Bob and Billie on the road

Since we are not moving every month we forget to get pictures of what is happening all around us at Acadian Baptist Center. Here it is nearly 5 months since the last post and we have a lot of catching up to do again. Things have been very busy at ABC as several SOWER groups have come and gone and now it is almost time for summer camp to start. Oh well, here we go.

We left our Christmas lights up for most of January because they were so beautiful.

We did get a little snow---

---and a brief spurt of freezing weather---

---including some of the piping at the pool.

A little PEX and some fittings and we shouldn't have to worry about it for some time to come.

The laundry shed holds the breaker for the laundry and for Shop 1 and the main was continually tripping so the decision was made to replace it.

This SOWER is not eating a powdered sugar dough nut, he (Les Turkelson I believe) is actually marking some wire.

We didn't get the project completed before they had to leave so I had the opportunity to complete it---

---including closing up the space around the new box.

Now we don't have a power problem.

ABC has an area which is designated as Native Prairie. It was becoming overgrown with non-native plants and the decision was made to burn the entire area to restore the native species.

The area has begun to regrow and it looks like a couple more burns will do a good job of restoring plants we want.

Meanwhile, the March SOWER group got into a real difficult project. The house used for the Summer Staff Director, known as the Bellard house, had a pond under the floor which rotted the floor joists and caused the floor to fall away from some of the interior walls. Before they were through, they had removed nearly all of the living room and kitchen floor, one bedroom floor. most of the bathroom floor and part of another bedroom floor. After replacing the joists and re-flooring the areas the building was fairly stable again. Of course we moved a large amount of dirt and landscaped the area to keep the water from running under the house.

Meanwhile, there were several tiles which fell off the wall of the Chapel. I tested the new knee and climbed to the top to replace the tiles.

Some of the areas which had been repainted over some decorative border. The paint covered the area but the raised decorations on the border was plain to see yet. Our solution was to cover the area with a little texture and another coat of paint.

Apply some tape, mix some mud---

---spray it on and repaint.

The opportunity came up to extend on our Widows Ministry. In the Mamou flood of 2016, this house was flooded and men from the North Eunice Baptist Church mucked the house out and cut the inside walls at 30 inches. The problem came when no one was able to get back to replace the walls.

We picked up the materials at Lowe's---

--gathered a crew a couple of weekends---

---made a plan---

--and worked the plan.

It is amazing how great a group can build---

---and grow together---

---to get a job done.

Some times the work requires some easy positions---

---some "different" positions---

---and then we have walls again.

Back to the Bellard house. The cast iron bathtub had to be removed so the floor could be replaced.

After re-running the plumbing which was a real puzzle, then hanging a vapor barrier---

---then green board (or blue)---

---then apply a waterproof sheeting---

---the bathroom is ready for laminate flooring and move in.

Meanwhile, there is a large water leak on the incoming line to Westbury. The old steel line had six patches in the first eight feet of pipe, so the decision was made to replace the entire 35 feet of pipe with a new PVC line. Fortunately we had a track hoe to uncover the line---

---then the new line was laid in the trench and covered, first by hand then completed with the tractor.

Another Widow Ministry project came up when her husband was released from the hospital in a wheel chair. Since the steps were fairly high, the ramp required had a length of 21 feet.

Another small project was to repair the tailgate on one of the mules (4 wheel type)

During the month of April we attended a meeting at Dry Creek Youth Camp. Like ABC Dry Creek has gospel cabins. But unlike the Matthew, Mark, Luke and John at ABC---

---they have Matthew, Mark, Luke and "Bob"?

We had the opportunity to play our first round, at least part of a round, of disc gold and had a good time.

Miscellaneous items, Miss Peggy asked if I could build one of the stands they use to hold things like ketchup, salad dressing, etc. I answered yes so she asked for two.

On the "out of the ordinary" side, we had the SOWERS over at our house for a visit and as they were ready to leave we noticed an unwanted guest guarding the shoes outside our door. I went out the other door and picked it up (it was an eastern rat snake), took it out and released it in the yard.

He immediately headed for their truck and climbed into the engine compartment. After releasing the hood I was able to grab it again before it went back down into the engine. This time I took it out back and released it into the field behind us. Fortunately it did not return to their truck.

Spring is really here and so are the cardinals.

On the way to T or C New Mexico we had an accident which totaled our home and pickup. Billie received a broken patella (knee cap) and I ruptured the meniscus in the right knee, and subsequently had to have the knee replaced, and jammed the left knee.

15 miles west of Ft. Worth we had an accident and lost our home and pickup. We were able to retrieve most of our things from the home and pickup. However, we had no place to go. Three of the camps which we had worked at told us we could recover at their camp. The director at Acadian Baptist Center in Louisiana called us at the motel where we were staying and told us he would send someone to get us and we could recover in one of their cabins.

We took the idea from this sign and went to work. Billie had her patella repaired in Cisco, Texas and we picked ourselves up with the help of our friends in Louisiana and went to the Caskey cabin at ABC.

