Working to Rebuild Amanda’s home and life.

June 23 – June 25 (Hazy, Very Hot and Humid, some T-storms rolled by)

After the tour of the 9th Ward, Isaiah and I were dropped off at Amanda’s house where we will be working for all 3 days, while Therese and Ethan went somewhere else to work. I gathered that Amanda has been living at her mothers for 3 years while her home went untouched. There is a travel trailer outside the home. Charles team was to complete as much of the sheet-rocking, mudding and taping as possible. I later found out from Amanda that the sheetrock had been delivered to her home 3 years ago and she has been waiting to get it hung. From what I gathered, Camp Collide lets folks know that they have teams of people who can help rebuild their home and when contacted the home owner is put on a list. I gathered there are 90 homes on their list as of our arrival. Camp Collide is part of a parish and as they rebuild peoples homes, they spread the good news of Jesus Christ hoping folks will attend a local church, hence the rebuilding of a home and peoples lives in Christ. Well Amanda got the call and when we arrived much of the sheet rocking was done except in the living room, laundry room and some in the bathroom. On a good day, professional sheet-rockers could had knocked this out in a day. It would take our team the entire week. But that’s OK. Here are pictures of Amanda’s home and some team members (Carsten, Molly, Isaiah, Jackie and Dori who did not want to be on the blog). Most of the kids helping were between the ages of 13 and 21. You are looking at our mudders, tapers and sanders.

Then there was the sheet rock team, (Paul, Isaiah, Hunter, Connor)

And of course the Team Coordinator, Charles

One thing that any construction worker needs in NO is a big box fan and thankfully Amanda’s house had a hand made one that Charles rigged up. We pointed it out the door so as not to stir up the plaster dust. Each day we would arrive in the morning, pick up our tools and follow Charles. Just a play on words but in many ways we were picking up our cross and following Jesus. The other thing a construction worker must have in N.O. is water…ice water. We had cold water but not ice water…until the last day.

The Lower 9th Ward

June 23 – Monday (Very hot and humid feels like 100)

We awoke around 7:00am. Today Camp Collide is bringing us on a tour of the lower 9th ward (the hardest hit area and poorest district) to see what it looks like 3 years later. There is sentiment among locals and politicians that collide. The government gave this land to the freed slaves in the 1930’s to build their homes and families, but there were no deeds filed. For years families of the poorest grew up here and passed their homes on to the next generation(s). It did become a place of drugs and crime and was viewed by many to be an area better left alone. When it was consumed by the Mississippi River because of the breaks in the levy’s, the homes were ruined and everyone fled for safty. When they returned to rebuild, the insurance companies needed proof of ownership and no one could provide it and the government was not cooperating. This is why most of the homes are exactly like they were 3 years ago after Katrina. In the picture below, you can see what I mean. You will also see an “X” on many homes. They locals hate these and it’s the first thing to go. In the X you will notice 4 markings, They stand for the number dead, the number of pets dead, the organization that checked and the check date. It is not uncommon to se these all over New Orleans, mainly on the homes where people are not coming back.

Here is a picture of the new section of the levy that is rebuilt. As I stated earlier, No one knows how it broke but there are several stories depending on who you talk to. One thing everyone is clear on is the flooding that happened on te east side of New Orleans.
At this point, except for the dirt and debris, this area of NO has been mostly untouched. The goal og the government would be to not help the natives to this area because they believe it would be flooded again and they do not want to spend money here. We completed our tour looking at home after home that was vacant and most likely would never be lived in again.

Our Second Mission – Chalmette

After returning from the airboat ride, we all took a nap. The sun and humidity in New Orleans zaps you of all your energy. We had to be at the St. Bernard Church in Chalmette to meet the director of Camp Collide where we are going to be doing our second mission for Christ.

