Sunday from Biloxi

Hi, all!

A nice Sunday on the demolished Gulf Coast -- sunny and quite warm. Had a great day in church this morning. It was a special treat to preach at BEthel for the pastor. It was the first Sunday his wife Judy, who is the site director for Lutheran Disaster Relief since she retired from 30 years in the VA here just when Katrina hit. She had a heart attack a month ago when we were here. So, it was good for the folks to see her again. Also it was touching for a member to stand up and look at the crew leader who had overseen the gutting of her house last fall; she is back in it. It's really something to see the connections made between volunteers and members and other residents. It's good to be back here.

After I had finished my preaching, I went to my seat next to the young, perhaps 12-year old male acolyte. He turned to me and said, "That was a good sermon!" And he said it again after church. You just don't expect a compliment like that from a male adolescent.

Volunteers go out working Sunday afternoon, too, as I learned today. Jay and I went out, too, and wound up painting trim on a nearly finished house in East Biloxi, where the folks took a hit both from Katrina's gulf surge, as well as from a surge from the opposite direction with back bay waters. We helped a large Habitat For Humanity crew who are concentrating on rebuilding homes in a one-or two-block area. It's neat to see the progression from demolition (where necessary) or gutting to dry wall to painting to trim to roof, etc.

This afternoon there was a human surge again here at Bethel, as a new crew of volunteers showed up -- from Georgia, Viginia, Penn, Wisc and Michigan and Minn. There's a Catholic team from Grand Rapids and a team of 12 from Muskegon/Whitehall. When I asked the Whitehall folks if they knew Sally Hollister (a very active LOL peer minister who graduated a year ago, whom Barb and I mentored, who is doing this year with Lutheran Volunteer Corps, they said they were from Sally's church, and included her pastor. They said Sally is applying to several grad schools, including U of M. So, we may see her again. Another woman said her daughter is a Jr. at U of M and gave me her c-mail address so I can invite her to check us out.

Pastor Sue will be interested to know that this evening Judy Bultman did the orientation for the new folks. Sue knows how excited Judy gets about this ministry in disaster relief. Well, she came up with a half-hour stem-winder sermon that had us all riveted on her every word. You wouldnl't know she had had a heart attack 4 weeks ago! Super real, super energetic, super committed, super convinced that God is real and showed it in responses to Gulf Coast needs.

So, tomorrow Jay will work in the clinic mainly as Social Worker/pastor and I will also help out with pastoral services, since Judy wants 2 pastors available if possible. Tomorrow is Jay's 70th birthday -- he works at our site needs like a 50-year old. Tough guy!! Our cook's assistant has a cake for him baking in the oven right now.

Time to begin bringing this great day to a close.

Love to all of you.

Roland