Whelp! People have already started piling in for Workfest. One of the cooks, who is from Colorado, arrived Friday and is making her nest in the "cooks" bedroom. She is really nice and has been coming to Kentucky for about 26 years as a volunteer. That is amazing! Not all of those years have been for CAP, but I think most of them have. She loves it and I am enjoying having her here already because she keeps cleaning corners around the house. That is way cool. We even had a table sit-down breakfast today which is not normal for a Saturday. There were about nine of us and it was nice.
We had snow again today, and we were grounded on Thursday. This is really getting to be a drag and I do hope that we don't get any snow for Workfest. What does one do with 80 college students who cannot get out to the worksite? Glad that will not be my responsibility. I think Monday and Tuesday are looking good, with a possibility of snow for Wednesday, but let's all pray that nothing will come of that. All the participant families are getting excited and so am I.
This week was pretty busy at the office. I met a new elderly gentleman who was referred to me for some assistance in purchasing coal for heat for his home. By the time he got to my office and we completed all the paperwork, it was too late to go and purchase the coal. We set an appointment for 11:00 AM the next day and I took another volunteer with me to his home and then we made our way to the coal distribution office. I wasn't sure where we were going and when we got to this office, I realized that this man wasn't sure where we were going either. We happened to meet another vehicle there and they directed us to where we needed to be. It was interesting to watch how this was attended to.
Ray drove his truck onto the scales so they could get an established weight of his vehicle in their office. Then he drove out to where the coal piles were and they met him with a front loader type of thing. What was cute was the office dog jumped on for the ride as they made their way to the piles. He stared at us the whole way and I think he was kinda taunting us that he got to ride on the equipment and we could not. His name was Bud and he was pretty cool. Anyway.......
The back of the truck was loaded and then Ray made his way back to the scales to be re-weighed and charged for the pounds of coal. That was some darn good looking coal and according to Ray, burnt down to a small amount of ash so he really gets his monies worth from the 800 pounds. That is a good deal. Another good thing is that Ray agreed to have the elderly program volunteer come and visit him and check in to make sure that he is doing well. I am very pleased by that because Ray has some health issues and it will be good to have another pair of eyes on him.
I realize today that everything will be topsy turvey for the next 6 weeks. After Workfest finishes we will begin 2 weeks of Youthfest. Is very similar but the volunteers coming in are high school age instead of college age. The Youthfest volunteers do all their jobs with the elderly participants. This will be great to help get many small jobs done such as house cleaning, yard clean up, painting and some small carpentry type things. They might help with some of the clean up from Workfest, but mostly the focus is on our elderly participants. Again, it is a wonderful thing to see the relationships develop between the volunteers and the families.
My church sent me the DVD's of The Truth Project. I am thrilled to share this series with the house. Now that we are so close to Workfest I am not exactly sure when we will get to watch them, but I know that we all wanted to watch them together so we can have some good discussions. I look forward to that immensely.
Once again, hope all is will with you and yours. May God bless your day richly.
Jane
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Spring?
Another beautiful morning here in the Appalachians. Last Monday and Tuesday we were grounded due to bad weather. Wednesday morning some of us left the house to attend a staff meeting and on the way got a call from our manager. She was going to ground us because the guy who plowed the driveway said Sandlick Road was horrible and he recommended that nobody drive on it. OOooops! We thought it was sort of bad, but as long as you went very slow it was fine. I apologized to Robyn, our manager, but we just could not stay another whole day in the house with all of us locked up together. It was fine and I truly hope they don't think we were just being defiant. Sometimes ya just gotta do whatcha gotta do.
On a different note, yesterday a few of us went to a birthday party in McCreary county for two of our volunteers. On the way we stopped at Cumberland Falls and checked out the area. Talk about beautiful! We went a little too close to the falls and were asked to get back. Sorry about that but got a really cool look at the falls, close up. Then we drove over the bridge to the other side and hiked the trail to Eagle Falls. Wow! That was way wonderful! I laughed at the trail because there were times when I couldn't tell where the trail went, but there were little splotches of yellow paint sprayed around to show us the way. All in all was a great day.
We are really getting geared up for Workfest. The kids will start to arrive next Sunday and we are underway. I am excited to see all this come together and be a part of it all. I think the best part will be watching the relationships develop between the college students and the families. That is the most wonderful thing to see.
Short one today. I pray you are all doing well.
Jane
On a different note, yesterday a few of us went to a birthday party in McCreary county for two of our volunteers. On the way we stopped at Cumberland Falls and checked out the area. Talk about beautiful! We went a little too close to the falls and were asked to get back. Sorry about that but got a really cool look at the falls, close up. Then we drove over the bridge to the other side and hiked the trail to Eagle Falls. Wow! That was way wonderful! I laughed at the trail because there were times when I couldn't tell where the trail went, but there were little splotches of yellow paint sprayed around to show us the way. All in all was a great day.