I want to take a minute and explain what happened in New Orleans in Sept of 2005. After Katrina blew thru, basically there was wind damage to the area but the eye went through in Biloxi, Mississippi which was devastated. What happened in New Orleans was due to poor engineering. Days after the storm, the levys could not contain the rise in the Mississippi and it broke thru and spilled over into the causeways. Since NO is like a bowl, it just simply filled up. Some say that the government smashed a ship into the levy causing it to break on the lower 9^th ward because they did not want it to spill into New Orleans, others say they heard an explosion like dynamite – the truth may never be known. Given the topo of New Orleans, the west side was hardly flooded at all NO proper except for French Quarter (which saw no flooding) saw about 3 – 6 feet of water. The lower 9^th and Chalmette saw about 18 feet of water (remember they are already 6 – 8 feet below sea level.) 18 feet will cover a complete one story home. Many neighborhoods still have homes that are abandoned. Some will never be replaced because the owners just up and left, never to return. Those homes have a yellow square with a red "X"

It is very common to see a row of homes on a street where some homes are being replaced and the home next to it is condemned. It makes the neighborhood look scared. It is very common to see a home left in ruin from Katrina then right next to it the very same home restored. I'll explain the hieroglyphic on the homes later.

So we went to the St. Bernard parish. A parish is like a town. NO is set up this way as is other cities in Louisiana. A parish would be the name of a community that attends the local church. In this way, they understand the concept of a local church. There would be no other church in the parish. The group that we connected to called Camp Collide was headquartered in this church. They had a sanctuary, dining hall and kitchen that was air-conditioned. They also had an office building and a devotion area. We also had a chance to check out the other site which is called the Hiliton Arabi. It is in the parish of Arabi and is just a converted church to allow groups to stay for a short period of time. For some reason I do not have any pictures of it. Oh well. So, logistically, everything looks good and we even decided to put our motorhome down where folks were staying. They have 110 power, a sewer hookup and water. Cool!

After returning to the sanctuary, we had tacos for dinner, and then broke up into 5 teams. Isaiah and I were on Charles' team and Therese and Ethan were on Erika's team. We were hanging sheetrock, taping and mudding all week and Therese and Ethan were doing many different activities on many different homes. After this we left to go back to the KOA and pack to move to our new location. Actually in reality we were ambivalent about moving, however, after what happened the next day we made our final decision.

Airboats and Alligators – Yeah!

June 21 – Sunday (same old thing, hot humid 90’s)

Today I got up early and began reading the bible in Psalm 17. The heading in my bible says “A Psalm of David: Prayer with Confidence in Final Salvation”. Amen. David is reflecting on his life and telling the Lord that he is upright. The lord has tested his heart and tried him and found nothing. What a great example we have in David. I have found myself free from the daily load in Syracuse and after 12 days have had time to reflect on my relationship with Jesus. Although I can not confess Davids innocence, I do not have the cares of the world weighing me down making me more able to witness. Hallelujah!
After the word, the family packed up and we headed out to take an airboat tour with Airboat Adventures. This is one of those 2 hour swamp boat tours that takes you on the Bayous and canals though the wetlands of Louisiana. You will never guess what lives in the bayous and canals! If you don’t know…keep reading. Airboats are flat bottom boats made of heavy aluminum and use a 8 cylinder racing engine to power a fan that propels them. Here is what ours looked like.

You have to wear ear protection because it really loud. Our guides name was Kevin. He is as much a native to Louisiana as it gets; strong accent and very knowledgeable about the swamps. The name of the lake the bayou was a tributary to is called Lake Salvador. Salvador is Spanish for Savior! Amen. Looks as though the Lord wants me to witness to Kevin! Once on the boat, I could see the excitement building in the kids. My wife and I did this once before but the kids never had done it. We buzzed done the bayou looking for…you guessed it alligators. After a time, Kevin slowed the boat and entered a canal.

Insects galore! We stopped the engine for some explanation then headed for the swamp lands. As we cruised, we saw something move in the water. An alligator! Oh yeah! He was small and in a distance. We kept going. Then we saw another one. This one was much bigger. Our captain, Kevin, stopped the boat, picked up a bag….a bag of… marshmallows and began throwing them against the water. He told us alligators have great vision and only see black and white, hence the white marshmallows. Sure enough the 5 foot alligator began to swim towards us. Our guide Kevin turned off the airboat and walked out on to shore with something in his hand. What happened next is not to be repeated except by one who does not value hands and feet. He began to play with the alligator by tapping its nose then he displayed a chicken wing to the alligator.

