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Worldwide Trips > Gulf Coast Community > Gulf Coast Update
Gulf Coast Update
May 2008
Progress in April
There has been no lack of helping hands on the Gulf Coast this spring. Eight teams, consisting of eighty-six volunteers, have participated in the Thrivent Builds Worldwide Gulf Coast Community program. These volunteers have laid sod, framed walls, raised walls, built sheds, painted, installed doors and windows and more.
Currently, Thrivent Builds Worldwide Gulf Coast Community houses are being built in Ocean Springs and Pascagoula. One team, here in April, helped landscape yards and performed completion tasks on the interiors of the five houses in Ocean Springs on Rosemont Street. You can read more about this team's experience in team leader Mike Legendre's report below. Two other teams raised wall frames on the Thrivent Builds Worldwide Gulf Coast Community homes located on Polk Avenue in Pascagoula. In order to comply with FEMA's flood regulations and compensate for the low elevation of the lots in Pascagoula, the floor systems needed to be raised four to eight-feet above existing grade. Lifting wall frames from ground level onto these eight-foot high floor systems was quite a demanding task, but this group of volunteers did a fantastic job. Volunteers in Pascagoula also constructed sheds for each of the houses. The natural landscape of the area and the beautiful live oak trees on the properties help make the lots in Pascagoula very desirable for homeowners. On all four of the lots in Pascagoula, the walls are standing and ready for truss installation.
The Thrivent Builds Executive Steering Committee, made up of executive managers of both Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and Habitat for Humanity, International, also spent several days participating in the Thrivent Builds Worldwide Gulf Coast Community. They stayed at Yankie Stadium with other Thrivent Builds volunteers and worked on the homes on Rosemont Street and Polk Avenue.
As for the Trace Lane property, which will be divided into twenty-eight housing lots and one lot for a park and pavilion, infrastructure is expected to begin in May 2008… stay tuned for more.
A special thanks to everyone who has donated to the Thrivent Builds Worldwide Gulf Coast Community program. A team from the Southeast Region of Thrivent Financial, led by Dave Yoder from Pawleys Island, South Carolina was able to present a generous contribution of $1,325 to the Thrivent Builds Worldwide Gulf Coast Community program. Dave's team was the first to purchase a piece of our donation recognition house. Donors have the option to decorate a brick, window or door that is placed on a donation recognition house at Yankie Stadium.
Another generous donation of $1,000 came from Holy Comforter Lutheran Church in Belmont, North Carolina, whose Pastor Mike Varn led a team to the Gulf Coast in early April. The total monetary donation to the Thrivent Builds Worldwide program has reached $2,490. This money will be applied to the construction of new homes in addition to the forty homes already sponsored by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.
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Rosemont Update: by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans member Mike Legendre
In late October 2007, my wife, Mary, and I participated in the Thrivent Builds Worldwide Gulf Coast Community as part of a "blitz week" comprising more than 150 Lutherans from GA, NC, and SC who traveled to Biloxi to help rebuild the Mississippi Gulf Coast. That was such a positive experience for me that I later organized a team from our local congregation - the Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in Mount Holly, NC. Our team of 15 traveled to Biloxi on April 7, 2008 and, once registration was complete, all participated in the orientation phase that afternoon at Volunteer Village in Yankie Stadium. The next morning, we were introduced to our Construction Supervisor, Phil Tritz, and his assistant, Austin Gordon - two young men that we soon learned had a passion for what they are doing to help rebuild the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Our assignment was to work on seven houses on Rosemont St. that were in various stages of completion. As seen in the photos, the design for these homes had been altered by Habitat so that they blended in with existing structures in the immediate vicinity. The neighborhood is located in the community of St. Martin in the Ocean Springs area just east of Biloxi.
Once on the jobsite that first day, we quickly got our assignments from Phil and started the many tasks ahead. The biggest job facing the team was to grade the front and side yards of several of the houses and then distribute grass sod and landscaping plants among the yards.
