REBUILDING: Updates from Kansas

With the exception of my lotsa picture posts, I've tried not to post too much about Kansas life post-tornado, partly to not overwhelm my blogging buddies and partly because it's not my own news to spill, so I don't want to be giving away everything about someone else's life.

Having said that, I know some of you are reading not to hear my opinions on American Idol, but to get updates on life for my sister and her family, so I thought I would update you on what I know that is probably okay to share.

* Lori, Jeff, and Cassie are looking forward to having a temporary home all by themselves here in the next few days. They've lived in two different homes since the night of the tornado - both times with other people who have opened up guest rooms to house them. They are, of course, very grateful for this blessing and the chance to live in a real house as opposed to a gym shelter, but they are looking forward to having a place of "their own" very soon! God has really paved the way here and provided this housing for them!

* They do also have vehicles to drive. I know I said that Cassie got a car, but they also have their own transportation, so that is good! In addition to the cars they have purchased, they've been given some "loaner" vehicles for the short term, which is nice when driving through nail-infested streets. They can drive the older cars until things are a little bit more cleaned up.

* Speaking of cleaned up - I believe the goal for the main cleaning of the town is June 21st. They're (they being town officials, I guess) have set that as a goal to have the aftermath cleaned up so they can move ahead to the official rebuilding. Lori indicated many properties are already cleaned. She was surprised at how quickly that was happening.

* Prayer Requests:

1. Wisdom and clarity on the insurance work. As far as I know, they are all still working on filling out those never ending forms for the insurance company to itemize what was in their home. There's a lot to remember - and their minds are full right now.

2. Transition to the new home. While it is a great thing to be able to live on their own - there will be a lot of emptiness in the house until they can get a home of "stuff" built up again. Their goal is to be wise in deciding what is a "right now" purchase and what things can wait. I know that they also want to help businesses in town rebuild by purchasing what they can from local companies.

3. Church decisions. I believe they have a decision making meeting in a couple of weeks. Please pray that the congregation will be united in decisions that affect everyone - and that the right choices will be made regarding the rebuilding of both the church and parsonage.

4. Comfort. As life settles back in to whatever "normal" will be, please pray that they will be able to find peace from the anxiety that is sure to creep in. I'm sure that over time, remembering a lost item, a restructuring of finances, a change of scenery, fatigue, and uncertainty (not to mention future bad weather) will bring about some tough times.

They really do appreciate all your prayers!!!

I'm Glad I Kept Watching

Well - I had that rough patch earlier in the season where I threatened to quit watching if Haley kept staying in the competition. But after the results tonight, I was really glad Jessica convinced me to keep watching. It was perhaps one of the most predictable finales, but great results. I was so glad to see Jordin win and I hope this begins a lifetime of amazing music from her. I'd buy her music...and so far I've only got Clay's music. (This is strictly because I've been too lazy to buy Carrie's.)

* Loved Melinda's song with the Winans. She absolutely shone- so in her element there. Good job, Melinda! I hope she goes on to a soaring career too.

* Loved Carrie's performance. I like that song and she has probably the best, purest voice of any of the Idol winners. (With Jordin right behind her of course.) And she is just a stunning young lady.

* Loved the return of Sanjaya's crying fan. Good grief, girlie.

* Loved Simon and Ryan being up for the "best buddies" award - as well as the actual winners. So sad, yet so funny.

* Didn't love Haley's return. (Put that there just for you, Phats.) I could pick her out from a distance just by looking for the shortest skirt.

* Didn't love Bette Middler's performance. Angela was watching with me and told me back in the day, she could sing. I said "Well it apparently is no longer back in the day." And what was up with the flying and flitting? That could have been cut out completely and we could have ended the show on time!

* Didn't love the return of big bird - the old lady in the spandex? Scary enough the first time around. Definitely didn't need to see that again!

* Didn't love the way the whole show seemed to be about everyone but the final two. I loved that they brought back memories from the auditions and past winners from the show...but I wish Jordin and Blake - and perhaps the rest of the top 12 - could have had a little bit more of the attention for this last show.

But with all my loves and didn't loves...I loved the outcome. You go, Miss Jordin!!! You're a good pick all around. And Blake - a classy runner up. I hope you have just as great a career.

The Final Idol Post...Well, Almost

I know I've posted a trillion times today, but how can I NOT post on the last round of Idol?

Here's a shocker for you...I cried. I cried because Blake is sweet and such a performer and I want him to do well...and I know he will.

But I still want Jordin to win. When she finished her final song, I was bawling right alongside her. She's amazing. You go girl.

