Monday, September 5, 2011

Labor For Your Neighbor ~ Our day is done, but there's so much more to do!



This is what the sidewalks and roads are like in Prattsville, NY.
The boots I wore kept my feet cozy and comfortable and I needed them to be.
Thank God Amanda left them behind!

 With God's Grace, a lot of team effort and spirit,
our Labor For Your Neighbor group got quite a bit done.
We spent the day working inside one of Prattsville's special businesses.
This is Briggs {nice and clean} before the flood.
They make baseball bats and other wood products.
The owner was sooo very grateful.  He lost so much equipment and wood.  We tried to salvage as much as possible. I pray for his spirit and strength to regrow his business and wish him all the best.

The captions in the photo album below tell a lot of about our day.
It was long,
and I started to daydream about
clean hair, clean clothes and a nice cuppa afternoon tea or coffee.
BUT
it was actually difficult leaving Prattsville knowing how much help they still need.
The National Guard is everything you expect them to be 
~ what wonderful young men and women ~
The Salvation Army makes great coffee;
God bless them and all the other volunteers for providing
comfort, food and beverages when our day was done.
As many people in other parts of the world know,
clean-up after a mother-nature event can take years.
Chris and I haven't stopped talking about other ways to get people together
for long term involvement.
"Adopt a home"
maybe?

The slideshow moves quickly, to pause mouse over on the bottom right to see the square stop button.




Thank you for all your thoughts, prayers and encouragement
♥ to all,
Maria

16 comments:

  1. Maria, you are an incredible person so full of grace and so much kindness. How incredible what is going on there. Prayers and encouragement for you and everyone there!! I apologize for not being around to see you sooner:-)

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  2. You are such a kind person...to help other peoples.......blessings and a happy week !!!...love from me...xxx...

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  3. Prayers....blessings and hugs...right now near Austin there are huge fires burning down everything, homes, farms...it has been a hard year with weather for all...He is still on His throne and our prayers go up to the maker of all

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  4. We are in Dallas...so four hours away....it is close to our home town and where my parents once lived...the area being burned is sooooooooo beautiful, huge pine trees...it is just so sad

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  5. been thinking about you! sending you much love! xoxoxo

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  6. Such a blessing you have been to these folks.
    Strength and hope. God Bless you for your help.

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  7. You have been doing a truly wonderful job, Maria. Spreading love where ever you go.

    Off and running you are, a whole new school year is off. Make it a memorable one!
    Lots of love xx

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  8. Service is such a joy...you are an angel! ;D

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  9. I'm grateful that you were able to respond. A gift in itself. Love, D.

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  10. good luck with the clean up, nature can be pretty wild sometimes, sending prayers and warm thoughts that everyone gets cleaned up and back home soon

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  11. Thank you Maria for sharing !

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  12. Oh, Maria, this looks like a job without end! So much mud and destruction. Glad that people like you and Chris pulled on their boots and jeans to sling the mud and clear some debris. Your boots look quite a bit dirtier than when you first put them on! Are the schools affected?

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  13. How good of you to jump right in the mud to help others. I'd do the same if I could. Now clean up and get ya some tea!! You deserve it. Love Di ♥

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  14. As messy and exhausting as it must have been, it also must be so rewarding to actually be helping. Sometimes I feel so helpless watching these things on television...having no way other than sending money to the Red Cross to help. This was a wonderful thing you did and I'm not a bit surprised that you gave your time and your heart to help others.

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  15. Thanks for your good posts and slideshows about the flooding and cleanup. Our friends in upstate NY escaped the worst of it, but those in Vermont/NH had a lot of trouble. Friend Sarah shed a few tears for her flooded basement & yard, but wailed when she learned of the damage to covered bridges that had withstood 200 years of weather...

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Thank you for stopping by! Your comments add sunshine to my day~