Trinity Fellowship Meeting Ike Needs

Olson’s Fence - February 21, 2009

2009-02-18T13:27:00.000-06:00

The Olson’s have asked for help with putting up their fences as they continue to put their house back together after Ike. They expect to have the materials on hand by Friday, and are hoping to put up at least the back fence on Saturday. A few people have already volunteered to be part of the crew that helps, but we could use more.

We will meet at the church on Saturday, February 21stat 8:00 a.m. to go to the Olson’s house. However, if you are closer to Pasadena than to church, you can go directly. Please bring a hammer and whatever other tools you think might be good for this project.

If you are available to help, please contact Iva at the church office (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net, 281-482-0577) or Bob (mail@trinityfellowship.net, 281-787-7120) to let us know.

We hope to send a crew to Galveston the following Saturday (February 28th), so let us know if you are available for that, too.

Putting Up the Gutter

2009-02-04T09:27:00.001-06:00

We are not sending a crew to Galveston this week (February 7). The next likely date for a crew to go down is during the ladies retreat, February 21. Men, you might consider bringing your kids with you that day, as long as they’re old enough to be helpful.

However, we would love to have a small crew meet at the church on Saturday, February 7th at 9:00 a.m. to put up the gutter and possibly do a few other minor chores and repairs. Please bring a hammer and/or a drill/screwdriver.

If you are available to help, please contact Iva at the church office (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net, 281-482-0577) or Bob (mail@trinityfellowship.net, 281-787-7120) to let us know.

There is still gutting in Galveston

2009-01-25T17:01:00.004-06:00

We took a crew to the island on Saturday, (the 24th) and had a good day's work. We were amazed and slightly appalled to find that there are still houses in Galveston that have not even been opened since the storm.

We did gutting on a home in the historic district. It looked fine from the outside, but it had not been lived in for most of the time since the storm and still had no power. The little house (servants quarters?) in the back had not been opened since the storm. So we did actual gutting not too different than the gutting we did in the first month after Ike.

If I could transmit smell through the internet I’d tell you about the refrigerator that had been laying on its back (closed) since September in the little house. We taped it thoroughly shut, but when we lifted it up it leaked at the bottom seal. It was not pleasant.

We also gutted two living areas, two kitchens and a bathroom, including flooring, sheet rock (or plaster) and insulation. It was a good day and the homeowner, who is living upstairs with no power at this point, was very grateful for the progress.

Here are a couple of pictures from my iphone:

Crew to Galveston This Saturday

2009-01-21T12:12:00.000-06:00

We are planning to take a crew to Galveston this Saturday, January 24th. We don’t know the nature of the work yet, but it is likely to be indoor work, possibly sheet rock and such. I’ve asked, and I’ll try to post an update when I here.

If you are available to help, please contact Iva at the church office (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net, 281-482-0577) or Bob (mail@trinityfellowship.net, 281-787-7120) to let us know.

Hospitality in Galveston - December 27th

2008-12-18T16:25:00.003-06:00

Below is a slightly edited copy of the plan for Saturday, December 27th. We will be providing essentially a 'meet and greet' and 'help settle' function for the two teams coming in that day. I've asked Sarah (the EFCA coordinator) if we should also provide snacks or dinner, and if we need anybody in Galveston on Sunday. I'll let you know what she says.

If you are available to help, please contact Iva at the church office (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net, 281-482-0577) or Bob (mail@trinityfellowship.net, 281-787-7120) to let us know.

***************
Hosting Saturday, December 27th, 2008

Teams

Parker Hills Bible Fellowship- Drew Weyland-- arriving @ 5pm
Parker Hills, CO (11 people coming: 7M 4F)

Legacy Bible Church-- Jeff Reed— arriving @ 6 or 7 pm
Sherman, TX (21 people coming: 14M 7F)

• After introductions and greeting, collect their waivers and team rosters (if they have do not have them, the forms are in the green and blue folders located on the brown shelf in the office)

• Show them to their beds. Guys in the old church on 18th st.; women in the church bunks (we can place overflow of women in the sanctuary for the night if need be)

• The small room is reserved for a family that will be arriving on Sunday

• Small heater fans are located in the bunk rooms of the church and in a small box by the front door of fellowship hall if needed