Kevin began with the stories of being bitten several times. He was not kidding, we saw his scars. Meanwhile the kids are loving this. After a bit we head back to the boat and start down the canal again. Well we saw several more alligators and stopped to feed some and others we just watched. Kevin explained they are territorial and when we see an alligator it will be alone and king of its part of the canal until a larger one comes to challenge it.


He also told us how they pick up the eggs, hatch the eggs and restock the canal. In the wild, 10% of the alligators make it. He also told us that one 4-6 foot alligator will make one boot! We left the canal and headed for a larger pond. Then it happened. Here came George, the 8 foot alligator who would not be challenged. George knew Kevin and Kevin knew George. George came right up to the boat and our guide did the same tricks with George, only this time George climbed head first right into our boat! Well at least up to his front feet. Kevin tells us they can jump ½ their length in hieight. He demonstrated this. By the way that’s who they hook them. They put chicken on the end of a hook and hang it from a limb, the alligator then jumps to snap at the chicken and on the way down gets hooked! Cool uh!

We ended our tour here and rode back to the dock, bought a T-shirt, saw an albino (all white) alligator then left. Oh yeah! Here we are holding a baby gator.

Day at the KOA in NO

June 20 – Saturday (Hot and Humid, 90’s again!)

Today we were going to cooking classes but never was able to get a hold of the cooking school, so we decided to stay at the KOA for the day. We went swimming in the pool after a good rain. Everyone had fun despite the hot temperature of the pool. The kids had loads of fun. My son Isaiah seems to be bulking up lately (ha ha).

After swimming, we ate dinner and I did some work while Therese and kids biked to Walgreens for some milk. They came back and we watched a movie, had devotion and reflection then retired.

Witnessing for Christ in the Big Easy – New Orleans (Part 2)

OK I am back blogging. Remember it will be feast or famine based on internet access.

After the word, we decided to go into the French Quarter and have a look around. On the Riverwalk, right on the Mississippi river, there is the Audubon Aquarium and the Insectarium. There are also many paddle boats that one can take a river cruise. NO has a street car that travels from one end of the River walk to the other. It is a unique experience.

At the Insectarium, Ethan was in his glory since this is the year he needs to turn in his insect collection. We have been catching insects from each of our stopping places. Both boys ate meal worms! No kidding I took a picture.

Here are two pictures for Bro. Gary. Ethan is going into the 7th grade and is doing his insect collection. Ethan wanted to pin many of the insects he saw but a picture will have to do.

In the aquarium, the kids touched the sharks. We walked to Café Du Munde, a famous landmark on the river. They sell hickory coffee and Beignets, which are like deep fried dough covered with powdered sugar. Yum, yum! I bought 3. They were gone in minutes. We then went to the corner café where Runaway Jury was filmed. I actually was here at a conference and remember watching the filming. It was a day seen that was shot at night. We walked through Jackson square and by the old church. As we returned to catch the shuttle back to the KOA, I passed by Christian group that was getting ready to worship to the Lord. I wanted to stay and hear but our shuttle was due to arrive in 10 min. Bummer! We jumped on the shuttle and returned to the KOA. We then had dinner and went biking up on the levy. This is really cool. They rebuilt the levy after Katrina. And put a bike path on top of it. You can ride for 14 miles all the way to the zoo.

We came back at around 8:30pm, spoke to a local policeman then retired.

Witnessing for Christ in the Big Easy – New Orleans (Part 1)

June 20 – Friday Very hot (92 – feels like 100)

Today's title has a special meaning for the Bailey's given the Word that was preached by Isaiah. You will understand as you read on…

Our family has been rising between 6:30am and 7:30am. Sounds early but when you are in a motorhome, I am finding you mostly go to bed early and rise early. It was Isaiah's turn to share the Word of God. I blogged, he studied, the rest of the family ate breakfast. We gathered around our altar, the table, and Ethan prayed (No worship this morning, have to catch a 9:00am shuttle). So my almost 14 year-old began to share. He started out by telling us, since we are going into New Orleans today and there will be a need to witness, that he wanted to share on this. He started in Math 24:14. The bible says "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all nations, and then the end will come". My son Ethan asked if this meant that the tribulation would not come until the whole world heard the gospel? Wow! Out of the mouths of babes. First of all a great scripture I have not read in a while. Secondly, a great question from Ethan. I'll let you'al (Southern talk) think about that.

