The 2009 Mission Team was made up of 14 teenagers and 6 adults excited to make a difference for the small town of Oakville, IA. We had no idea what we were getting into, we just knew we were called to help.
Team Wrecking Ball could not have been named more appropriately. Team members used sledge hammers and crow bars to remove the lath and plaster from the second floor of this farm house. Toward the end of the day, one crew member looked at the other and said, "You look disgusting!" They raced to the showers as soon as they got a chance.
Team Hammer Time learned how to remove insulation splinters with duct tape shortly after learning how to install insulation. We moved on to sheet rock and learned another valuable lesson: Cut once, Measure Twice. After 3 days, we had the second floor insulated, two of the bedrooms sheet rocked and a wall built in the bathroom.
The family had just had the first floor finished and it looked beautiful, then lead paint was found on the second floor. That's where we came in. Since all their belongings now filled the downstairs, they were planning to spend the weekend in the newly gutted bedrooms. They were thrilled to see how much was done in five days.
On the fourth day, a team was sent to Kelly's house. The linoleum and thousands of nails were removed while the flooring was pulled up in another part of the house. The addition that had been added several years before did not hold up to the flood waters.
Poor Nolan and Jack. They had just finished shoveling hundreds of shovels full of debris at the farm house when I had the great idea of volunteering for one more job. The dust in the air gives you some idea of what condition this house was in when we got there Friday afternoon, but nothing prepared us for the smell. Once this two-story house had been mucked out it had then been used as a refuge for cats that were abandoned after the flood. Sweet idea, but we're not sure how they will get that smell out so the family can move back in.
Although we were there to be the hands and feet of Christ through our hard work, we were also there to learn and grow. We learned that this tiny Iowa town had a bit of culture to offer after all and that the town was filled with true survivors. At the volunteer appreciation dinner on Friday, we saw the strength that came from their tears. God was there for the people of Oakvile and was definitely there for us that week.