• LOCK the church door after everyone is settled in (the church key is located in the grey box in the top shelf of the black filing cabinet. The key to the cabinet is laying on top of the white board in the office)

• Regarding payment-their payment can be given to Sarah when she arrives on Sunday night

• Continental Breakfast food will be available for them (Cereal; oatmeal; granola bars; milk; bagels (in fridge, freezer, or plastic bin under the counter in kitchen); juice(in fridge by front door)

• They are on their own for Lunch and Dinner on Sunday

• The volunteers are welcome to attend church on Sunday morning at 11am at GBC

• please be sure that the church and sanctuary is set up for church on Sunday (food cleaned up, white chairs in fellowship hall, chairs in rows in the sanctuary, )

***Thank you so VERY MUCH! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!****

Ike Relief Saturday December 13th

2008-12-13T03:57:00.001-06:00

We’re on for today (Saturday, December 13th). I got the following note from Mark Lewis overnight:

I have a floor scraping job lined up for another church on the island…and if there is any way at this late time to see if anyone has a heat gun to bring, it would save time. Also have a de-drywalling job in Hitchcock, that ideally your team may consider adopting for reinstallation in future weeks. I’ll let chad know about that one too.

If you are planning to come today, please be at the church between 6:30 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. for departure to Galveston. You will be leaving the island to return between 3:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.

Ike Relief for the Holidays

2008-12-10T14:08:00.000-06:00

We’re still planning to send a crew to Galveston this weekend (December 13th). We’ve got two crew leaders but only a small number of crew participants that we know of at this point. If you are available to help, please contact Iva at the church office (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net, 281-482-0577) or Bob (mail@trinityfellowship.net, 281-787-7120) to let us know.

The following week-end, December 20th, we do not plan to do any Ike relief.

The last weekend in December (December 27th) we have a unique opportunity. The EFCA Crisis Response staff will be out on their Christmas break, but two crews are coming in on Saturday from Colorado (afternoon) and Sherman, TX (evening) to attend Galveston Bible Church Sunday and work the following week. Mark Lewis needs some folks to be on-site at the church on Saturday to welcome these crews and help them settle in, possibly feeding them supper and breakfast. At that point the EFCA Crisis Response folks will start returning and our responsibility will be over.

Anyone (or family) interested in volunteering for the Saturday or Sunday morning pieces of this opportunity, please contact us. No real experience is needed - we’ll get further details and instructions before the Crisis Response staff leaves town.

Ike Relief Saturday December 13th

2008-12-05T11:07:00.004-06:00

Right at the moment we do not plan to do Ike relief this Saturday, December 6th. However, two of our crew leaders are available on Saturday, December 13th. We would like to be able to go to Galveston and help that day.

If you are available to help, please contact Iva at the church office (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net, 281-482-0577) or Bob (mail@trinityfellowship.net, 281-787-7120) to let us know. We will also be making some calls to recruit for the crews, especially to those who signed up on the work crew pages during Thanksgiving.

Introducing Kevin Watterson

2008-11-26T20:06:00.002-06:00

This Sunday, November 30th during Pizza lunch we have asked Abbie and Tim Rask to give us an update on their preparation for ministry in India. We have also asked Kevin Watterson from EFCA Crisis Resonse to introduce himself, his family and their ministry.

Here is some ministry information on the Wattersons:

This Sunday, November 30th, during Pizza Lunch, Kevin Watterson from EFCA Crisis Response will be introducing himself and his family. The Watterson family is in the process of raising support for an extended ministry with Crisis Relief. We hope you will enjoy getting to know Kevin and will prayerfully consider meeting with him to discuss his support when he calls.

Kevin and Babette Watterson along with their kids, Kendra-10 and Logan-8 will be sharing their support needs and their Vision for Ministry with EFCA’s Crisis Response ministry. Kevin was the owner of a small heating and air conditioning company up until May of 2006 when God called him to sell his business and opened the way for him and his family to join Crisis Response.

Kevin and his family have been serving with Crisis Response since February of 2007 as short term missionaries, and have recently switched their status to long-term. They have relocated from Pennsylvania to Louisiana in July this past year and are currently raising support as they serve in the ministry.

As you may recall, Kevin came with Mark Lewis here to Trinity Fellowship to help in the Ike recovery effort the Sunday after the storm hit. Many of you have joined the relief effort and shared in the ministry opportunities that hurricane Ike has created.