I loved seeing Phil...and Chris Richardson...and Melinda...and I'll leave it to Phats to guess which one I rolled my eyes at when I caught a little glimpse...

Great job by Daughtry at the end too. He's my reminder that Melinda still has a great chance at a great career. He went home well before his time.

Visiting Kansas...Graduation!

The last thing that Julie and I did before leaving Kansas to fly back to Indiana was attend the high school graduation. It had to be relocated to a tent on the golf course...or rather a series of tents on the golf course. Cassie's boyfriend, Alex, graduated, and Cassie was an usher.

I think Lori said another school district paid for the tent and chair rentals so the school could have a graduation. All the graduates were given an allotment to spend at Maurice's (ushers too!) so they could have new clothes for graduation, and a barbecue was provided following graduation for all the graduates and guests. Each graduate was even given a personal cake - in case previously arranged open house plans couldn't be replaced.

Here is a slide show and brief bio of each of the graduates - as listed in the Wichita Eagle.

And below is Miss Cassie at her ushering post.

Visiting Kansas...New Growth

This is a tree in Jeff and Lori's yard - you can see on the back branch the bark that was stripped away - and then over on the right, you can see brand new leaves budding. Sorry that the one in front is so fuzzy. It was SO BRIGHT outside that I couldn't see my screen enough to know what kind of an image I was getting.

You've probably seen or heard on the news that even longtime Greensburg residents are lost in their own town - without landmarks to let them know where they're walking or driving. By the time we arrived, these makeshift street signs had been put up - replacing the originals that are who knows where by now.

This sign hung outside the high school - symbolizing hope for the future of the Greensburg Rangers!

Visiting Kansas...Work Day!

The day before we left, Julie and I drove over to Greensburg to help as part of the official cleanup crew. We had to sign in with Mennonite Disaster Service - the group that has been doing so much to help my family and the church members. We got to wear little volunteer stickers, got a free t-shirt, and they had snacks and gloves for everyone.

I turned this white piece over and found it was a piece of Cassie's bedroom wall - as is the little blue piece beside it. That's how completely the house was torn apart - the plaster walls were just little bits. We spent the entire morning picking up debris like this - much of it just bits of wall and insulation.

PROOF that I can do manual labor! I still much prefer the kitchen and scrapbooking - but was very happy to have the opportunity to pitch in and help my sister!

Visiting Kansas...Trying to Save Stuff

Here is a photo sleeve that had gotten wet. You can't see it really well, but I'm pointing to chips of glass that were actually underneath the plastic protector. You can also see the water inside the sleeve...obviously this photo didn't make it. I was just amazed that bits of broken glass were lodged inside.

Here is a journal that Mom made for my brother in law as a joke a few years ago. He's been writing in it and I was so excited to see that it made it through the storm. It was pretty wet and some of the ink had bled, but it was completely salvageable!

The yearbooks, on the other hand...didn't fare quite so well. I think one of these was Lori's and the rest were Cassie's. They were attempting to dry and save them. Not sure the final outcome.

Visiting Kansas...Cleanup!

In the evenings - well, any spare time, really - Lori worked on trying to clean up whatever treasures had been salvaged along the way. Nearly everything they found was wet and mud-caked, so cleaning was a big chore. Here she is in the kitchen of the house where they are staying temporarily, washing some of the dishes that survived the great collapse into the basement. Like the shirt? Used to be mine. Fits her 1000 times better. Sometimes you just gotta give up believing you'll ever be THAT little and give away the clothes to someone who actually IS that size. :)

After the washing extravaganza, Lori and Julie joined me in the driveway for the great picture salvage. With the exception of two or three, no complete albums survived the tornado, but some pictures were able to be saved from random sleeves of albums. Julie and I were pulling out the ones that were dry and not mud-smeared.

Here I am working on the picture project. I found some good ones! And what more perfect project for me! Give the scrapper girl some pictures to pilfer through! :)

Visiting Kansas...The Humor

I posted the picture of Lori's yard sale sign that she put out front. Here was another sign I found during my tour - o - town. I thought it was kind of funny. This was at the edge of a pile of bricks that had been the bed and breakfast. In case you can't read the sign clearly, it says "Bring your own bed. Fresh air."

Visiting Kansas...the Storm Shelter

The church basement survived the tornado with relatively little damage (comparatively speaking). It now serves as a functional storm shelter, should another storm show up while people are in the town.

