Wonderful Visit, Wonderful Friend

It has been a few days since Ann left, but what a wonderful visit we had! Ann is a good friend from Sheboygan and she came to the Appalachians on Thursday, May 20th. I cannot believe all the things that happened that she and I could be a part of. There were volunteers in from Ohio and we were able to have dinner with them at Camp AJ and then share a devotion with them. They were some great, hard-working people and we really enjoyed sharing an evening with them.

The days at work held some interesting home visits and I was delighted that Ann got a good view of the area that I work in. We traveled up the mountain and had to take one of those driveways down that you can't see until the front end of the car nosedives and then there is the road in front of you. Ann was a little freaked but was a trooper and held in there with us. The homes were on the meager side and it showed the poorer side of Clay County. Some of the homes in another area were beautiful and very well kept up, so I was happy that we got a view of all types.

Ann and Angie, my co-worker, hit it off famously. Sometimes I think they forgot that I was even along. :) I usually took the back seat when we traveled around the county so Ann had a clear view of all the areas that we were visiting. We stopped at a ministry that reaches out to pregnant women and Ann was able to drop off some beautiful caps and booties that a friend had sent along for the babies. The woman who runs the program had just gotten off of a phone call and we all took hands to pray for the situation she had just learned of. It was quite moving, and again I was happy that Ann could get a sense of the people that I have built a relationship with here in Kentucky.

We took some time for sight seeing and saw some really beautiful countryside. On Sunday we traveled up to Lexington and worshiped at Southland. This is a huge church on the edge of the city that does some amazing outreach in the area and all over the world. It was a very moving service and I was delighted to be able to worship with Ann.

I cannot thank Ann enough for her generous gifts for the people of Appalachia and also for what she has given to me. How can I say thank you to someone who brought me a taste of home. It was awesome to have Ann here and I am glad that she was able to come and get a good picture of what I do.

I pray you are all having a great Memorial Weekend.
God Bless
Jane