We are really getting geared up for Workfest. The kids will start to arrive next Sunday and we are underway. I am excited to see all this come together and be a part of it all. I think the best part will be watching the relationships develop between the college students and the families. That is the most wonderful thing to see.
Short one today. I pray you are all doing well.
Jane
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Another Winter Weekend
Good Mornin' Y'all!
I was supposed to have gone to Indianapolis this weekend to meet my sister Beth, but alas, the weather is questionable on this end. We were grounded on Wednesday due to a good amount of snow, and right now Sand Lick is pretty icy in some areas. A little snow over that and things are not good here on the mountainside. I am disappointed but we are going to just pick another weekend and see what happens. I think March is a little more promising weather-wise. We are all hoping March is better or we will have a lot of people here for Workfest and jobs we cannot get them to.
Angie has been working very hard and has pretty much everything ready for Workfest. There is much prep work involved, and she is ahead of the game right now. Donnie, our crew leader, has had the crews out delivering the wonderboard and other items to make sure the homes are ready to go. I am pretty excited to see how all this works. It should be a lot of work, but also plenty of fun. I will be taking pictures as the work progresses and that will be interesting to compare and see what has all been accomplished each week.
Five of us from Jackson House drove over to the east side on Thursday night for orientation. It was wonderful! There were three volunteers that spoke on the three pillars of CAP: service, spirituality and community. They did a great job and it sparked something in me again as to why we are here and what we are trying to accomplish. It was great to see Diane. I wish we could have had more time to talk, but with so much going on we just exchanged a few hugs and talked briefly. I think I will have to take a trip over to be able to have some solid time with Diane and have a good catch up. I miss her and could use some Wisconsin back-home conversation with a good friend.
It's great to have Bridget back in the house. She was gone from last Saturday until Thursday night. We asked her how she felt about orientation and she had a great time. Bridget said it was nice to be with people that were all in the same place. Meaning that they were all new to each other and it felt good to all be there. Her analogy of coming into Jackson House was this: It's like all of you have been at the barbecue together, talking and having drinks. You are all very familiar with each other and now I am trying to enter into the conversation. I thought that was a pretty cool and accurate analogy. Even though we have all opened up to make her feel as comfortable as possible, the history is not there yet. Good for all of us to keep in mind when someone new enters into our lives.
Who watched the opening ceremony for the Olympics last night? I didn't make it to the end but loved the whales swimming on the floor. That was beautiful!
That is all for now - have a great week and God Bless
Jane
I was supposed to have gone to Indianapolis this weekend to meet my sister Beth, but alas, the weather is questionable on this end. We were grounded on Wednesday due to a good amount of snow, and right now Sand Lick is pretty icy in some areas. A little snow over that and things are not good here on the mountainside. I am disappointed but we are going to just pick another weekend and see what happens. I think March is a little more promising weather-wise. We are all hoping March is better or we will have a lot of people here for Workfest and jobs we cannot get them to.
Angie has been working very hard and has pretty much everything ready for Workfest. There is much prep work involved, and she is ahead of the game right now. Donnie, our crew leader, has had the crews out delivering the wonderboard and other items to make sure the homes are ready to go. I am pretty excited to see how all this works. It should be a lot of work, but also plenty of fun. I will be taking pictures as the work progresses and that will be interesting to compare and see what has all been accomplished each week.
Five of us from Jackson House drove over to the east side on Thursday night for orientation. It was wonderful! There were three volunteers that spoke on the three pillars of CAP: service, spirituality and community. They did a great job and it sparked something in me again as to why we are here and what we are trying to accomplish. It was great to see Diane. I wish we could have had more time to talk, but with so much going on we just exchanged a few hugs and talked briefly. I think I will have to take a trip over to be able to have some solid time with Diane and have a good catch up. I miss her and could use some Wisconsin back-home conversation with a good friend.
It's great to have Bridget back in the house. She was gone from last Saturday until Thursday night. We asked her how she felt about orientation and she had a great time. Bridget said it was nice to be with people that were all in the same place. Meaning that they were all new to each other and it felt good to all be there. Her analogy of coming into Jackson House was this: It's like all of you have been at the barbecue together, talking and having drinks. You are all very familiar with each other and now I am trying to enter into the conversation. I thought that was a pretty cool and accurate analogy. Even though we have all opened up to make her feel as comfortable as possible, the history is not there yet. Good for all of us to keep in mind when someone new enters into our lives.
Who watched the opening ceremony for the Olympics last night? I didn't make it to the end but loved the whales swimming on the floor. That was beautiful!
That is all for now - have a great week and God Bless
Jane
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Coffee Time
Good Mornin' I've had my coffee, two cups, and am ready for the day. The weather is questionable so I have a list of house chores again for today. Right now it looks OK but I am not sure about later. The storm may have missed us, or it is on a day late schedule like the others.
