Cedar Rapids, Iowa- Oh, what a week!

     I arrived at our RV sites, housed at Living Waters UMC in Marion, IA, on Saturday afternoon.  There were 13 in our team.  I had the chance to meet a few of the previous team members before they headed out.  Quite a crew.  But then, so was the group I was to spend the week with.

     This was week nineteen of a twenty-two week project.  Teams moved in and out.  The NOMADS are helping to rebuild homes from last year's devastating flood.  We currently were working in four homes.  Of course, each had a story.  One house is owned by a young man, who returned home from his tour of duty in Iraq with a head injury.  He had been given full disability from the military after years of hospitals and rehab.  He then bought this house and 3 months later the flood came.  He is lovingly rehabilitating his house while he continues to improve himself.  He has been grateful to the NOMADS for teaching him ways to do the construction and thus, learn a new trade.  Our prayers and thanks go out to him.

     A small group of us went out to a small neighboring town, Palo, to help in a home there. After three days of rain local people started getting anxious.  On Thursday creeks started to rise.  I took pictures out the back of the house at a line of parked cars.  By lunch time the water was up to their doors and our leader said we should leave.  We went back to Cedar Rapids to work on a house with the other team members.  By quitting time that street was full of water.  Storm drains are still filled with mud from last year.

     When we got back to our RVs most of us turned on our TVs to watch the news.  A call had gone out for volunteers to help reinforce the local supply of sandbags.  Five of us went to join the townspeople in this effort.

     On the 10:00 pm news there was footage of the same cars I had taken a picture of, now the water was up to their windshields.  There was also footage of the sandbagging efforts. Guess who was on the KCRG news?!! yep, me.  They had gotten a close-up.  Of course I wasn't doing anything at the time- looks like I'm thinking,  "Is it break time?"  I checked on their website and there is different footage.  I'm not in it, but my leader is.  So, I had my 10 seconds of fame. Luckily, the rain stopped and it's only the creeks which flooded, not the river.  Ironically, that town of Palo is scheduled to have a town-wide celebration for their recovery from last year's flood.

     This morning I left Cedar Rapids and am headed for Pennsylvania.  I am spending the night parked in a Wal-Mart.  Another first.   RVers are allowed to do that, but so far I haven't had the nerve.  I'm too cheap to pay for a campsite... hey, it's the end of the month.    I'll be stopping in Ohio to visit some folks there.  Hope to see some of you soon.