JR HIGH HOME WORKS
Augusta, GA
June 25-29 (Fri-Tue)
Cost: $35
Grades: current 5th grade through current 8th grade
12+ youth
3-4 Adults

SR HIGH HOME WORKS
Johns Island
July 18-25
Cost: $140 Due Feb 28
Grades: rising 9th - current 12th
20 youth
5 Adults

FORMS NEEDED:
St. John's Permission Form
Home Works Youth Registration Packet
Home Works Adult Registration Packet

Contact Dorian now to register for these experiences.
mdd@stjohnscolumbia.org

Wow! What an incredible week!

The past two nights have been extremely busy, so I apologize for not posting photos last night. There are plenty attached tonight. The past two nights we took time to recognize every person that worked here at Johns Island. The site leaders spoke about each member and then each member had a chance to reflect on the week. Our kids did a great job explaining their "take-away" for the week. This is the event where everyone receives their t-shirt. Hank added a bonus for the site leaders - a great orange Homeworks Hat.

Saturday night is our thanksgiving meal and it was well attended by homeowners. Beyond repairing houses, our main goal was to spend time with the homeowners - by the look of the room when it was time to say goodbye, our kids and the homeowners really bonded. Then it was a mad rush for the annual ping pong tournament where we were well represented by the 2009 Champion - Preston. Despite cheering by Lynda and Beth, Jack and I had a late rally that came up short. Cliff folded under pressure and ended up getting skunked (or something like that).

Some highlights of the attached pictures include our 6:15 AM march to chapel where Cliff preached on Goats??? I am still confused... There are pictures of wild animals that we encountered this week - well kind of wild animals - Spiders and Dogs. Pictures of our prayer wall - where we prayed for all of you at home as well as homeowners. There are pictures of the best before and after house (Beaumont, Winston, and mine of course). We turned that puky North Carolina/Citadel blue house into a showplace complete with new landscaping.

Thanks for all of your prayers and if you ever have a chance to accompany our youth on a mission trip, you should. It is nice to see how great they really are! It also gives us adults a nice time to reflect on all of the blessings that we all have. We are all looking forward to being home with our families.

God's Peace,

Brandon

Greetings,

Another great, but hot day down at Johns Island. We have set a new record for the number of houses repaired in one session. We have completed(or near completion) of all of the original houses and all of the back-ups. The groups have all worked extremely hard and have done incredible work.

We had a wonderful supper tonight and had a few surprise visitors for dinner - Father Fletcher came to pick up Mike and had dinner with us as well as Will Moore and his new bride. It was great to see all of them.

Posted are pictures from the site that Beaumont, Winston, and I are working on. We have been working around the family trying to prepare for the funeral of the homeowners brother. He passed away on Wednesday morning and there have been many visitors to share their condolences. These visitors all commented on how great of a job we were doing and how much they appreciate us repairing Ms. Lowery's house.

After dinner Winston and Austin created a very popular game - a combination of ping pong and tennis played on the gym floor. The older kids hijack the ping pong table, so Austin and Winston got creative. It was neat to see some of the older kids come in and ask to play. I think this new game will be a new Homeworks tradition. Austin and Winston have already planned a tournament for later this week. It is really quite fun.

One more full day of work tomorrow and hopefully a few hours on Saturday and then we will celebrate with our homeowners at a special thanksgiving meal on Saturday night.

Thanks for your prayers,

God's Peace,

Brandon

Greetings,
Today was a great, fun day. Every site worked hard and got a lot accomplished. Most of the homes we have worked on will be done tomorrow, so we will probably be working on new homes once we are done. It was pretty hot and extremely humid this morning. After lunch, a thunderstorm rolled in, so all the sites got rained on! That didn't stop us though! We worked right on through it and were able to get a lot done. Some sites have been working on roofs, painting, building decks, and cauking. The homeowners are all so thankful for the work we have done, and it is so nice getting to know them all. We are looking forward to having another great day tomorrow!!

God bless!
Austin Lewis and Mary Sarah Komar

Greetings,

Not a lot of pictures to share today. Taylor Jackson had the camera, but he was way too busy to take any pictures (or at least that is what he said).

We worked hard all morning and then took off for some fun time at the beach at Saint Christopher. The highlight was certainly the fried chicken from Billy Dees. You know it is going to be good when the sign out front says: If the Colonel had our recipe, he would be a General!"

We also found out that "No Diving" signs should be posted at beaches as well as shallow pools. Taylor Jackson decided to run and dive into about 1 foot of water - OUCH!!! The best picture for tonight is the aftermath...