One of the guiding principles of Crisis Response is the belief that in the wake of every crisis lies an opportunity for ministry. Crisis Response exists to “Show the Love of Christ to Those in Need” by meeting the physical, emotional and relational needs of people with the intention of sharing the good news of the gospel of Christ as the other needs are met.

Cutting trees, cleaning up debris, gutting houses and helping in the rebuilding effort after disasters provides the opportunity for non-believers to see Christians in action, and leads to questions about why we do what we do and builds the credibility needed for people to listen when we talk about Jesus, and the hope we have in him.

Please come and join us as we hear how God has worked through the Crisis Response ministry, and the vision and challenges Kevin and his family face in joining the Crisis Response ministry.

Ike Relief, Saturday, November 22nd

2008-11-20T13:37:00.001-06:00

Happy Birthday to You! Happy Birthday to You! Happy Birthday dear Nathan! Happy Birthday to You!

Nathan Jackson is celebrating his birthday by taking a work party of ten or so teens to Galveston for Ike Relief work. It would really help if we could provide several adults to provide transportation and help with the work. If you are available to help, please contact Iva at the church office (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net, 281-482-0577) or Bob (mail@trinityfellowship.net, 281-787-7120) to let us know.

Parents of teens who are coming, you would be especially welcome!

Ike Relief: A Little Work at the Church

2008-11-14T05:02:00.000-06:00

As I mentioned earlier, we will not be having a crew go out this Saturday, November 15th, because of the Thanksgiving church event at Old City Park in Friendswood (3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.).

However, with the rain this week it has become apparent that the roof over the L.I.F.E room is still leaking, and it would seem prudent to remove the soaked sheet rock of the wall and ceiling where the worst leaking is occurring. We plan to do that Saturday morning, starting at about 9:00 a.m. Anyone who would like to help is welcome!

Ike Relief: The Crew Vision

2008-11-13T04:54:00.001-06:00

We had a good crew of people working in Hitchcock and Santa Fe on Saturday, November 9th to help with a couple of roofs. This was our first go at doing some roofing, which will be a major category of recovery help in the coming months. It wasn’t too bad. I think we can develop the expertise for simple roofs pretty quickly.

We won’t be having a crew go out this coming Saturday, because of the Thanksgiving church event at Old City Park in Friendswood (3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.) and preparation for it. The following Saturday (November 22nd) we hope to have a large crew of teens celebrating Nathan Jackson’s birthday by helping. More on that later.

The Crew Vision:

On Saturday we had all four ‘weekly’ crew leaders working, and we had the chance to talk and re-commit ourselves to the idea of establishing rotating crews for Ike relief and other helping exercises.

The four crew leaders are Jeremy Anderson, Doug Breaux, Steve Norman and Bob DeGray.

We figure there are between 100 and 140 ‘able bodied’ people at Trinity. That includes men, women and teens. We’ve found that both male and female help on these crews is welcome and effective. If we divide that by four it gives a pool of 25 to 35 people for each Saturday of the month. From that pool we hope to create a crew, on any given Saturday, of seven to ten people.

These weekly work crews will not be limited to Ike relief. On some Saturdays we hope to use the crews to do needed work around Trinity, or to help Trinity families with needed work (i.e. moving the Olsons, or remodeling at the Reeds).

We are convinced that having people available for such needs will be a real blessing to Trinity and a wonderful outreach ministry - showing God’s love in a practical way; physically doing God’s will!

We’re going to have a sign up sheet at the Thanksgiving event this Saturday and again at church on Sunday where we’ll be asking you to sign up to be in the pool of able bodied people and to indicate which Saturdays of the month you are not usually available to help. We will use this information to start making calls to establish the pool of workers for each Saturday.

Then, when we know the timing and task for any given Saturday we will call through that pool of workers to find out who is available. Under this system, you should only get a call once a month at the most.

Please prayerfully consider jumping in the pool! You will be God’s blessing to others if you do!

Ike Response: Preparing for Saturday, November 8th

2008-11-06T04:38:00.001-06:00

Ike Response - Preparing for Saturday, November 8th

We’ll be needed down on the island! At this point it looks like there will be about 100 people total helping with hurricane relief on Saturday. I think that total includes an estimated 15 or so from Trinity, but I’m not sure. Also, I haven’t heard from that many yet. If you haven’t specifically raised your hand about coming, please contact Iva at the church office (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net, 281-482-0577) or Bob (mail@trinityfellowship.net, 281-787-7120) to let us know.