First of all, an update on our new housemate Bridget. Love her! We were all a little leery as to how a new volunteer will change the dynamics of the house, and it has all been for the better. First of all, she snorts. Not a cute little snort, but a good husky, solid one. And then, if we can keep her laughing, we'll hear a whole line popping; one right after the other. It is awesome! So Lucas and I have a goal at dinner to get her going and see how long it will last. OK, we are not being mean, just curious. Honestly though, she is great and has added another golden thread to the plaid of the house. Bridget is heading over to the east side for orientation and then the commissioning service. Some of us from the house are planning on going over on Thursday for the service, God willing and the creeks don't rise. I hope they all have as wonderful an experience as I did at my orientation.
This week I spent more time working in preparation for Workfest. I took my manager Robyn and a gentleman from the home office to visit three of the families. It was pretty cool. There is a big difference watching an interaction between fellow Kentuckians, rather than a volunteer from out of state. There is a kinship there that just flows in the conversation. The first home we went to was an elderly lady just outside of Manchester in Clay County. She showed us all the pictures of her family and told all the stories that go with them. Her brother was killed in the mine explosion that occurred in 1970. It was the Finley Coal Company and the mine was in Hyden, in Leslie County. I believe there were about 38 people who died in that accident. You should look it up and read more about it. Then we walked the house to look at the work that will be done during Workfest. As we left one of the bedrooms, she picked up her harmonica and started playing for us! How cool is that. It was a great visit and we spent quite a bit of time there.
There were two other families that we stopped at during the course of the day. Those visits were very nice also, but no more harmonica playing.
Thursday night was our house meeting with Kiara, the Volunteer Manager. We got a little more info about Workfest, due to our house being located next to Camp AJ. As current volunteers we are called upon to be there at night for dinner and the night's activities. We have quite a few housing volunteers here at Jackson House so we will be deeply involved in the whole month. I believe most of them will be crew leaders. There will be local musicians that come to entertain, and I am really looking forward to that.
Each week Thursday night is designated as "Family Night". We will all gather at the Oneida Baptist Institute and share in a meal and fellowship. It is an opportunity for all the crews to be together with all the families that received work on their homes. This also offers an opportunity for all the families to meet. I hear it is a very special night. Should be great!
Well, I think I will start my list of chores. I pray you are all doing well. Til we meet again.
Jane
First of all, an update on our new housemate Bridget. Love her! We were all a little leery as to how a new volunteer will change the dynamics of the house, and it has all been for the better. First of all, she snorts. Not a cute little snort, but a good husky, solid one. And then, if we can keep her laughing, we'll hear a whole line popping; one right after the other. It is awesome! So Lucas and I have a goal at dinner to get her going and see how long it will last. OK, we are not being mean, just curious. Honestly though, she is great and has added another golden thread to the plaid of the house. Bridget is heading over to the east side for orientation and then the commissioning service. Some of us from the house are planning on going over on Thursday for the service, God willing and the creeks don't rise. I hope they all have as wonderful an experience as I did at my orientation.
This week I spent more time working in preparation for Workfest. I took my manager Robyn and a gentleman from the home office to visit three of the families. It was pretty cool. There is a big difference watching an interaction between fellow Kentuckians, rather than a volunteer from out of state. There is a kinship there that just flows in the conversation. The first home we went to was an elderly lady just outside of Manchester in Clay County. She showed us all the pictures of her family and told all the stories that go with them. Her brother was killed in the mine explosion that occurred in 1970. It was the Finley Coal Company and the mine was in Hyden, in Leslie County. I believe there were about 38 people who died in that accident. You should look it up and read more about it. Then we walked the house to look at the work that will be done during Workfest. As we left one of the bedrooms, she picked up her harmonica and started playing for us! How cool is that. It was a great visit and we spent quite a bit of time there.
There were two other families that we stopped at during the course of the day. Those visits were very nice also, but no more harmonica playing.
Thursday night was our house meeting with Kiara, the Volunteer Manager. We got a little more info about Workfest, due to our house being located next to Camp AJ. As current volunteers we are called upon to be there at night for dinner and the night's activities. We have quite a few housing volunteers here at Jackson House so we will be deeply involved in the whole month. I believe most of them will be crew leaders. There will be local musicians that come to entertain, and I am really looking forward to that.
Each week Thursday night is designated as "Family Night". We will all gather at the Oneida Baptist Institute and share in a meal and fellowship. It is an opportunity for all the crews to be together with all the families that received work on their homes. This also offers an opportunity for all the families to meet. I hear it is a very special night. Should be great!
Well, I think I will start my list of chores. I pray you are all doing well. Til we meet again.
Jane
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