Here is a picture of the concrete slab that was the floor to the upstairs of the church. At the edge of the slab, you can see the makeshift railings that have been put up to aid people in going up and down the cement steps. At the bottom of the picture, you can see the bathroom linoleum still holding strong. (With all due respect to the linoleum-picker-outers...maybe next time the church can upgrade to something else.)

Here is a picture from the hallway of the church basement. You can see that some ceiling tile went the way of all the ceiling tile...and the carpet had to be ripped out because of water damage, but some decorations still survived. Remember the pictures earlier where I pointed out their van that had been parked under the carport of the church, and there was another car there that I didn't recognize? It belonged to someone (or maybe a couple of someones) who took shelter in this basement during the tornado and actually spent the night there - they were discovered the next day during search and rescue.

Visiting Kansas...at the Golf Course

I know, I know. I said I was going to help and then I ended up on a golf course! How'd that happen? The first full day that Julie and I were in Kansas, Cassie's boyfriend - Alex - played in a school golf tournament. I think I mentioned in an earlier post that some golf companies had donated new sets of golf clubs, new golf balls, new hats, and new towels (and shoes, maybe?) to the team so they could finish their season.

Here's Alex (in the red shirt) playing toward the end of the round - we only showed up for the end. Apparently he's pretty good. I know nothing about golf, so I really could not be the judge of that. But I believe what I hear...so he's good.

Cassie and yours truly...proof that I actually visited a golf course. Not one of my finer photos, but hey, still proof that I showed up. (Pink purse, orange shirt...bad combo.)

I don't know how long this will be up, but if you go to KAKE-TV, the ABC affiliate out of Wichita, there are a series of video clips about the tornado, and toward the bottom (at least right now that's where it is) of the list is a clip about the golf team, their season, and the donations they received.

First Class...Right Flight!

I do have pictures from my time in Kansas, and I do have them scanned in...but I have to go to a party, so I'll have to post them later. (Sigh...my busy social life...HA!) ANYWAY, in the post below are some pictures from the big 2-9, and here are some pictures of the flight portions of my trip to Kansas.

Julie (on the left, in case you weren't sure) and I ended up being able to sit together on every flight. On this, our first flight, our seats were supposed to be apart - each of us in the middle of a 3 seat row, one in front of the other. BUT - when I got to my row, some old lady had gotten her seat mixed up and took a young guy's seat. So he, in turn, took mine. SO - the flight attendant just told me to sit across the aisle in one of the two seater seats. NO PROBLEM! By the time the plane door closed, no one had come to sit by me, so Julie asked if she could switch and sit by me. The less than personable attendant waved her over. YAY!!!! We flew coach on this one.

When we arrived at the Memphis airport on Saturday for the last leg of our journey home, we were told we had to check in at the gate for seat assignments...something we found odd, because Julie had arranged all that. The lady handed us our boarding passes and we left to find food (priorities, you know). When the plane began boarding, we realized the seats were FIRST CLASS. Julie insisted that was a mistake, and the lady insisted that it wasn't. So YAY - we got to fly that last one first class!!! My first time ever! (You know...since it was only my second flight round!)

Above - Bekah in first class by the window. Below - Julie in first class by the lovey dovey old couple. He was way older than she, but they held hands the whole time. It was so cute. Also cute was when she tried to open her chip bag and they flew everywhere. We kept our laughing hidden.

Below - apparently in first class, you drink from REAL GLASS glasses. (I know someone is laughing at me right now. HEY. It was my first time, okay?) I had to stick with water (ick to my no pop for a year vow). But water out of a glass glass is very fun. Cheers!

PS - the title of my post comes from a Mark Lowry song called "First Class, Wrong Flight" - in honor of a time he was bumped to first class and then found out he was not on the right plane. At least we were in the right spot!

Birthday Girl!

Christina - this one is for you. Remember my trip to Ivanhoes for my birthday? STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE.

You must try this. It took me three meals to finish it. So worth the fat grams.

My gift from Marie - well, part of my gift from Marie.

This is a book called Beautiful by Beth Redman. Can't wait to read it!

Braeya, of course, thought the bag was for her. She probably thought there was food inside.

What a helper girl. (Eyeroll.)

I've Been Tagged!

Before I got caught up in the busyness of my birthday and my trip to Kansas, I was tagged by Fellow blogger Amy C. I didn't have time to respond to my tag until now...but I'm using my day off work to catch up on everything, so here goes!

The Rules:

1. Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.

2. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.

3. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.

4. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

Here are my eight facts!