We will meet at the church at 6:30 a.m. for a 7:00 a.m. sharp departure. I expect that we will return around 5:00 p.m.

Ladies, I recognize that many of you will be staying here for the baby shower. However, if you would like to make cookies for the volunteers, we can transport them down and include them in one of the meals.

Ike Response: Plan Change

2008-10-30T10:51:00.001-05:00

We’re still on for the Olsons this weekend (November 1st) but plans are changing for the following week-end (November 8th).

November 1st:
Sally Olson assures me that they can use a big crew on Saturday to load the truck at the old house and unload it at the new house (possibly repeatedly!). We will plan to meet at the church at 8:30 a.m. and leave promptly for the Olson’s house. If you are available, contact Iva at the church office (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net, 281-482-0577) or Bob (mail@trinityfellowship.net, 281-787-7130) to let us know.

November 8th:
The large group that was supposed to come for Friday and Saturday night has shrunk down to a size that can probably be handled on Galveston Island. That means we won’t have to build showers or provide food. However, we are still needed to help down on the island and to provide a little experience and local presence with some of these crews. I really encourage men, women and families to participate on Saturday, November 8th. Use the contact information above to let us know if you can come.

Ike Response: Back to Work

2008-10-28T16:54:00.000-05:00

Last weekend we enjoyed perfect weather at the church camp-out in Huntsville. It was a great break and a meaningful time. But now, for the next two weekends, we have the opportunity to do a good amount of meaningful Ike work.

Saturday, November 1st. We hope to be able to effectively use a pretty big team to help the Olson’s with their move to a rental house. They will be packing and preparing this week and we’ll be helping them make the short move and get a bit settled in on Saturday. If you are available this weekend, contact Iva at the church office (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net, 281-482-0577) or Bob (mail@trinityfellowship.net, 281-787-7120) to let us know.

Saturday, November 8th. This promises to be an interesting week-end. Mark Lewis has between 200 and 400 people coming in to do Ike relief, mostly on the Island. Our big job is to house between 80 and 120 of these folks. We will be letting them sleep on the floors of the main sanctuary and the L.I.F.E room on Friday and Saturday night, and then sending them on their way early Sunday morning so we can have church. We’ll need to provide food and showers. How can we provided showers, you ask? We are designing temporary showers to be set up outside the building. Pray for relatively warm weather and no rain.

Our smaller job will be to accompany some of the teams down onto the Island to provide some local contact and some experience. If you have gutted or roofed, even a little, we really need you to lend a hand that day.

So please respond (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net, 281-482-0577) or (mail@trinityfellowship.net, 281-787-7120) as soon as possible and let us know what you can do on November 7th and 8th:
Food preparation, Friday night and/or Saturday morning, Saturday evening.
Shower preparation, Friday during the day, Saturday during the day.
Gutting or roofing, Saturday during the day

Two Weeks to Get Organized

2008-10-21T07:08:00.000-05:00

Ike Response, 081021

Two Weeks to Get Organized

We had a light weekend of helping - only working at the Stark’s house in Dickinson - but it was a really worthwhile time.

This coming weekend we won’t be sending out any organized crews, because many of us will be on the church camp-out.

Actually, the word ‘organized’ in the above sentence may be a bit optimistic, which leads to the purpose of this post: we’ve got two weeks to get organized.

Two weeks from last Saturday will be November 1st. By that date I’m praying that we will have four crew leaders and hopefully four crews defined, one for each of the first four Saturdays of the month. This rotation will last as long as meaningful Ike response is available, which will be for a while, especially on Galveston Island.

Here is the schedule for November, December (need doesn’t take a break for Christmas, though we may have to some of these weekends) and January:
1st Saturday: November 1, December 6, January 3
2nd Saturday: November 8, December 13, January 10
3rd Saturday: November 15, December 20, January 17
4th Saturday: November 22, December 27, January 24

By the way, we’re thinking of using these crews for needs within the body as well, such as helping people move or helping with church building or individual home projects (like helping the Reeds do home modifications for Donna’s wheelchair).