I will make sure we have more action photos tomorrow! A lot of the houses are close to completion, so hopefully we will have some before and after photos to share.

God's Peace,

Brandon

Greetings,

Another great, but hot day down at Johns Island. Things got off to a great start at 6AM when Santa woke us up. Everyone seems to be doing very well and having a great time despite the hard work. Today's photos are from a house on Wadmalaw that Mike Montgomery and Father Joseph Smith are the site leaders. The team at this site consists of Beth Busbee, Austin Lewis, and Jack Moore. They are working hard replacing kitchen cabinets, building a new deck/porch, etc...

Tuesday is a popular day because we head to the beach mid-afternoon for some wonderful fried chicken and some great fellowship.

I hope all is well in Columbia. Everything is great here!

God's Peace,

Brandon


http://picasaweb.google.com/stjohnscolumbia/JohnsIsland2009Day2?feat=directlink

Greetings from Johns Island,

After a slow trip down, thanks to Cliff's sporadic driving, we spent the first hour unloading trailers full of supplies. We then ate and everyone went to Home Depot to pick up all of the lumber and supplies. From there, half of us headed to Wadmalaw and the rest of us stayed on the island.

Pictures posted include pictures of the house that Preston Busbee, Cliff Moore and Raiford Collins are site leaders - the team includes Taylor Jackson, Virginia Prioleau, and Lawson Smith and new friends. Preston's house (light blue 1 story house) needs a lot of TLC - replacing siding, re-roofing, adding joists, etc... Quite a challenge. The lady that lives here is blind and cares for herself.

The second house is the house that Winston Collins, Beaumont Smith, and I are working on. It is a two story house that needs exterior paint, facia work, a new front porch built, etc... Our homeowner recently had two strokes and does not get around very well. She is very sweet and offered to cook us all hot dogs one day for lunch.

The brown 1 story house has Austin McCoy as one of the site leaders and Sumter Moore, Grace Graham, Lynda Lovelace, Madelon Kneece, and Mary Sarah Komar. They are replacing the roof, repairing trim, and painting exterior, etc... We did not have a chance to meet the homeowner today. This house has ZERO shade, so think about them tomorrow when it is 100+ degrees on the roof.

The camera will travel with some of the other groups tomorrow so that you can see what everyone is working on.

Thanks for keeping us all in your prayers!

God's Peace,

Brandon

http://picasaweb.google.com/stjohnscolumbia/JohnsIsland2009DayOne?feat=directlink

Hey there folks,

Today was a hard day of work. Oh my goodness...it was SO HOT! It is late and I'm really tired, so we'll jump right to the pics. See you soon!

blessings,
Dorian

Hey there folks,

Wow, the kids really had a blast today! We got to sleep in just a bit, and after breakfast, we went to church. Good Shepherd is SO beautiful! It is a really cool church that is very old school and sorta anglocatholic in a lot of ways. It has gorgeous woodwork.

After church, we split into teams and played Bible Charades! It was a ton of fun. I will post videos once we get home. After lunch, we were lead through a Labyrinth workshop. Good Shepherd has a labyrinth in the floor of their parish hall. Very cool! After that we split into three groups and went swimming.

The evening consisted of pizza, jello, games, and a movie. Two words: fun and loud. Here are a few pics from the day...

Hey there folks!

We are having a great time in Augusta! We are working hard, having fun, singing, worshiping, making new friends, and so much more. The entire group is nearly double what it was last year. There are about 90 youth and adults from 15 churches and 5 denominations. We account for 10 youth and 3 adults.

We are split up into 5 work sites. One is scraping and painting, one is cleaning a house and storage building, one is landscaping and cleaning, one group is at the food bank, and I just can't remember the last one...sorry! The kids are representing St. John's well. They are working hard and having a great time doing it.

Let me tell you a little bit about where I am working. I am heading up Mrs. Patterson's home. She is 86 years old and she has lived in the same house since she was 3! She still drives and she is such a happy and sweet lady. The house needs not only paint, but a few repairs as well.

Below are some pics. There's even a rare shot of Bellinger that is just great! Her smile just beams. Check them out:

Ann Ruderman and Steve McMillan. Our fearless duo!










Winston running for a seat in a game.











Mrs. Patterson's home.










Mrs. Patterson











Austin, Connor, and Samuel waiting for lunch.











Allie, Mary Kate, and Bellinger waiting for lunch.











