May 26, 2014

Memorial Day - Great Time for a Cookout!

Monday, May 26, 2014

Ron had gone to do some things early this morning and let me sleep late on this holiday.  I slept until about 8:30 and it was nice.  He got back about 9:45 and we got ready and went to do some work at the Hendrick Mission Center (HMC).  Our church has owed this property for probably over 40 years.  It is about 2 1/2 acres and currently has two dormitories and a home on the property as well as a storage garage.  For many years in the summers churches all across the nation would send young people to spend a week at the facility (formerly called the Mission Outreach Center - MOC).  During that time they would do mission projects in Brownsville and across the river in Mexico.  They would hold Vacation Bible Schools under tents all over town. 

In years past, there would usually be close to 100 young people here each week of June and July.  Now with more violence across the border in Mexico, many parents won't let their children come to the area.  It is a shame because there are still many who need to hear of God's love on our side of the border.  Over the last two or three years there has been a transition in the usage of the buildings.  During the past couple of weeks they have housed about 100 adults here helping in other ways.  There is currently a break in the usage for a few days and so several people from the church spent much of the day working to clean up the property and do some painting.  I went dressed to clean, but was assigned to scrape and paint a couple of benches that are used in the evenings when some of the group members want to sit outside and enjoy the birds and the breeze.

I did manage to do my job without getting paint on my clothes - just a little on me.  I am not sure how I will explain my sunburn to my dermatologist when I go for a checkup tomorrow.  I am sure I will be fussed at.  I just didn't expect to be outside.

There was a lot of outdoor work to be done.  Our school superintendent commented that he thought he reclaimed an acre of land by mowing some tall weeds.

Above is my husband, our two oldest grandsons, and Mrs. Hendrick (Connie) clearing some of the brush.  It is Connie's late husband, Dwight,for whom the center is now named.  Both Dwight and Connie Hendrick have put years of their lives into the work that flows from this facility. 

Here our pastor, Steve Dorman supervises his wife Karen as she grilled hamburgers and hot dogs for the workers.  My grandson Isaac and I agreed they were probably the best hamburgers we had ever eaten.  Karen, you are an excellent cook!  After lunch, painting of the dining room started.  Once I finished my benches, I joined the indoor painters for a while.

Here, our pastor's wife and her son work on one wall.  While others are working on the other walls.

It was a very productive time and hopefully it will be in good shape for those who will be arriving to fill it up in a couple of days.

Once we got home, we cleaned up and Ron slept the afternoon away while I worked on yesterday's blog entry and read for a little while.

A late night trip to Wal-Mart for a baseball cap for an early morning assignment completed my day.  When the Cochlear Implant takes down background noise late at night at Wal-Mart, it is not a bad place to be, and a perfect time for shopping.

My Cochlear Implant takes down the background noises well, but sometimes it makes it hard to understand people speaking to me when it takes down the background noises too well.  When I was working outside at the HMC today, it kept down the noise of the riding mower and street traffic, but I usually had to have people repeat things said to me.