Hurricane Relief in Mississippi: We’re Alive! Team Pearlington survived a youth mission trip team of 150 people this past week and we had an awesome time!  Houston First Presbyterian Church is our largest group of the summer. Literally, our entire summer has been in preparation for this short term missions trip.  We have been making sure that things are lined up to accommodate this many people.  It was interesting to see how God worked this week because we found that even with all of the preparation we had done, problems still arose. The first work day we awoke to torrential downpours and it seemed like the week was going to be disastrous because the majority of the work projects we had lined up were outdoors.  We also had some last minute worksite cancellations.  We were sweating it out and praying that things would turn around.  

However, God helped details to fall into place and the week was a “home run”. He presented other opportunities for work projects and blessed us with eager and high spirited students and leaders who were flexible and energetic.   We were also blessed with beautiful weather on Thursday and Friday.  It is truly amazing how our Lord works even in the difficult times. This was definitely a lesson on trust in Our God, and it became very obvious that sometimes it is so hard to let go of all control in a situation and just give it over to Him. This team from Houston was a huge blessing to the community of Pearlington, Mississippi and the hurricane relief work, as well as to the Experience Mission Staff. We were very encouraged by the entire group’s positive attitude and dedication to work hard. There was never a moment when this team wasn’t asking how they could help whether it be in the kitchen or on the worksite. This team worked in a total of 15 worksites doing various things such as shingling, siding, demolition, flooring, decking, interior & exterior painting, staining, porch covers, and general cleanup and yard beautification.

Something that was very unique to this mission trip team was their tight knit community, which is surprising considering their large size. Their evening programs were very exciting and intentional.  We had fun dance parties each night and moving talks given by Brune, Scott, and Tim.  They have an interesting approach to missions.  They use it has a tool for evangelism.   About 2/3 of the students that came on the trip with First Presbyterian Church did not necessarily have a relationship with Christ.  The philosophy this group has about short term mission trips is to show students what it means to live out a Christian lifestyle through serving. Their theme for this week was in 2 Corinthians 5:20 and being “Christ’s ambassadors.”  Many lives were changed this week and many relationships were built both within the team and the community.

-Jim and the Pearlington team

*Interested in joining in the work of Experience Mission? Check out our website at www.ExperienceMission.org for more information and to sign up for upcoming 2010 mission trips!

Sometimes it’s hard to understand why houses take so long to be completed, but with all the different steps – some which require a greater level of skill than others – and multiple inspections that must be passed before moving on to the next step, the lengthy process makes more sense.

It  had been around a month since teams had been able to do any work on Brigitte’s home because we were all waiting for it to pass inspection. Recently we discovered that the house had passed inspection two weeks ago, but no one had been notified. This was both frustrating and exciting news – we wished we could have been working on it for weeks, but we were excited for  our very last team of the summer to begin the drywalling process.

Part of the Tennessee Team spend the entire week at Brigitte’s, and with Cory’s guidance put up sheet after sheet of drywall, and finished nearly all the insulation – a job slightly less than comfortable. When I finally got to see the site toward the end of the week, I was shocked at the progress they had made. I remembered almost two months ago when I had helped hook up some of the plumbing in the bathroom, when I could see every corner of the house from the moment I walked in the door.

Another house that has been a slow but slightly more steady process is Ray’s. We have had a group working on his house almost every week, but for the last month it seemed like each team would redo the same tedious process – mudding and sanding, mudding and sanding. It’s a task that has to be done, is not quick or easy, and takes a great amount of time to get right. The last two weeks have brought an end in sight, however, and our last two teams were able to actually texture both walls and a ceiling after mudding and sanding. On Thursday, EM’s last workday for the summer in Pearlington, we could all tell that Ray was excited, in his quiet way, to see such visible progress on his home.

A sign outside of a church, visible from the main road that winds through Pearlington, sums up where many of the town’s struggles and their faith intersect: “Katrina was big, but God is bigger.”

-Cheryl Knowles

With the summer coming to a close in just a couple of weeks, we didn’t expect to be introduced to many new projects, especially on houses that had barely been touched since Katrina. That’s why meeting Wade came as such a surprise. Wade lives in the same neighborhood as Jeanine and Sonny, but until one of our teams from Texas came to help him gut out his home, he has had no outside aid.