Isaiah said that we are doing the Lords will in spreading the gospel to the unbeliever and that Christ will return after it is spread throughout the world. He also stated that not all men will be saved when this happens. I say Amen brother.

He then turned to John 1:7. The bible states that "This man came for a witness to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe". Isaiah then began to explain that John is an example of a witness for Christ. Witnesses must be sent from God. Witness must bear witness to the light who is Christ. He emphasized that we are to be a witness of Christ's witness as the light of this world through his death on the cross, and the shedding of blood and resurrection to eternal life. No other witness is accepted. He stated that is why all other religions are not accepted by God.

Wow! You ever wonder if your kids are getting it. Allow them to share the Word with you and you will not be disappointed!

He then turned to John 3:11. The bible says "Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak that We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our Witness." Isaiah proclaimed that we are to read the Word and bear withness to it because faith comes by hearing the Word. The unbeliever is hungry but will not understand the witness. They need one like us to teach them.

He then turned to Rev 1:5. The bible says "and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood." Isaiah emphasized that Jesus Christ is the faithful witness. When you witness, Jesus is witnessing inside you. Your job is to be a witness like Christ was a witness and the Lord will provide the increase.

Finally he shared from Rev 20:4 – "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. "

Isaiah told us all witnessing is not easy. In fact, we will be persecuted. Maybe even to our demise. He reminded us of the saints of old…the beheadings…the burning at the stakes… Then I reflected in tears. Saints it takes a step of faith to witness for Jesus. It is not easy nor is it in our nature to do so. But are we doing it in a country where the result is death? All the more God will hold us accountable in the day of judgement. I say its worth the ridicule, and the name calling to be a witness, a special witness, an apostle or ambassador for Christ.

Isaiah's Summary – We must be bold to witness and preach Jesus's witness to all people. When this is done to His liking, He will return! Amen!

The road to Katrina country…

June 19 – Thursday (90, 3H's)

As we left Greenville, we continued south west on 65 to Mobile. This stretch of road is lined by tall pine trees for miles. Excellent road! No snow and ice to ruin them. There was no city for 100 miles. We always start out with no air conditioning and the windows open. You do not need a thermometer when traveling I have found. We judge the heat of the day by when we need to roll up the windows and turn on the air. Today it was at 10:30am. As we passed Mobile, I saw a big sign that said "Mobile home of the KC-45 airplane". I'll have to look that up later. The landscape began to change at about 11:00am when we started our trip west on route 10. Many bayous and swamp bridges (at least that's what I call them).

Route 10 takes us through Mississippi then through Louisiana. At a Flying J in Biloxi MS, we spoke with a lady who told us that Biloxi was where the eye of Katrina hit. Whole houses and the pads they rested on were lifted into the air and hurtled a great distance. The natives to Biloxi are not short to tell you that they need more help than New Orleans (NO). The difference is water damage in NO and the poor of poor have no way to get back on their feet.

Route 10 travels through the heart of NO to the west side where we will stay at the KOA. As we approached NO, the road became like a rollercoaster. There were dips that caused the motorhome to bounce up and down to the point where I had to slow down. As we went through NO the city began to show its scars from Katrina.

We arrived at 2:30pmCST and settled in at site 99. This KOA is very small, no grounds at all, but it had a concrete pad…nice! As soon as we were able, we changed into our bathing suits and went swimming. I thought it would be refreshing only to find the water warmer than bath water. As we swam, we struck up conversation with 2 ladies who had a personal tour of the lower 9^th ward where things are as they were in Sept 2005. She told me to contact NOLA to get involved in helping to rebuild it, she also recommended NO cooking school for classes on Creole and Cajun cooking!

We ate dinner (BBQ'd) then went for a small bike ride. We found that we were able to ride the levy for 14 miles to the zoo which we will do tomorrow. I contacted a group called Camp Collide (http://www.campcollide.org/). I interviewed the executive director, Chris, and told him our vision. After conversation, I decided to partner with them and we will be in Chalmette (18 feet under water on Sept 2005) working for the Lord to rebuild homes…and peoples lives! We continue to work on Ethan's insect collection (I just caught a weird looking wasp). After a hot and humid evening, we retired around 11:00pm.