We still need two crew leaders and many crew members to round out this rotation. Please prayerfully consider your schedule and respond to this need by e-mailing Bob (mail@trinityfellowship.net) or Iva (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net) with the following information: name, which Saturday (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th), willing to be crew leader.

Thanks for your help!

Galveston County Hazardous Waste Drop Off

2008-10-18T08:02:00.002-05:00

The EPA has set up a hazardous waste drop off site for North Galveston County. The site will be open from Saturday, October 18th to Sunday, October 26th.

Here is a link to the flyer on the Dickinson web site.

http://www.groupbuilder.net/uploads/city_of_dickinson/GC_HHW_flyers_10-15-08.pdf

Pass this along to those who might need to know it.

Ike Plan for Saturday, October 18th

2008-10-17T16:09:00.002-05:00

It's going to be a relatively light weekend of helping. We will be leading a mixed Trinity / Grace team back to the Starks house in Dickenson to complete the gutting and begin some mold remediation.

It would be really nice to have a few more Trinity representatives on the crew.

Please contact me if you are planning to come. E-mail mail@trinityfellowship.net, or call 281-787-7130.

Thanks

Bob

Update: Here's the plan for the next several weeks.
October 25th - No Ike relief - church campout
November 1st - Moving Laura Pinard and possibly the Olsons
November 8th - Possibly hosting a hundred volunteers at the church.

Looking Backward, Looking Forward

2008-10-15T04:31:00.002-05:00

I’m sorry I haven’t updated yet this week. I fell into a hole called ‘Doctoral Thesis’. My thesis proposal was due yesterday, and I needed to work all Sunday evening, nineteen hours Monday and all yesterday morning to get it ready. Now that I’ve hit the ‘send’ button on that, I’m clawing my way out of the hole and addressing this week's work and communication.

Looking Backward: Last weekend was another good time of helping. EFCA Crisis Response had a planned total of seventeen crews on the island and on the mainland. Not all of those jobs worked out, of course. For example, one of the houses we were supposed to gut was declared structurally unsound just hours before we would have arrived. But we did get to work on two other places and made significant progress with both. In particular a combined Grace / Trinity crew did a great deal of work gutting a house in Dickinson and seemed to make a great impact on the homeowner as well.

Looking Forward: We had hoped to help Laura Pinard with her move to a new apartment this Saturday. As of now that move is off, because the new apartment turned her down. Please keep praying for her to find a new place. We’ll let you know when that move is re-scheduled.

In the absence of that opportunity, we will instead be helping again on the mainland. We will probably go back to the one house in Dickinson, and we will be looking for other opportunities to help there. Grace Bible Church will be sending another good group, possibly as many as thirty five.

We will need to carefully plan the work for Saturday and we’ll keep you informed of what develops. In return, I’d ask that you please think and pray about your participation for Saturday, especially if you haven’t helped in a few weeks, and call or e-mail to let us know you’re coming.

In Christ

Bob

Work Plan for Saturday, October 11, 2008

2008-10-10T14:11:00.001-05:00

I just got back from meeting with Mark Lewis and several of the local pastors. We talked about long range strategies for Ike response, and discussed the transition from relief to rebuilding. Mark estimates that this could be a three or four year process as we attempt to serve the underserved who have been most catastrophically impacted by Ike.

As far as tomorrow goes, we will be local rather than on the island. There are two houses in Dickinson that we know need gutting and another with tree removal needs. We will work with part of the team from Grace Bible Church.

Anyone who can participate is welcome. We will meet at the church at 8:30 a.m. Please call or e-mail Iva or Bob to let us know you are coming.

Ivaf@trinityfellowship.net 281-482-0577

mail@trinityfellowship.net 281-787-7130

Thanks

Bob

Making A Difference

2008-10-09T05:03:00.002-05:00

We’re making a difference. Helen Shinpaugh sent me the following encouraging e-mail:

Bob,

I talked with Marian last night, and she said Clay [Thomas, pastor of Galveston Bible Church] was a whole different person Sunday after you all had been down there. He was touched that the team came to his house, but even more touched that you yourself were there working on his house. His heart and countenance were lighter, and he and Karla were so encouraged. It was a real blessing all around. I'm gonna cry if I talk about it any more.

Blessings,

Helen

I will be talking with Mark Lewis this evening about plans for the weekend, but what I’d like us to do is make available one crew - five to seven people - to work wherever he thinks best, on the island or locally if the needs can be clearly identified.