1. I have ADD for furniture arrangements. It is highly unusual for me to leave a room arranged the same way for very long. I am attempting to break this habit by arranging my master bedroom in such a way that the bed must ALWAYS stay in the same place to fit with something that must hang on a certain wall. I've survived almost a year. We'll see how it goes after that.

2. I'm addicted to cold coffee drinks. I never drank coffee at all until after college when I had to give up Mountain Dew. And I love a good boring cup of coffee...but I also love a fru-fru coffee drink with the ice and the whipped cream and the caramel drizzle....lowfat, of course!

3. I bit my nails until junior high. At that time, my friend Cyndi inspired me with her long nails, and I convinced myself to forfeit my nasty habit. I actually grew my nails out longer than hers! I keep them fairly short now, but it is RARE that you'll see me without nail polish! I love my nails!

4. For my birthday, I received a beach towel to replace one I've been using since SECOND GRADE! I took swimming lessons and Mom promised me a beach towel if, at the end of the lessons, I could swim so many strokes. I did it and got my towel...which I still have AND use. Finally I asked for a replacement. I'm excited about that since tonight is the grand finale party of our Ladies Bible Study, and the hot tub will be open! :D

5. I can't ride amusement park rides. Not even the carousel. They make me dizzy and sick to my stomach. (Keep that comment to yourself, Phats.) My last ride was when I was a kid and I was on some spinny, flippy ride. Couldn't wait to be done and at the end of the ride they gave us a free second round. No more after that.

6. I started stamping in high school. All my friends could either sing or draw, and I had no talent. I was in a craft store one day and saw rubber stamps...and decided that would be my new hobby. It didn't require much talent. Little did I know how out of control it would get. But most of the time, it keeps me out of trouble.

7. I've never been to Florida. Most people have been to Disney at some point in their life - and if not, at least inside the state of Florida. I never have been there. That surprises most people.

8. When I was a kid, I had a chihuahua named Lassie. She was a gift for my birthday when I was about 6, and I loved that dog so much! Lassie was my favorite TV dog, and I didn't care that my Lassie wasn't a collie. Best dog we ever had...and one day she came up missing. We think a bigger animal got her. That was an awful day. I still miss her!

Okay...I tag the following people:

Phats

Cara

Jenna

Lori (of the Hutchins Family)

Christina

Deb

Angela

Jaena

Sunday, May 20, 2007

Some weeks I sit here and try to pick through the corners of my brain to think of even one thing worth writing about…and today I have so many thoughts zooming through, I can’t pin one down long enough to make a coherent bit of anything.

This week, I flew to Kansas to spend a few days with my sister, brother-in-law, and niece. The trip was a good one…if good is an appropriate word to use, considering the circumstances. The things I have to share are rather scattered, so I’ll just make a list of the things that stood out the most from this week. And maybe by the time I come back next week, I’ll have enough of a collected brain to get back to writing like normal.

* The pictures I’d seen, both on the news and from the three rolls of film my Mom and Dad brought back from their trip, adequately prepared me for what I saw in person. It was just bigger in person. The strangest feeling was walking up and down the streets and staring at the rubble and feeling guilty for staring at people’s personal lives. A widespread invasion of privacy.

* The strength of spirit in this town is just amazing. Obviously they hurt, but everywhere you went, there were signs that said things like “Newly installed skylight” or “For Sale: Indoor Pool.” And nearly anyone you talk to, no matter how much they’ve lost, will insist that they are among the fortunate and that so many more are in much worse shape.

* I rode with Lori out to the home of some people who are keeping the belongings they were able to salvage. To see their entire home reduced to less than a quarter of a 2 ½ car garage was a little tough to swallow. It made me want to come home and pack up a big chunk of my house and drive it out to them.

* Even as I sit here writing this, I’m glancing around my own house and feeling the need to start a list of what I have, so that if the need for it should ever arise, I’d have it – because watching them try to remember what was in the house was overwhelming to me. Magnify that by 10,000 and that’s the sense of being overwhelmed that they feel.

* Several times throughout the week, I listened to them remember something else that they’d not seen…and the mix of sadness and resignation became a familiar event by the end of the week.

* I came home with a sense of “I want to be like my big sister.” Right there in the middle of loss, she offered up her borrowed bed to her company, spent some of her money on a birthday gift for me, made it her mission to have meals at home for us – and not off the Red Cross wagon, and even made sure we got free t-shirts for our volunteer efforts. Amazing.

