First class....

today was our third day working the post office line.  By the time we got there at 12:30 people had been waiting in line for up to 2 hours in the sun.  We had our usual water and hot dogs, but added granola bars to the menu.  Food and cold water calms everyone down, and today the post master and 2 managers came out to thank us.  

People try to give us money, want to know where we are from etc etc.  Some times I make up the answers just to keep life interesting. (for myself) Made a big boo boo though.  I said to a gentleman ' Oh I saw you here yesterday, I recognize the shirt...!' Duh Margaret he probably only has one shirt and lives out of his car.  

People seem in really good spirits, and the PO line is a good place for them to talk to each other and share contacts and stories.  

The Vineyard pastor from Galveston, and his family stopped by today to help for a while.  They have recently planted and church there.  Fortunately their house was dry, but the meeting place they have for a church is a mess.  Ken and Jodie Hannings with Ava, Micah, Sarah and Kayla.

Janell who works for Mercy Response in Kenner LA getting a tray of hot dogs together.  We gave out over 800 bottles of iced water and 500+ hotdogs. 

Back at camp the boys are putting together showers etc ready for the teams coming down to gut homes, starting this weekend.  

no where to go...

not an unusual story. People have no place to stay and are living in their cars.

a bottle of water saves the 911 calls

Today my new friend from Wisconsin, Diane, and I drove to Galv to give out bottled water. (cold)  This weekend is the first weekend many have come home to see the damage, and everywhere we saw families hauling things out to the front yard.  We sat and talked with many older folk, especially those who didnt have the help needed.  We were able to get many names and addresses of folks who need the teams to gut their homes. After awhile we stopped taking names.....just too many.  The smell is now getting very bad....sewerage, fridges and freezers etc.  Its hard to sit and have a polite conversation with strangers giving them hope, all the time holding your breath and nodding.  I need to practice this technique.  

telephone poles, railway sleepers and who knows what washed into this neighborhood.  Impossible to move without machines.  The city will move anything that is put on the front curb.  These people will need to be creative with their new landscaping.  The lady who owns this house is going through cancer treatment at the same time as dealing with this.  Grown men broke down and cried with us (2 ladies) today.... 
Galveston families need to drive 15 miles to get their mail.  The PO line is always long and we had been given the heads up about this, so were made very welcome when we parked outside the PO this afternoon to hand out cold water.  One of the workers thanked us over and over telling us about how many times they had had to call 911 because of collapses.  The PO wait in the heat was up to 2 hours.

cruising the freeways...

driving to Galveston you see boats, jet skis, sea doos all backed up to the freeway wall.  I asked one guy about the nice boat in his backyard.  He told me he pulled out the plug before evacuating, "so I basically sunk my boat in the backyard".  It survived with no water reaching the important parts. (well he got a little technical for me at that point, so I'll just say impt parts.)

same job, different location, new stories...

Hurricane Ike hit just 2 weeks ago today.  Mold, and the smell that goes with it, has really set in, and you can smell it everywhere.  We gutted the lower level of Leanna's house today in Galveston.  She is 77yrs old, and has never worn anything but skirts and dresses.  As of yesterday and the return to her home she is now liberated..!!  Its difficult gutting in a skirt.  A sweet lady who is a member of every church in Galveston.

the outside of Leannas house.  She is living with friends, and even though she has electricity it will be a while before she can return for good because of the dampness. Many of the trees in the street are dead from the salt water.
mold all through the kitchen cupboards.....a result of 3 feet of water.  Fortunately the water had subsided within 24 hours (Katrina was 2 weeks in some places)
I worked along side 10 others from Ohio.  Some I met in New Orleans 16mths ago....disaster junkies. Its scary how quickly the 'skill' of house gutting comes back to ya so quickly.

houston here I come....

I cant wait to get to Texas tomorrow and join with Mercy Response to start the long cleanup process in the Houston/Galveston area. There will be lots of people to meet, stories to listen to and houses to empty. I have the first bundle of 'mercy quilts' and look forward to passing on some love and comfort to those who have lost everything in Hurricane Ike.

Click here for more information on Mercy Quilts.

Shirley's college grandson in for a treat.....

this is the 2nd of two football quilts that Shirley has made for her grandson.

One is backed in fleece to take to the game and the other for his dormroom.

She took a few years to collect fabric from the 32 NFL teams.

the backing...!! yes a packer fan.

The design I used to quilt the 2 quilts

....and the quilt

Caleb is checking out the quilt made by Great Auntie Me...!!

darling caleb

Trendy babe wearing 'Dimples'

a New Zealand clothing brand for babies,

started by a mum of seven...!!

wearing an outfit knitted by his great nana.

Caleb Ethan Driller

this week our family celebrates the birth of this wee man in Auckland New Zealand. Eleven months ago Calebs big brother Ethan Michael, died only 18 days old. Their mum Toni is my niece and so we are all delighted that Caleb has arrived with a very good set of lungs...!1

the mccollums...

Jeff, Jodie and wee Zach were in Sun Valley, Idaho recently, to celebrate Jeffs mums 70th birthday. It was the perfect time for family photos. Jodie was still feeling pregnancy blahs but she looks great to me...

Saturdays quilt class

Liz's coffee quilt.

Andrea
Carol wearing her patriotic tshirt while working on her patriotic quilt.
Esther

Manon is a great teacher at Cozy Cottage fabrics in Brea. Look at what we completed in such a short time...!!

Here it comes......

Elliotts hair...!!