Let me remind you of the strategy outlined in the previous post: we sustain our relief efforts by asking each of you to volunteer for one Saturday a month. My prayer is that we will find four crew leaders and five to seven crew members for each Saturday.

Please prayerfully consider your roll in this kind of process. You can call or e-mail the church office (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net) or call or e-mail me (mail@trinityfellowship.net) to volunteer for this weekend or for an ongoing Saturday each month.

Thanks

Bob

Helping a Friend

2008-10-06T05:37:00.001-05:00

We had another good workday on Saturday. We took fifteen men down to Galveston and worked on gutting two different houses. I was able to work with the crew that was removing sheet rock and other items from the home of Pastor Clay Thomas of Galveston Bible Church. Clay and his wife are friends, and it was even more painful than usual to see all their possessions in a huge pile by the street.

We multiplied the size of the pile with the building materials we removed from the house. At one point I said to Clay “I hate to break this to you buddy, but I think you might have a little mold problem here”. The black mold was about 30 inches up the 2x4's in some places. I’m still not sure how they will get completely rid of it, but I know it will take lots of help.

Going forward, I would like to see us continue to make an effort every Saturday, but with the understanding that as we settle into a ‘new normal’, we will each have to develop a sustainable level of effort. My suggestion, for myself and others, is that as many of us as possible commit to one Saturday a month of helping. I would love to have a crew chief and a few key workers identified for each Saturday of the month (first Saturday, second Saturday, etc.).

For the rest of October:
Saturday, October 11 - helping in Galveston or locally as needs are identified
Saturday, October 18 - a somewhat larger crew will be needed to move Laura Pinard to a new apartment. (Only indirectly related to Ike, but a real need).
Saturday, October 25 - Church Camp Out
Saturday, November 1 - helping in Galveston, or possibly helping the Olsons move.

Thanks again to all who have poured hours into this key ministry.

P.S. Be sure to keep up with the larger picture at www.efcacrisisresponse.blogspot.com

Ike Relief, Details for Saturday, October 4

2008-10-04T05:22:00.000-05:00

Here is the plan for the day as received from Mark Lewis:

Bob – I have you into 3 groups doing gutting. We have these gutting tips perhaps you’d be able to print out and have your men read on the way down.

Team 1 – working with clay thomas gutting to 4ft… well maybe 8 ft because I told him it was really hard to match texture when trying to feather in a 4 ft joint

Team 2 – pete alcocer, galv police officer - finishing a gut in progress

Team 3 – ray carrizalez galv coty sherrif dept – sheet rock removal, not sure how much water he had, 4’ vs 8’ gut

I have maps printed out with owner ph numbers for each place.

ml

Lk 12:48b

Ike Relief (not 'One Relief' - silly iPhone) Saturday, October 4

2008-10-03T14:21:00.003-05:00

I woke up this morning and got right to work on my message for Sunday, and never did this update. Now I'm sitting waiting for probate court to open and drafting on my iPhone.

Anyway, things are about the same as the plan I already laid out. Men and boys should meet at the church at 6:30 am to go down to Galveston to work. We will mostly be gutting houses, so bring gloves, boots and masks if you have them. Wear long pants, and maybe even lightweight long sleeves.

We do not need to bring food. We will bring some cold water.

We will work until about dusk and probably be back at church by eight or eight-thirty.

If you are not going to Galveston, you might be able to help the Berreths help a friend in Dickinson (hauling trash) or you might be able to help Susan Torney. Call them directly if you'd like to help.

I'm looking forward to the day of work in Galveston, 'physically doing the will of God.'

Update: I just got an e-mail from Mark indicating that there will be fifteen people from Grace Bible Church coming down to work as well. We'll have to figure out where they can work

Galveston, Saturday October 4, 2008

2008-10-02T04:19:00.002-05:00

The details for Saturday’s work in Galveston are coming together. We will not be traveling down Friday night, but rather Saturday morning. We will meet at the church at 6:30 a.m. sharp and leave to be at Galveston Bible Church by 8:00 a.m. We will probably work until dusk, returning to church around 8:00 p.m.

This workday is open to all the men and boys of the church. You don’t have to have been signed up for Men’s Bible Immersion Camp to participate. Please respond by phone, e-mail or blog entry so that we can get a good list for the EFCA Crisis Response team we'll be working with.