* Speaking of volunteer efforts, I did spend a morning helping with cleanup. I took a picture, as I’m sure many of you are skeptical of my participation in manual labor. It was hard to just pick up trash…I wanted to dig and find a treasure. But most of the treasure finding had passed by the time we arrive. But I did find a couple of Cassie’s sports medals!

* While I was out in that part of Kansas, I was able to spend about an hour visiting with my former pastor’s wife, Naomi. When I’d flown out last fall to watch Cassie play volleyball, Mom and I went to see Fred and Naomi. I’d not seen them – probably since I was in elementary school and they moved on from our church. Less than a month after that visit, Pastor Fred died. I was so glad we’d gotten to see them then, and I was excited to see Naomi again. She and I chatted about life, Fred, and a little bit of everything else.

* I also learned, in non-tornado-related news, that I actually do enjoy flying! I wasn’t sick this time, so the take-off wasn’t nearly so painful. AND – the best perk of the whole trip – on our very last flight, we were upgraded to first class! THAT is the way to go. Ahhh, the leg room, the elbow room, the snacks, and the real glasses! Amazing. Not sure how it happened, but YAY!!!

I’m sure there’s much more that I’m forgetting…but that was the week in a nutshell. Hopefully by next week, my normal brain cells will be back in place and I can once again write something sensible!

The New Normal

Well, I've had a few hours' sleep, anyway, and I think I'm coherent enough to write for real. :)

When Julie and I arrived on Wednesday, we had no idea what we would do while we were out here. As you've seen from the pictures I've posted, Lori and Jeff's house site and the church site are already dozed and cleaned up. There's still debris (or as some person wrote on a work order form, debree) scattered everywhere, but the digging sort of work was done before we arrived. So here's an idea of some of the things we've done and seen since we arrived. These things, I call the new normal.

We helped Lori spend the second half of her voucher at Wal Mart. I learned that the Wal Mart out here doesn't make me nearly so crazy as the one at home. My job was to run the calculator, so it was a lot like my normal grocery shopping adventure. She had a designated amount of money she was allowed to spend, and whatever she didn't spend, she lost. We came within seven cents, I believe. As we walked around and shopped, we also looked for things they used to have in their house so we could write down brand names and replacement value costs for the insurance papers.

Lori and Jeff do have a new (to them) car, and Cassie does too. But because of the mess in town, they're still using the loaner cars when they drive over there. Good thing, too, because the loaner van got a flat tire our first day here. Lori said it's weird to see everyone in new and borrowed cars. This is a town where everyone knew everyone by what they drove, and now nobody is recognizable anymore.

The town businesses had a meeting the other night in which they had to declare whether they were staying, leaving, or unsure. I think Lori indicated most planned to stay and rebuild. The co-op/grain elevator is already rebuilding, since wheat harvest is in a month.

When we drove through town yesterday, new poles had been set up and the electricity guys were up at the top putting up new wires. The water guys were testing water at hydrants. So life is rebuilding, some.

Like I said, we did get to tour their property, and I think we're going back today. I took a picture, which I'll post when I get home, that shows the basement of the church. It is the official storm shelter in town now, because it still has a roof - or rather the church upstairs still had a cement slab floor. I think it has yet to be inspected, but for now, in a flattened town, it's the best they have. The basement is damaged, but it is still there!

While pilfering around the property, I found a single page from a hymnal. It's the song Be Still My Soul. I thought that was pretty appropriate. I took it for my scrapbook.

Yesterday, Julie and I went with Cassie to Dodge City, about 50 miles away, to watch Cassie's boyfriend in a golf tournament. We only watched the last 3 holes, I think, because we didn't go until the end, but he did pretty well! Titlelist (not sure I spelled that right...golf is so not my thing) donated new clubs to the team, since theirs were blown away. I thought that was really nice! Anyway, that was my first and last time on a golf course. Nice experience, but no thank you.

When we came home, we helped Lori work on the cleaning of salvaged treasures. They washed stuffed animals and dishes, and my job was to pull pictures from album sleeves and determine which ones could be saved and which ones could not. I took pictures of all that, too. I'll post them later.

I'm not quite sure what we're doing today, besides going back over to tour/take more pictures. Tomorrow is the rescheduled graduation, and I think we're going before we fly home. I could be wrong.

So that is life here...in the new normal.

Meeting the President

My cousin, Shari, found this picture on the White House website, so I ferreted around this morning and found it too. :) This is a group of the ministers, I believe, praying with the president, the day he visited Greensburg.

The guy in the burgundy jacket on the right is Jeff. I think this is the jacket that he got for free - it's a Hardee's jacket that says "Russ" on the front. So now my sister calls him Russ. She calls him that so much, I'm starting to forget it's not really his name.