Traveling to Greenville Alabama

June 18 – Wednesday cool and 80's

Today we leave for New Orleans. The morning was cool and no humidity. The sun was shining we packed up everything into the motorhome. I asked Jeff and his family if they'd have communion with us. Smiling, his family accepted my invitation. So I took bread and made little squares and poured white grape juice into little Dixie cups. We went over to Jeff's trailer and I shared from John 6:22 where Jesus tells the people, He is the bread of life. I then turned to Math 26:26 and shared the account of the last supper. It was a great way to end our time together. We gave each other a godly hug and the Bailey's were off and sprinting once again.

As we left, I remembered that the city where Jeff lived was called Fountain Inn because it was a stopping place for stagecoaches, kind of like a watering hole. As I reflected on this, I thought it was appropriate that the Lord would refresh us at this place in South Carolina.

We drove all the way to Greenville, AL and stayed at a Wal-Mart Supercenter. As we drove, we passed over the international date line (from Eastern Time Zone to Central Time Zone. It was at mile marker 74 on I85 at 4:02CST or 5:02 EST. We also passed by the 1^st White House of the Confederacy which is in Old Town, Alabama. We entered the Wal-mart, got settled then had spaghetti for dinner. We used the generator for a while to stay cool then opened all the windows and turned on the fans. After some work and blogging we all retired.

Depart for New Orleans…

June 17 – Tuesday 80's, and sunny

Today is our last day in South Carolina. We will be leaving for New Orleans tomorrow. A cold front has come through and has provided relief in the low 80's. Jeff and I got up early and went fishing. I caught nothing except a tiger swallowtail for Ethan's collection. Jeff was using crickets and caught some Brim, better known as yellow bellies or sunfish. They were actually nice size. We came back in and Therese did some packing while I roasted coffee. We decided to send some light things back home. By now we figured out that we had packed too much stuff. We should have prioritized and only brought half of what we did. Oh well. We needed some sun reflection screens for the windows, fix-a-flat, and some transmission oil so we went back to Wal-Mart. While we were out, we stopped one of Jeff's favorite restaurants Mimi's. It was fantastic and they gave us a gift for being first-timers (4 pack of homemade muffins). After Eating dinner, we went back to camp and started a bon-fire. The kids made smores. The evening was cool and great. There was a very white and large full moon. In my mind I was saying go fishing but given that we had to leave the next day decided to retire early.

WaterPark and Tour around Greenville...

June 16 – Monday (93, 3H's)
Today was extremely hot! We decided on a water park named Discovery Island. It is small but wet, and that’s what we needed…wet! The wives packed lunch while I was blogging. We all fit into Brother Jeff’s van and left. As we were buying our tickets, I talked to the two girls tending the money about Jesus. One was a Baptist, the other Pentecostal. Great! Both were counseling at bible vacation school. This seems to be big down here. Its much like our two weeks of summer camp for the kids. I gave them each tracts and shared the Holy Spirit with both since they had not received it. I was thinking of Acts 19:2-6. I shared this in part with the girls. I had limited time since I was in the ticket purchase line and had to run. I did come back later to talk to them more.

Throughout the day I shared with many lifeguards. Maybe that was not so smart since they should not be distracted, however, they were the ones under the umbrellas and it was easy to start up a conversation. I shared with a boy and 2 girls. All professed to know Jesus and when asked for the conversion date, none said “since I was born”. That is a good thing. None had received the power of the Holy Ghost.

After the water park we all went to Greenville, kind of like going downtown, and had a great dinner and stroll through Falls Park. Falls Park has an awesome set of rocks that one can slide down, but because of lawsuits, it is now forbidden…for the law abiding. We saw many people doing it anyways. I guess they were warned.

After visiting Mass General Store, which is popular for its old style format, we left for Jeff’s house. Jeff’s neighbors came out and I had a chance to share Jesus with them. It brought a smile to their face to know we are doing an outreach for the Lord in Fountain Inn. They did not profess to be saved but I witnessed to them and prayed with them. Later that night we all went back to the camp and we worshipped with Brother Gene’s guitar. Jeffery picked it up and began playing the worship music we do at church. He requested I leave some of it for their church. By the way the almanac stated next 2 days are best for fishing in June…Full moon.