I’m still checking to see if we need to bring food. I’ll let you know in tomorrow’s update.

Sadly, the group from Abbie and Tim’s church will not be coming down this weekend, so we probably won’t have much formal work going on locally. I’ll check with Mark Lewis this evening to see if any of the EFCA folk will be local. And I suspect Susan Torney or the Olson’s might be able to use an extra set of hands.

A Good Day of Helping

2008-09-30T03:56:00.003-05:00

I’m sorry this update is rather late. We had a full day of church Sunday and I had a full day of catching up on some things at home Monday (read, among other things, paying bills).

While I’m off subject anyway, let me recommend that you see the movie ‘Fireproof’. I would have pushed it pretty hard except for the intervention of Ike. It’s the well done story of a marriage in trouble so deep that nothing could save it - except Jesus. Bring tissue!

Back to Ike response: We had a pretty good day of helping last Saturday. We worked with EFCA Crisis Response crews in Pearland, taking a tree off a man’s house, and also in the Taylor Lake area. Ted Trela led a crew working on a home in Kemah. Steven Yowell led a crew cleaning up for Tom Morrow’s mother in LaPorte, and Doug Breaux led a large crew in Shore Acres, gutting the house of Tom Morrow’s grandparents. Shoreacres was very hard hit in the storm, and most of the homes had two to four feet of water in them.

Because of Rick Cousins’ story in The Galveston Daily News, we have a number of new contacts. We will be trying to organize response with some of those contacts this week and expect to have another solid day of helping Saturday.

Abbie and Tim Rask will be bringing down a crew from the church they attend in Dallas.

Men, if you were planning to go to Bible Immersion Camp please put the new dates (March 6-8, 2009) on your calendar, and let us know if you are available to help either in Galveston (Friday night, sleeping on the island, and Saturday) or locally (Saturday).

By the way, if you have a late afternoon or evening available during the week, or even a whole day, e-mail or call and we’ll try to attach you to an EFCA crew working in the area.

Men's Bible Immersion Camp Re-scheduled

2008-09-26T16:44:00.001-05:00

Dear Brothers in Christ,

After significant prayer and consultation with the elders, we've decided to postpone Men's Bible Immersion Camp. The good news is that we have already consulted with the Davis family on a date and have re-scheduled the camp for March 7th, which is a beautiful time of year to be at the farm. Please put that date on your calendar.

Several factors contributed to the postponement. One was that I have had very little time to prepare the materials, which are crucial to the success of the camp. The second and more important one was that it just didn't seem right to take 25 able bodied men and boys out of town at a time like this when we have such a great opportunity for ministry to others.

In fact I have spoken to Mark Lewis and he can take as many of us as are willing to Galveston on Friday afternoon. We would work that evening, spend the night in a house or two that he has lined up (not flooded!) and work again Saturday, returning Saturday night. Please let me know if you are interested in this work.

I know many of you were really looking forward to the Bible Immersion Camp, as I was. I'm trusting that God will still bless through it at the re-scheduled time.

In Him

Bob

A note about the plan for Saturday, September 27

2008-09-26T16:33:00.002-05:00

I just wanted to confirm that unless you have a specific place you already know you are going to help, you should come to the church at 8:30 a.m. in order to be assigned to a team for helping. We will be doing both brush clearing and cleaning out houses, so come with heavy shoes, long pants, gloves, and masks if you have them.

Preparing for a helping Saturday

2008-09-26T03:56:00.002-05:00

We’re looking forward to a good day of helping people tomorrow, Saturday, September 26th. We’ve line up a number of needs that can be met if we have enough people available:

- helping the Olsons, if possible with their need to store possessions and move from the house
- helping in Shore Acres, where we know of a number of families with both tree and flood issues.
- helping in places like Pearland and Sagemont where isolated needs may lead to new ministry.
- continuing to help on Galveston island and at other points south of our area.

To meet those needs we hope God will provide ten or so folks from Grace Bible Church, a number of Crisis Response teams, and a lot of Trinity folk.

