Finishing the House

Today, we were up and on the road at 7 am for the hour drive to our work site. We worked on installing the cabinets that were delivered yesterday, we also put up the ceiling fans and put door knobs on the doors. FedEx delivered our lunch; sandwiches with white bread on one side and brown on the other, "diversity sandwiches" as one ASB member called them.
Last night, Randy Roach, the Mayor of Lake Charles and also Hal McMillin, the Police Jury for Calcasieu Parish visited the United Way base and spoke with the ASB teams. Mayor Roach told his personal story of evacuating and coming back to a house that was still standing but covered in mud, inside and out. The Mayor told us that he thought the town had been properly prepared when Hurricane Rita hit, pointing out that not a single person was killed in the storm. He also said that President George Bush visited the area shortly after and was very sincere and helpful telling Mayor Roach that anything the town needed they would get. Police Jury McMillin told a similar story, his house was also not destroyed, but a huge tree was knocked onto it, which Mr. McMillin jokingly told the audience, was used to make the boards that trimmed his cabinets and stairs. He spoke of the strong fiber and resolve that binds the community together, and said they were the kind of people that worked hard and didn't need a handout, however he made a point of thanking us graciously for our help.