Fathers Day...

June 15 – Sunday

Today we will visit Jeff’s Church. Because they are building a new sanctuary and school, we went to the old school building for service. The church is small and it and reminds me of LWC early days. There sound system is dated. The instrumentation consists of an electric piano, trumpet, bass and drums. Jeff’s son Jeffery plays the drum set. The pastor plays the bass…has multiple roles. We worshiped then the pastor delivered an excellent message from Genesis 26:12-25. The message was to Dads and children. The points that I took away were:

• As each generation digs for the Lord, they become greater than their father and will reap greater good for the Lord. Others will envy what you have and try to steal the blessing of God. Instead of coveting your possession, move on to another place and seek the Lord there and peace and blessing will eventually follow you.
• Isaac dug two wells and prospered even greater than his father Abraham, but his followers wanted to possess them so he left them and named them Esek (Quarrel) and Sitnah (Enmity) and moved to another land and dug a third.
• Eventually he found peace after digging the third well and there the Lord appeared to him and no one coveted his well. He then built an altar.

I think we all need to keep searching for the call and never quit digging. Once we find it, the Lord will appear to us and we can build him an altar to come before him daily. I thanked Pastor Milt for bread of life. The Holy Spirit moved in this tiny church in prophecy and interpretation of tongues as well. Hallelujah!

After church, Jeff treated us to lunch. We went to a traditional southern BBQ restaurant named Mutts. Pulled pork, ribs, southern fried chicken, baked beans, collards, and all the trimmings. Yum, yum! I witnessed to the clerk at the register who was saved, and filled with the Holy Spirit. I gave her the tracks and she accepted them. She told me she wanted to give them to her colleagues. We finished eating and returned to Jeff’s home. Jeffery showed me his talent on the field snare drum, and I played pinball…real pinball…Twight Zone.

Then we sat down to watch “The Good , the Bad and the Ugly with Clint Eastwood. I started my posts and from then on I have been writing and snapping pictures. It turned into a late night and we arrived to the motorhome on the lake around 12:30am.

Fellowship in Christ...

June 14 – Saturday - temp in the 90's, feels like 100, 3H's

Today is a down day, meaning no work at the school, but on land with lots of trees, and the boats needing to be dry-docked, there was a lot to do in the morning. Jeff's family were up early and moving boats (all 3) from the shore to the shed area so they could be stored until they were needed next. In the process of doing this, we broke of the trailers. It was a minor thing and was fixed in a jiffy.

Our family went into town and did some shopping for necessities then we went to Jeff’s house in Fountain Inn to spend the afternoon in a beautiful air-conditioned home and have dinner. The heat has been very intense.


The area reminded me of Syracuse in that it had all the familiar stores, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, Lowes, etc. As I shopped, I spoke to people about Jesus. Being here in the Bible belt is very interesting. All but one person I spoke to professes to know Jesus either as a Baptist or a Pentecostal. In all cases I prayed with them and left a tract. I was always greeted with a warm smile when I mentioned His name. I am finding that when someone knows Jesus, they light up at the mention of His name, and when they do not, they have a solemn look. The rest of the day was spent in fellowship as we shared the things of Christ and talked about different things and relaxed. Soon we were heading back to camp to retire.

Treasure in Heaven...

June 13 – Friday

Today is pretty much a work day…for the family. We arrived on site about 10:30am and met John. He put us to work immediately. I shared with my boys about laying up treasure in heaven and that the work they were doing here would not benefit them in the least. Truly the blessing will be knowing that other Christian children will gain from their efforts. I asked them to work hard and put in a good days work even though it was very, very hot in the mobile units (no air conditioning, no electricity for fans; just windows that some opened and some did not). So they began to paint.

Ethan, Jeffery and Isaiah were as happy as can be sweating in the 100°F mobile units. We had lots of water and lots of fun doing the Lords work. Around lunch, I prayed with the boys and the pastor that they would be fruitful and work hard to accomplish alot. I left to do some work and the boys remained. They returned around 4:30pm. They completed 2 ½ moble units. Praise the Lord!

