Getting ready for the Garage Sale

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAVE!!
The big 5-0!!

Our Toy Room!! Our busy elves working to get

everything ready by 6:00 a.m.

Carefully using the Dewey Decimal System, our highly educated book staff arranges books so that absolutely everything is in order. Lynn Beckett, proprietor.

The clothes boutique... Our lovely staff assembles the ensembles.

We Went to POT

Well, it happened. Dan, Sean, and I did go to POT. And it was no easy task getting there (for some of us, at least)! Dan had a great drive up. Sean and I had a couple of free Southwest tickets, so we flew. Guess who got there first? Major storms in Chicago delayed Sean and me from getting to Pittsburgh on time. Then there was the necessary stop at a laundromat in Fairmont to dry our clothes and sleeping bags because it seems our luggage sat on the tarmac during the monsoon. (But, hey, we learned about all there is to know about Fairmont from Sean's new best friend--the woman who runs the laundromat!) By the time we arrived at Camp Dayspring, we determined that it would have taken less time to drive from home. That was the beginning of our POT adventure.

We have lots of pictures of Camp Dayspring to share with you. The cabins are nice and beds comfy. We'll want to add our own special touches, I sure! Good thing the porto-potties will be gone! The camp is in a beautiful location about 10 minutes south of Fairmont--way out in the country. Rolling hills, meandering streams, etc. Our camp prayer request should be that the kitchen construction stays on schedule. (pictured below in its current status) More about this later.










You are going to really like the folks we will be there with. There are two groups joining us--one from South Carolina and one from Briarwood. So far, I think we'll outnumber them all. It didn't take Dan long to determine that the youth in the SC group went through "bug" camp with his mother in law, who is joining us, back when he was in SC. So, there will be veterans among us! They and we agreed that our respective teens will enjoy knowing there will be more of them. They're bringing five guys and three girls.






Nature camp will give us a great opportunity to rely on God. While the setting is perfect (except there's no body of water of any size on the property), it is going to take God to show us how to get the kids there. There's prayer request number two--show us exactly which kids and then how to get them there. There are lots of possibilities for both. Dan hiked the property and has all sorts of ideas of where to do what!


We received our construction assignment and got to visit with "Miss Ann" our "host." We will be adding a deck onto the house she shares with her husband "Mr. Robert," along with several other things--some painting, minor concrete repairs, maybe a window replacement, finishing vinyl siding installation, etc. She is thrilled that we'll be coming and will be a gracious "host." Her roots are even in Alabama!






Ballet camp will offer a really fun and special opportunity in a park called Windmill Park. It was good to hear that the police have recently really cleaned up the place!






We did explore some in Fairmont. We know where the hospital is, but hope no one will need it! We know where the local "famous" food joints are and can't wait to watch you discover them as we did.




More than anything, we know God has an adventure planned for us--one that will require faith and trust in Him. He has a plan for us there. That's for sure.

We can't wait to give you all the details--and believe me, there are LOTS of details now--at our next meeting on Sunday afternoon, May 18.

Susan

P.S. I forgot to mention that while driving through downtown Fairmont on Saturday morning, the three of us got in on the tailend of a parade.

Fund Raising when God is in control

It is such a joy to watch God take over and make things happen, which is what he has done with our fund raising efforts. We began with a blank slate and no ideas of how we were going to raise money. Within a week, we had four solid ideas and a plan of action. God obviously has plans for us in West Virginia! We launched the Cones for Camp fund raiser on Sunday, April 26th, asking for donations to send kids to the day camp. We will begin taking orders for some really cool hand painted hammers through our WorkArt fund raiser beginning on May 11th. We'll ask for donations through our Repairing Hearts and Homes fund raiser beginning May 18th. And our Merchandise for Missions garage sale is on May 31st. Pray that we will raise the money we need, that we will grow in our faith and obedience to the Lord, and that God will be glorified.