My injuries didn't keep me from freely moving around as did Billie's but I wasn't real mobile and we needed a lot of help at the first which we got in the love of the people at ABC and North Eunice Baptist Church.

We pretty much took it easy for quite a spell.

My brother Pat called and asked if we needed transportation. We had a Chevy Tracker at the farm in Kansas which we had purchased with the motor home. A few days after we arrived at ABC he drove our Tracker down to us and flew home from Lafayette .

Here is the cabin we occupied for the next 4 months and the car my brother brought to us. Billie was still using a walker as we searched for a surgeon in the area who would take over for the surgeon in Texas. When we finally found one Billie started physical therapy.

We spent a lot of time with exciting adventures like putting a 1,000 piece puzzle together and reading to one another.

Billie was very faithful with her recovery on the deck---

---but didn't want to go out the back door.

The view from the cabin was never dreary as we were able to watch the turtles in the pond---

---The squirrel in the bird feeder---

---the wood ducks in the trees---

---the downpour in the spring---

---our little ruby throated humming bird---

---the mallard family---

---the wood ducks on their boxes.

We had to keep up with the routine of hair cutting---

---while Billie also kept up the routine of 3 times a week PT.

Even though the temperature dropped into the 20's she faithfully kept up with the exercise---

---and finally reached the goal for bending the knee.

As spring approached she gave up the walker and I haven't been able to slow her down since.

As Resurrection Day approached, I was asked if I could design and build a tomb. So work began.

The tricky part would be the stone which could be rolled away---

---but with a little chicken wire, a wood frame and paper mache---

---then a coat of paint and a track for the stone---

---along with some wiring, a switch and lights, "vwalla" we have the resurrection for which we are so very thankful.

Staying in the cabin would be OK until the summer camps went into full swing. We had noticed a house in 2013, about 1/4 mile from the camp and it was always empty. After a long search I was able to get hold of the owner. She didn't believe the house was livable as some of the renters in the past had done damage to the wiring and plumbing. we were able to convince her that we had been doing those kind of things for the past 6 years and we would like a chance to see if we could fix it. We did and subsequently rented it and moved in in May.

The color in the kitchen and living room was a drastic orange---

---and there were wires hanging from the ceiling in the dining room.

The second bedroom was a very loud blue but two coats of paint will do wonders.

The painting went well but the ceiling fan did not work and needed replacing.

We painted and started buying furniture and fixing doors---

---installing carpet and curtains---

---and now we have a very livable and comfortable home.

There was a bit of a problem with drainage from the road west of the house---

---but a few phone calls and the parish (every where else that is county) sent a crew and cleaned the ditches, installed some additional drainage and took care of the problem.

Meanwhile, at the camp there was a mule with a dead engine. The problem came, while installing a new one, I found that the old and new engines were not wired alike.

After some consultation with the people who provided us with the new engine and a few prayers, the job was completed and the engine started immediately.

Then it was time to stop for a total knee replacement. The surgeon was a great one, he assured me that if I bent the knee as far as I could "it wouldn't break and I wouldn't die".

So with the help of the therapists at Studio P3 and some exercise at home I soon was walking on a new knee.

See the wall of fame. There were pictures of all of the summer staff for the past 27 years, each was a separate photo. The wall didn't have room for any more so the directors son made these composite posters with nine years on each and we hung them. Now there is room for 27 more years.

Then, to our surprise and great delight, the exchange student from Brazil we had 24 years earlier found out about our accident and while on a trip to visit friends in Nebraska made a detour and came to Louisiana to be sure we were alright.

We took her to Avery Island to visit the Tabasco plant--

---tour the Island and see the locals---

---and see that we were OK then she flew back to Brazil.

One of the big outreach events for ABC is the annual wild game feed.

There were a number of roasted wild hogs---

---a pig in the mouth of an alligator and such fine offerings as squirrel stew and roasted rattle snake.

It was a fun occasion and there was a great turn out.

During one of the cleanup activities from the summer camping, the aluminum forks which fit on the tractor were not able to take the strain.

So, I designed and built a new set---

---and we don't have to worry about them breaking because they will pick up more than the capacity of the hydraulic system of the tractor.

Meanwhile, Billie is sewing like mad to make sanitary pads for the ladies in third world countries. She has produced hundreds of them since she started a couple years ago.

We found a manhole which had a very inadequate plastic cover and it now has a steel cover which an automobile can safely run over.

Work has continued on making new benches for the camp---

---and after a little bit of thought and a few pieces of scrap lumber, we now have a jig which allows nearly anyone to reproduce a bench, given there are parts cut, within 30 minutes.

Dan and Nancy Ragatz joined us at the camp in November. Dan repaired nearly every broken chair at ABC and Nancy painted a lot of doors. Thank you.

We were blessed to celebrate Thanksgiving with the King family, where the youngest couple made the surprise announcement, "It's a girl" much to the delight of Mrs. King.