Coming Events

When many of us will be going to Bridge City to help with hurricane recovery, there will still be things happening locally.

The Driscolls (of HODR and formerly of PerserveVolunteer fame) will be traveling from New Hampshire to continue the work on Ed and Donna's house in Friendship on January 5-8. It would be really great to have some BonaRespond volunteers there too!

Our Spring Break trip (probably to Texas) will be Feb 27th to March 8th. All details are still being worked out.

We will continue to have work days most weekends in January and February as well as our large work Buffalo work day on March 28th in conjunction with Villa Maria.

Our large local spring service weekend will be April 25-26th.

But these are just a few of the many events we will be having! Get involved. You will be glad you did!!

New BonaResponds Window Display

New BonaResponds Window Display
Originally uploaded by FinanceProfessor.

Thanks to Nolan who helped reorganize the window display at the Allegany Park and Shop using the pictures that Laura and Ashley had already put up. It looks really good!

Bridge City Family Gets Birthday Wish | KBMT ABC 12 - News, Weather and Sports - Beaumont - Port Arthur, TX Beaumont - Port Arthur, Texas | Local News Top Stories

Bridge City Family Gets Birthday Wish | KBMT ABC 12 - News, Weather and Sports - Beaumont - Port Arthur, TX Beaumont - Port Arthur, Texas | Local News Top Stories:

"Twins Morgan and Macy had a wish to move back into their home on their birthday after damage from Ike made it unlivable.

Morgan and Macy's wish came true with the help of World Hope International, Community Church Orange and so many volunteers.

World Hope International has been in Southeast Texas since September helping folks clean up. and says getting the Leblanc family back in their home is only the beginning."

dry wall done for month.

dry wall done for month. rooms they wanted done now are done. :) thanks volunteers! good day.

Good day. about nine people

Good day. about nine people working all stages of drywall. in friendship

BonaResponds: a pictorial history

Collection: BonaResponds: Just put together a collection of some of the nearly seven thousand BonaResponds pictures of the various events we have had.

I am not really sure what order they are in, but it is a nice pictorial view of some of what BonaResponds has done since its founding right after Katrina hit in late August of 2005 through the current work in Friendship. Take a look!

Progress update from Friendship

Hallway almost drywalled
Originally uploaded by FinanceProfessor.

Uploaded some pictures from Ed and Donna's over in Friendship.

Things are coming along well. A lack of volunteers has slowed progress, but every day is that much closer to getting them out of their 24 foot camper and into their new house!

The current plan is to have half the house livable before the New Years. Right now we have the drywall hung in the bathroom, the hallway, and the back laundry room. It still has to be mudded etc.

Next will be to do the ceiling in the bedroom. The walls of the bedroom will be boarded/paneled as will the lower half of the hallway. Earlier this week we helped Ed cut some of the boards that will serve as the panels (in order to save money, they purchased lumber that still had to be ripped and then cut into tongue and groove panels. The longer boards for panels have to be cut with another saw but it was too heavy to move given few volunteers this week.

The living room and kitchen will be done later (after the New Year's). Then over the next six months (depending on money) the second floor will be done. That will be turned into another bed room and a room for storage etc.

Take a look at the pictures, the place is definitely taking shape.

As mentioned last week via Twitter, the family is sleeping in it now and are very excited to be partially out of their old camper. The plumbing is partially working. The laundry in the back is set up and the main plumbing for bathroom is done, but nothing is yet set up (toilet, shower, etc).

I hope we can get more volunteers! You don;t know what you are missing. It really is a great project and Ed and Donna are some of the nicest people I have met. To work with them has been great.

Why volunteer in a single sentence

It is about the Eight Days of Hope Volunteers, but could be said equally of any volunteer.

From In Cedar Rapids: 6 homes destroyed, 6 families coping | DesMoinesRegister.com | The Des Moines Register:

"I was reaching my ultimate low and when they showed up, my spirit changed., It just turned around. I have hope again.'

Christmas After Ike — The Story from American Public Media

Listen to this one. It is really good! An American Public Radio story on the recovery. Very interesting and sad. True it is not Galveston, but almost the same difference.

Christmas After Ike — The Story from American Public Media:

"It's been three months since Hurricane Ike - one of the most destructive hurricanes to make landfall in the U.S. Like most of her neighbors on the coast near Galveston, Texas, Dana Bethune will be spending this holiday season camped out in someone else's home. Her home was destroyed, and has yet to be rebuilt.