During the 4-day workweek, lawns were prepared using 22 pallets of sod stacked 3-ft high. Many shrubs were also planted. One of the houses was at a stage where we could only apply coats of paint to interior walls, ceilings and woodworking materials and install all of the interior doors. Although that house still lacks landscaping, sod and the installation of cabinets, woodwork, major appliances and many of the features now found in Habitat for Humanity homes, it won't be long until it, too, is complete and ready for its new family. In four of the houses, we installed major appliances, bathroom fixtures, closet shelving, woodwork trim, doorknob assemblies, mailboxes, and a host of other necessities. However, those structures still lack carpeting and final cleanup before the proud, new owners can move into them. The final two houses were in need only of detailed cleanup for final inspection. Deanna and Camille did a great job with that task. And, of course, there was general cleanup of the entire site! The work we did was definitely a team effort as evidenced by the aches and pains each night.
One highlight of the week for our team was the opportunity to work with the Thrivent Builds with Habitat for Humanity Executive Steering Committee on Wednesday afternoon at our worksite. They were in Biloxi for meetings and decided to join in for some plain old "sweat equity". I find it interesting that our church‘s Pastor, Scott Anderson, has a connection to one of them. We found them to be a great group of people who have a daunting responsibility and we enjoyed talking with them about the organization and its mission.
The facilities at Volunteer Village provided a pleasant place for meals, rest, leisure and fun after each day of hard work was complete. The staff there provided tasty and nourishing food for us the entire week as well as taking care of other needs. Working with one of the local staff, Lindsay Freise, prior to and during the week was also a great experience and made the process of arranging the trip go smoothly for us. It is noteworthy that after our first workday was complete, Lindsay had arranged for the team to tour Biloxi and eastern Gulfport so that we could get a sense of what has happened and what still is left to be done in the area. Even though the country now hears little about it, there remains much work on the Mississippi Gulf Coast to help its residents recover from the devastation brought on by Hurricane Katrina 2-1/2 years ago. The opportunities to help people in need are plenty.
On April 12, the team returned safely to our homes in southern North Carolina. Although quite tired and sore from the week's duties, we are happy that our local congregation had provided this mission opportunity to serve those still in need on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. We left Biloxi with a strong sense of accomplishment in doing a small part of a job that is far from being complete. Indeed, we felt God's presence with us and at work in our efforts to help those people.
Want to be a part of the community like Mike?
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Thrivent Financial member Mark Lyon shares his trip journal
Mark Lyon, a Thrivent Financial for Lutherans member from Iowa, participated in a Thrivent Builds Worldwide Gulf Coast Community trip in mid-April. This was his second trip to the Gulf Coast Community, and he was able to see much progress upon his return. It was a week full of revisiting Biloxi, hard work, and taking in the local culture.
Read Mark's journal to learn how Mark spent his week.
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Make an even bigger impact - donate today
Through the Thrivent Builds Worldwide Gulf Coast Community program, Thrivent Financial members are helping 40 families to rebuild their homes - and their lives - in the Missisippi Gulf Coast. But the need is still great:
- Only 15% of the homes along the Gulf Coast destroyed by Hurricanes Rita and Katrina have been rebuilt.
- Thousands of families are still living in unsafe temporary housing.
- More than 100 families are in the pipeline, waiting for homes with Habitat for Humanity of the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
YOU can make a difference and help even more families today. Donate online to Habitat for Humanity of the Mississippi Gulf Coast and your dollars will help build even more homes in the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
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Send us your story!
Have you been part of a Thrivent Builds Worldwide Gulf Coast Community trip? Do you have stories or photos you'd like to share with others? Send them to Nicole Doebert for consideration in future issues of the Gulf Coast Update. We want YOU to share the experience and inspire others to help!
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Gulf Coast Update Archive
If you would like to read previous issues of the Gulf Coast Update, simply access the Gulf Coast Update Archive from this link or from the left navigation bar.
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