Wilson and Wells ripping out a ceiling.










Wells helping install some soffit board.











The girls in a game of Ships and Sailors










Winston, Austin, and Patrick in Ships and Sailors










Umm...Winston














Bellinger's beautiful smile!!! Yay!

The Mission Blog is back and in action!

Johns Island Packing List
Sr High Home Works Mission

Tentative Itinerary:
July 26 (Sun) arrive at church by 7am -- drop of stuff in the gym
7:45am we will attend the Rite I service as a group.
We will be commissioned during the service
after church we will pack up the bus and cars and head to John's Island
Aug. 2 (Sun) Return to St. John’s for 10:30 service.

Wear work clothes, t-shirt, shorts and sneakers or work shoes
1 pair of long work pants
safety goggles/glasses and gloves
No sports bras or other inappropriate work clothing
Water Bottle
Sports wear for Tue. afternoon soccer/softball/tennis activities
Bathing suit
shower shoes or flip flops
Casual wear for the evening
rain coat
Sleeping bag (or sheets), pillow, and air mattress (or cot)
3 towels and wash cloths
toiletries
Insect repellent
sunscreen
a hat
Minimal spending money is needed (approx. $20). Team members usually purchase a gift for the homeowner upon completion of the repairs.

Notes and Tips:
Determine whether you are current with regards to your tetanus shot
Lunch, snack, water and Gatorade are provided
If possible, bring a paint brush
if you bring any tools, please label them
No tape players, compact disc players, ipods, or cell phones at the work site
Bring a musical instrument if you play one, such as a guitar
spend time, sit and chat with the residents of the home

Augusta Packing List
Jr High Home Works Mission

Friday, June 12
4 PM -- Meet @ St. John's
4:30 PM -- Depart from St. John's
We will stop for dinner at Chick Fil A
7 PM -- Arrive @ Good Shepherd

Tuesday, June 16 (these times are approximate and will be confirmed)
12 PM -- Eat Lunch
2 PM -- Depart Good Shepherd
3:30/4 PM -- Arrive back @ St. John's

Packing List:
Sleeping Bag, Air Mattress, Pillow
2 Towels
Toiletries
Sunscreen
Insect Repellent
Wet Wipes
Work Shoes (sneakers, boots, etc...must be closed toe)
Safety Glasses, work gloves
Clothes that you don't mind getting dirty/ruined (you will get paint on your clothes)
Hat
Casual Wear for evening (flip flops are allowed at this time)
Modest swim suit
Appropriate sleep Attire
Camera
Small amount of cash ($1-5) to purchase a shared gift for the home owner and for offering on Sunday

NOTE: ipods (or other music devices) and cellphones are not allowed on the work sites. Youth do not need to bring food either; all snacks and meals are provided for.

Questions, comments, suggestions...please contact Dorian.

Here are lists of participants for our summer mission experiences. Please pray for our youth and adults. Please pray for the people and communities that they will be serving. Pray for safe travel to and from their destinations. Pray that they may learn and grow in their faith. Pray that lives are changed. Pray that the Kingdom of God is ushered in here on earth, and that God's will is done.

Valle Crucis, NC
June 7-14

Katie Dubose
Catherine Collins
Mary Margaret Collins
Pierce Jones

Augusta, GA
June 12-16
Jr High

Bellinger Boylston
Winston Collins
Mary Kate Knudsen
Will Komar
Austin Lewis
Wells Mealing
Samuel Miller
Lang Phillips
Wilson Sparks
Allie Stubbs
Dorian Del Priore
Steve McMillan
Ann Ruderman

Ecuador
July 9-17

Sarah Axson
Sarah Bailey
Alex Bowers
Sarah Bowers
Bryana Close
Michaela Close
Taryn Close
Catherine Collins
Taylor Jackson
Kayla Massey
Beaumont Smith
Rob Bowers
Dorian Del Priore
Lauren Del Priore
Gordon Schell
Janet Smith

Johns Island
Junly 26 - Aug 2
Sr High

William Axson
Alexa Breeland
Preston Busbee
Winston Collins
Patrick Dimig
John Fowble
Katherine Gaulin
Grace Graham
Caroline Harris
Taylor Jackson
Madelon Kneece
Mary Sarah Komar
Austin McCoy
Jack Moore
Mike Montgomery
Fripp Prioleau
Marshall Sheorn
Lawson Smith
Annie Ward
Daniel Ward
Beth Busbee
Lynda Lovelace
Cliff Moore
Sumter Moore
Brandon Templeton