Wade camps out at a pier for now, spending most of his time fishing and getting his home to a point where it can be restored. He comes back to his house to shower in his yard with a hose, thankful to have access to running water. Open about the struggles he has faced in getting back on his feet, he showers volunteers with thanks, provides an endless supply of snacks to encourage throughout the workday, and praises God for His sovereignty. His tearful recollections touch the hearts of the groups that have finally begun work at his home, as well as ours, encouraging each of us to continue serving even when we might feel weary.

Meeting people like Wade makes it difficult for our team to say goodbye, knowing there is yet so much more to be done in Pearlington. Still, we are thankful to become even such a small part of his life, and hope we have been a light of encouragement.

-Cheryl Knowles

The last few days of this rural mission trip, the team from Montgomery, Texas spent in Pearlington brought the Vince and McArthur homes even closer to completion. The team resolved the plumbing problem in the Vince home and began working on some electrical issues they had discovered. Also, members of the team enjoyed time visiting with Kendra McArthur’s former caregiver, Dot, who is currently housing Kendra and her two children until their house is finished.

On Wednesday afternoon a few women visited a loving, Christ-filled woman named Lily. Each woman was blessed through listening to this elderly lady’s stories about life after Katrina and her faith in God. Full of praise for her Heavenly Father, she radiated His love to her guests.

Another highlight of the week here in Mississippi on this adult mission trip was Wednesday evening, when the Montgomery Team blessed our team of interns by taking us out for pizza. Each of us thoroughly enjoyed this time of fellowship. The evening was completed by joining another team of volunteers for worship and evening service in Bay St. Louis where Glenn Locklin shared a message of encouragement. Glenn’s wife also thanked the groups present and discussed her personal growth through the last few years, helping to create the atmosphere of mutual edification. Members of each team stood to retell situations at their worksites that had positively affected their attitudes.

We were sad to see the Montgomery Team leave early Friday morning, but we exchanged emails and might even have the chance to spend more time with one member, Sharon, later this summer as she hopes to return once again.

-Cheryl Knowles

Team Pearlington is truly experiencing life in the deep south…and loving it. Cory and I arrived by car at the Pearlington recovery center late Friday night, while Mark Danielle flew into New Orleans the next day. Autumn Merritt, Trip Coordinator for the Pearlington EM site last summer and our Staff Advisor for this summer, accompanied them as well, and stayed until early Thursday morning to show us the ropes.

When I say “life in the deep south” I am referring to swimming in the Pearl River (the locals say alligators rarely come to that spot), rooting for a chicken to poop on the square for which you bid a dollar, looking forward to fried pickles after pouring concrete for three hours, and listening to hour upon hour of country songs sung by locals who sound just as if they could be on the radio. Of course those are classified as “highlights.” Also part of this reality is chasing cockroaches around the bunkhouse some nights before going to sleep and wondering if it’s worth showering when the humidity seems to eliminate its results ten minutes later anyway.

We are even more excited, however, about the relationships we have begun to build here, both with those who run the Recovery Center and also with some locals. Two of our very first contacts were Larry and Beth Randall, who have always lived in Pearlington and are helping realize plans to rebuild their hometown. Larry is one of the directors of the Recovery Center, the place where we all stay and through which we are working, and both he and Beth open their home daily to dozens of volunteers. The other director of the Pearlington Recovery Center is Glenn Locklin, also known as “Big Glenn.” He carries the title well, and still dresses in styles he learned from his biker days. Glenn has an incredible testimony and has definitely earned all of our respect; he left his home in Tennessee after Katrina to help out in Pearlington, and now his family lives here too. He oversees most of the construction along with Ricky, another local, whose church we visited on Sunday

Another highlight of the past week has been connecting with a returning volunteer, Tomyra Redman, who plans to help out in Pearlington until Thursday. She has joined us on all of our adventures since she arrived, helped us adjust to this foreign culture, and most importantly kept us laughing. The five of us, also joined by Larry, Beth, Glenn, and Ricky, enjoyed trying our voices at karaoke last night – a very serious pastime around here.

We are all very excited for our first team who is arriving on Sunday evening. Although a small team, we know God will work through them and us for His glory, and that relationships and Pearlington homes will continue to be built.

-Cheryl Knowles