The Rest of the Week...

Apologies to our blog followers...once we left campus on Wednesday for New Orleans, the area had a storm, and the power was out for five hours. Internet access was not restored on campus for the rest of our stay. Here's a brief update from the rest of the week:

Wednesday we worked with Catholic Charities to distribute around 580 boxes of food to seniors throughout the community. We also did some work in the Depot packing health kits. After lunch, we drove to New Orleans, and took a short driving tour of the 9th ward, the area most devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Following that, we drove to the French Quarter and walked by St. Louis Cathedral, Bourbon Street, and through the shopping district. We ate dinner at Hard Rock Cafe, bought souvenirs, and had a great time.

Thursday brought more work projects. Chris and Dean worked in the community, replacing screen doors on a home. Jay, Andrew, Josh, and Rachel returned to do more exterior painting at their site. Lori, Sam, and Max worked at the Depot. Amanda worked at the women's crisis shelter, cleaning closets and sorting clothing. After lunch, we took a break and went to the beach for the afternoon. The water was warm, and everyone had a lot of fun. Thursday night, we had vespers on campus, with people from all of the groups participating in worship leadership. Max did the call to worship, Chris read Scripture, and Jay led communion and played.

Today, we worked in the morning. Andrew, Jay and Josh went back to the house and did some touch-up painting and scraping. Another group will finish the painting and trim next week. Chris and Dean replaced another screen door on their house. Max worked with the staff to clean up a cemetery next to the property, and everyone else worked in the depot on health and layette kits. After lunch, we visited the gift shop and headed out. We arrived in Memphis just a few minutes ago, and are going to get some sleep before heading out in the morning.

Thanks for your prayers. More pictures will come soon!