In a couple of cases we need a little more detail in order to scope out the need. Here are some questions we’ll be trying to answer today. If you can reply by comment to the blog or by e-mail to Iva (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net) it will save some phone calls:

Sally (Olson) - what can most effectively be done for you on Saturday? Do the needs in Shore Acres still exist?
Wendy (Allen) - is this need still there? What is your mother-in-law’s address?
Joanna (Rask) - do you have addresses for the needs in San Leon and Galveston?
Debbie (Walters) - do you have names and addresses for the needs on Tiki Island?

Please pray that God would allow us to effectively help a few of the many people still devastated by Ike and battling fatigue and discouragement.

Thursday Morning Update

2008-09-25T03:32:00.006-05:00

This blog is only a little over one day old, and we already have many needs listed. Yesterday morning at church I personally spoke to people about three new major needs.

One of those was from a man we've occasionally supported with benevolence over several years - buying him a tank of gas or a food card at HEB. He and his wife and daughter evacuated to Dallas in his old blue truck and came back Sunday after the storm to find a large oak tree had crushed the trailer they own in Pasadena. The tree is still there and all their possessions are still inside. They have no money and no insurance.

We hope that many Trinity people, along with some folks from Grace Bible Church and EFCA Crisis Response will be able to work on Saturday (September 27) to start meeting some of these needs.

One way you can help us help is to print out the EFCA Work Request Form and get people to fill it out so that we have permission in advance to work on their houses, etc. Please be aware, however, that filling out the form does not guarantee that we will be able to help - we can only do what God gives us the resources to do.

EFCA Crisis Response

I did not get a chance to get an update from EFCA Crisis Response yesterday, so at this time I presume there will be one team in our area, probably working in Taylor Lake, but that could change later this morning when I talk to them. We will post changes as we learn of them.

Update: Mark indicates that Shelby and Bob from EFCA Crisis Response will be working in Joanna's neighborhood today.

Update #2: If you want to leave a comment - a need or your availability - just click on the 'number of comments' line below and you will be taken to a form. If you do not have a Google account you can select 'name' or 'anonymous' and you will be asked to type in a random confirmation 'word', which keeps the blog from getting spammed.

EFCA Crisis Response Plans

2008-09-24T05:20:00.002-05:00

Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Crisis Response expects to continue working in the Norman's neighborhood. If you would like to help, call the church for more details.

Thursday, September 25, 2008
Crisis Response expects to work in Timber Cove (Taylor Lake). If you would like to help, leave your name on this blog, email ivaf@trinityfellowship.net or call the church for more details.

Crisis Response is also working hard on Galveston Island this week.

Saturday, September 27, 2008
We expect to have several teams working again this Saturday, including a return group from Grace Bible Church in Houston. Don't miss this chance to show God's love in a practical way. Indicate your availability by leaving a comment on this blog or sending an email to ivaf@trinityfellowship.net

First Post: The Communication Plan

2008-09-24T03:54:00.000-05:00

Dear Extended Trinity Fellowship Family

The purpose of this blog (and associated e-mail) is to lay out a relatively simple way to coordinate Ike needs with our responses. I want to sincerely encourage you to read what follows and help us by identifying needs and letting us know when you are available to help

In Christ,

Bob DeGray
Pastor, Trinity Fellowship

Communication System:

Trinity people and other locals who know of needs, wish to volunteer or have donations can make them known in three ways:
1. Comment on the latest entry at TrinitymeetIkeneeds.blogspot.com
2. E-mail Iva (ivaf@trinityfellowship.net) cc me (mail@trinityfellowship.net)
3. Call Iva at church (281-482-0577) or as a last resort, me (281-787-7130)

Iva will attempt to keep a running spreadsheet of needs and volunteer availability. She will put any that come in by phone or e-mail on the current day’s blog entry. Based on projections from Mark Lewis and Bob DeGray, she will attempt to contact volunteers and confirm where you can help.

Each morning around 3:00 a.m. we will update this blog and send out an e-mail (to Trinity News rather than Trinity Prayer) to tell you where work is being done. For many this will confirm where you are headed that day, if anywhere. For others it will allow you to decide where to help on a more spur of the moment basis.

For example, I will blog and e-mail that we are again planning a major day of helping this Saturday. People will volunteer by one of the three methods. Iva will get back to them and either confirm that they should meet at church at such-and-such a time or go someplace else directly.

I hope this system will keep us somewhat coordinated. Please feel free to visit the blog, TrinitymeetIkeneeds.blogspot.com and review all the postings and comments.