blessing of a meal with our daughter and son and grand children---

---with my brother and his family---

---but all too soon we had to leave for the farm again.

But while we were gone that black field had a change of complexion to a lovely green.

Soon after that we loaded up again and made the trek to Sunshine Bible Academy.  We left the motor home there and started on the loooong journey to exit 33 on Interstate 90 in Montana to visit Camp Bighorn, a camp which wanted to become a Sower project site. 

 On our way through west river we got a late taste of winter.

 We hit the Wyoming border and most of the snow was gone---

 ---but the antelope really didn't care one way or the other.

 We saw some very beautiful---

 ---and majestic country as we traveled into Montana.

 The purple mountains majesty were ever spread before us.

 18.5 miles off of I-90 we came upon our destination.

 This camp doesn't need to build a climbing wall, the camp has many great walls to scale just a stones throw away.

 It is a beautiful setting.  The office---

 ---and the mess hall/meeting room were dwarfed by the majestic mountains.

 This pretty much sums up the question as to who is in charge of the camp.

 Right across the highway from the camp is a wonderful rushing river for the campers to enjoy. 

Since Idaho was only 33 miles away and we had never visited Idaho, we made the trip to a little cafe in Idaho, had a cup of coffee and a sweet roll and headed back to South Dakota.

 

From Idaho to Montana---

---to Wyoming and finally Sunshine Bible Academy near Miller, South Dakota, we traveled a total of 2,375 miles and loved every bit of it.