Joan Stewart, Executive Director
September 18, 2008
To: Supporters and partners of WV Ministry of Advocacy and Workcamps
Re: Summer Update

Grace and peace to you in the name of Jesus Christ! How can we begin to share with you all of the excitement, hard work, spiritual growth and transformation that has taken place here in West Virginia this summer? Thanks in part to your prayers, your support, and in many cases your hands, there are families in West Virginia who have seen what God's grace look… Continue

Tylar, Mia and I spent a second day working on a bathroom for a young family that has had much more than its share of misfortune - I don't know if I'll be able to share their story, but it is heartbreaking.

They have two beagles, and they spent all 8 hours we were at the house Monday barking at us. Mia and Tylar took it upon themselves to try to win over the dogs, who were having none of it. Even filling their water bowl didn't do anything to lessen the hostility.

But gradually over the course… Continue

Carl and I were just planning on doing a little scouting after dinner to find out when the grocery store in Oceana opens. He had heard it was really easy to get to - something about "... left ... [indecipherable] ... around the bend ... [indecipherable] ... don't take the hill ... [indecipherable] ... You can't miss it!"

It turns out the the big grocery store in town is on the west side of Oceana, and when the main road bends to the right and starts heading uphill, you need to peel off by conti… Continue

The evening devotionals will be short videos from the Nooma series by Rob Bell. Last night's video was called "Rich" and it was a very fitting way to start as we prepare to go out into Kopperston to help some people with their houses.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAV9IYPVZSQ

We all slept in after the long day of driving, and were glad that church didn't start until 11:00.

Carl had tracked down some supplies for breakfast in Oceana a few miles down the road, and people more or less fended for themselves.

Church was a nice service with a few members and a lot of visitors. Brian was called into duty to help collect the offering. The regular pianist/organist is out sick, fighting cancer, and so the singing was a capella. The church doesn't have a full-time mini… Continue