This house was Dana and her husband Jimmy's dream house. Ike washed out the first floor and many of their possessions disappeared - refrigerator, paddle boat, treasured Christmas plates. Then Dana lost her job. As she tells Dick Gordon, it's been a tough season, but she's learned about her own faith and the generosity of her neighbors."

Good day.helped ed, ed, truman,

Had a good day working in Friendship. Helped Ed, Ed, Truman, and Shane. Mainly hanging drywall. Still have a long ways to go. Back laundry room about half done and the bathroom is almost done.

Ed also got most of the boards for lower walls cut and are now drying.

Plan on going back tomorrow afternoon, can you come? email BonaResponds@sbu.edu

hanging dry wall in back

hanging dry wall in back laundry room. they did bathroom this am. really looking good.

Letter to all Bridge City participants

I just sent the following to all going to Bridge City. It dawned on me however, that maybe more would go if they saw it as well. So in it's entirety with only very minor changes:

"Hi!

Thank you all for volunteering! We are up to about 25 volunteers going to Bridge City Texas. I am very pleased with this number given total lack of news (the election and the economy have taken all news time), the economy, and the fact that you are giving up your break time.

From the first trip to Biloxi immediately after Katrina to our recent trip to Iowa, BonaResponds volunteers have set a very high standard. I trust and expect this trip to be no different.

It was very impressive on the first trip when we first got there the other volunteers all sort of snickered when they saw a team of college students (mainly girls) and a bald finance professor come in. But by the end of the trip the same volunteers were so impressed with the work that we had several people offer to pay for us to stay longer. That is what I want again this trip.

Sure it will be fun. But please remember we are there to get people back in their homes. Over break, on Christmas or just whenever you get a second, consider what it would be like if you could not live in your home for the past 4 months with no sure timeline for you to get back in. That is what the people of Bridge City are facing. The more work we do the sooner they get back in their homes. We owe it to them to get them back in soon.

You are all leaders or you would not be coming on this trip. When we are there, act like it. Be the change. If something needs doing, do it. If someone needs a hand, be there to help.

While the work we accomplish is important, often times on these trips the most important thing we do is just to be there to listen. To work with the people affected. Remember that. Listen to their stories.

It will be a great trip. I have no idea of what to expect. But be flexible. No matter how much we plan things will change. We may end up doing dishes or doing drywall. But in either case we will be helping get the people back in their homes. And that is the best Christmas present they can get.


Ok, administrative stuff...VERY important:

We are still working out logistics on van etc which will no doubt be a challenge, but we will get it.
the direct link to the form for airport rides is available here:


I heard from Laura at the the Church of Christ Disaster Response team....many of you still have not signed up there. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do so ASAP.
the link to sign up with the Church of Christ group is here:

also their blog is here for more info.

We have VERY few permission slips etc yet as well. Given the university mail system basically shuts down around the holidays, it may be best to either email or be absolutely sure you bring them with you. I need them before you can do any work there.

for this and MUCH more see the blog entries for Bridge City at:

thanks! Have a great Christmas. Be sure to continue to watch the blog for updates and news.

See you soon!

jim

PS if you know of someone who is not on this list but is going, PLEASE LET ME KNOW AND FORWARD THIS TO THAT PERSON!!! "

From the Disaster Response team at the Church of Christ

This was from last week but...

"We're looking forward to you all being here!

We're still working on the same type of projects. We still have some gut out jobs, and a lot of drywall jobs. We are also still distributing supplies here at the community center if anyone is interested in helping here. We are also always in need of people to help input data into the computer.

So far only six [now of 25 so get signing up if you have not!!] Please make sure that all that are coming sign up right away, we have others wanting to come the same time period and we only have a certain amount of space. I've put the others on a waiting list. Please try to make sure that everyone coming registers by Dec. 20.

They will want to bring long pants and hard soled shoes to work in. Also the weather here has been crazy. The high today was 39 with rain, sleet and snow this evening. Yesterday it was 76. Tomorrow it's to be in the 50's and Friday in the 60's. So they should be prepared with different types of clothing.

We have air mattresses available, towels are also available so they really only need to bring a pillow, sleeping bag, toiletries and clothes. This is all in the email they receive as well.

here is a form that all people going on the trip must fill out:

Ripping boards for finished walls.

Ripping boards for finished walls. moved some outdoor piles now back to working on boards. looks good. when done

Due to lack of volunteers

Due to lack of volunteers dry wall pushed back. working on sanding boards for walls and doing hall way