Big Week!

It has been a big week! Here are some highlights:

Monday was my birthday...I turned the big 2-9. I had a great day - despite being required to report for duty at work. Actually, work was great. I didn't get any upset phone calls, and the office threw me a little party. My friend Olivia went to lunch with me, and then my parents and my friend Marie took me out for dinner at Ivanhoes. I resigned myself to being an official grown up after I found myself thrilled to finally receive a Swiffer Wet Jet for a gift. :) And socks.

Tuesday I branched out and drove to my sister's house. Note to those who don't know...I despise driving in cities and refused to do it most of the time. But I had a big trip coming up and the easiest way to start it was to spend the night at her house. I survived the drive...and didn't even throw up! It wasn't without its scary moments, but I did it.

While there...I watched the American Idol show. Obviously it's a little late now for a rundown, but I thought Melinda had a rocky start and Jordin had a super night. I thought Blake should have gone home...but I'll get back to that.

Wednesday I did another grown up thing and boarded a plane. Note to those who don't know...my feelings for flying are similar to my feelings for driving in cities. But my sister Julie and I decided we needed to visit Kansas ourselves, and with our work schedules, flying was the only way to go. (And I boarded the plane hoping it would not be my way to go. Or my time.)

The flights were very successful. I learned on this, my second adventure in flying, that flying as a well person is better than flying as a sick person. I didn't mind it nearly as much. We arrived in Kansas about noon and drove to meet my sister and niece for lunch before touring Greensburg.

I was nervous about how I would react to seeing all this in person. I'd heard it was worse than the pictures. But I think my parents, who told me that, underestimated the amount of time I'd spent looking at pictures online and watching the news. I was very prepared for what I saw. Seeing it live is overwhelming in that you can't turn to the right or to the left and get away from it, like you can on TV. It's literally everywhere. But I didn't even cry (close your jaws, those of you who know what a water works girl I am) - and I felt very prepared.

There are great signs of new life in this town. There's pain and hurt...and I won't minimize that, because to do so would be wrong. Life has forever changed and normal is now a very different thing than it used to be. But there are sprigs of hope. I'll blog more about it later.

Lori, Jeff, and Cassie have moved out of the house they initially stayed in and are now staying with a couple in a big old house with lots of character. I really like it. We're staying here with them, and I was able to get online for a bit to try to catch up on life in Bekahland and beyond.

I think I'll be able to get on here again before I go, so maybe I'll be able to put more coherent thoughts down. (I haven't slept well since Friday night, so my brain is gone.)

Just wanted to say hi! OH! And if you want to see what I would have written about American Idol results, had I been able to get online then, go over to Christina's post (she's a link on the side) and read her post. I "amened" it.

More Cleanup Pictures on the MDS Site

My parents' friend, Sharon, has been reading my blog to stay up on life in Kansas, and she emailed me this link that I'd not seen yet (getting lazy in my searching, I guess). Thank you so much, Sharon! And welcome to Bekah's Blog! :)

http://www.mds.mennonite.net/Projects/Greensburg__KS

There are two galleries (one on top of the other) that have many great pictures of different homes, stories, and cleanup efforts in Greensburg. MDS helped clean up so many homes and were/are a huge help to the residents and members of the congregation!

The first several pictures in gallery 2 are of my family - and there are cleanup pictures different from the ones I have posted. (Hey Lori! When you get back to reading this one...nice Trio shirt! Where'd you get it?)

Pictures Have Arrived...and An Update

Good evening! I feel like I just posted 497 posts...but I wanted to try to give you several different angles of things you've not seen on the news, and I wanted to group them together in "stories."

Mom brought over a stack-o-pictures today, and I must compliment her on doing a GREAT job with the photography. She's been known to behead people in photos....

I talked to Lori and Cassie this evening and both seemed in really great spirits. Cassie was able to get a car, which is a huge blessing to her. Being a teenager and stuck at home is really no fun. They hadn't planned on getting one for her just yet but God worked out the perfect opportunity, so they did! Cassie was also very excited to have a hairdryer. Hey, I hear her there. I'd have probably forfeited an underwear rotation for a hairdryer. (I'm KIDDING!)

Lori is going to start helping with some of the volunteer efforts - that's my sister for you! Out of a home and giving of her time anyway. I'm proud of her.

They were able to move into temporary home #2 today, so she spent some time organizing what she does have.

Below are several posts of pictures - hopefully you'll be able to click and enlarge some.