We all were anxious to go fishing at night again, and this time it included families. Everyone wanted to repeat my wife’s success. Even Jeff’s friends Steve and his family came to join us. So after our second BBQ on our Baby Webber (works like a charm…can grill 20 chicken thighs at one time) we packed up 3 jon boats and headed for the water. I came to my boat to find this unusual looking red basket. I looked inside and saw crickets…like the chirping type. I looked at Jeff and he smiled and said it was the bait of choice down here in South Carolina. Smiling back I thought to myself that I’d stick to the plastics. The only three that stayed back were the boys (Jeffery, Isaiah and Ethan). This night nothing was to be caught…not a single fish. Maybe we scared them away!

The Big One...

My wife likes to fish, as you can gather, and uses a 6” bumblebee soft plastic worm when she is in doubt as to what the fish are biting on. Me, I chuckle inside and reach for the pro stuff. Tubes, rattletraps, swimbaits, etc. After all, that’s what the pro’s use to catch the big one; so I have read. It was about 10pm and all we could show for 2 hours of fishing was a 8 inch bass that my wife caught of course. Then it happened. My wife stood up and said she had a fish. I half-heartedly looked around to find her pole almost bent in half. Of course, I then stood up and yelled “you have a big fish on the line”. Well the excitement on her face told me she already knew. She gripped the pole tightly and began to wind in. The bass showed its full length then, as they always do, darted under the boat. I said, “the net , the net get the net”. She looked me as though I should be getting the net since she was a little busy. So I grabbed the net. At the next opportunity, I scooped into the water and brought in her catch. It laid in our net tail at one end, mouth at the other. Truly this is the biggest bass I have ever seen in real life. By now we all made enough noise to bring over the other boats. Natives to this area, they surmised the bass to be about 3 pounds and medium size in length. Once they arrived at our boat my wife was proudly holding her bass by the mouth. Needless to say their jaws dropped and then we measured. 22.5” and over 6 pounds. The scale was not as accurate as we’d like but close enough. You can see for yourself.

Well, this became the talk of the night and reminded my friend Jeff of our little discussion before going fishing, you know, about the not wanting to fish with my wife because she always beats me. After things subsided I talked with Danny and Steve for a bit then we all retired.

Lake Martin...

June 12; Sunny and 3H’s (Hazy, Hot, Humid - 87°F)

Today I went to work at the land the church had purchased for the school that I spoke of earlier. The Fountain Inn Christian School’s webpage is:

http://www.ficsfalcons.org/

and they have been in existence 3 years.

One of the outreach’s our family wanted to participate in was to help the church paint the modular classrooms that will be used for the 2008-2009 school year. Jeff and I left early to meet the drainage engineer. The land the church bought is barren but they have a vision. I saw the site plan and it reminded me of our vision when we started the family center. There were several classroom buildings on the site when we arrived. (see pictures)

The buildings are in rough shape and will need siding, windows, roofing and painting. There will be 17 of them and they are bought and paid for…just like the land. Sound familiar! So I spent the day painting. Here the Math teacher (John) and the principal (Kelvin) are helping to paint.

While painting I had a chance to speak with two students of the school, Trey and Carrot (Anthony- he has red hair). Both love the Lord and remind me of our kids in Living Word Academy. They both called me “sir” (as does Jeff’s son). It’s the southern way, I’ve been told and shows respect to their elders.

While I painted, the boys went swimming in the lake and my wife, Gail and Virginia used the paddleboat. When I came back to camp, we all ate dinner together. After dinner, we all decided to go fishing. I heard from Jeff that there were some large bass (13 pounds) in his lake and I was itching to see if this was true. Jeff called his friends Danny and Steve to join us. At about 8:00pm we gathered our finishing gear and we went down to the jon boats. Jeff pointed to his boat and told me it was for me and my wife. I told him he could go with my wife and I would go with Danny. He thought I was kidding and would have nothing to do with it. I then told him whenever I fished with my wife she would always beat me and either catch a bigger one or more. He insisted I take his boat so I launched with my wife and Jeff and Danny went in the other. We traveled to the end of the lake where the water was deeper (10-15 feet). Then it happened!