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Okay, everybody – the countdown has begun! In less than a week, approximately 50 volunteers from the Greater New Orleans area will gather together to build 4 new wheelchair ramps for the Northshore community!
Here is how we have done for fundraising:
We’ve raised $510 so far! That is really most excellent. Thank you to all who have sent in donations – and there is still time to send more, if you get them in by the end of the week.
The little planning committee will be super busy for the rest of the week, buying materials, organization tools, and making the final preparations for the event on Monday. I think God is really moving here – He’s already brought these groups of people together, that were looking for ways to give back to the community but weren’t sure how to do it alone. And so next Monday should be a huge success. We’ll keep you posted here!
Hi everyone!
My name is Ashley Ritchie and I’m the new PCO Volunteer Coordinator. This is only my first week here, but I am so excited about the upcoming year. We have some great projects going on now, and we have a lot of goals to achieve for the new year. The PCO staff is wonderful! They have made me feel very welcome and I look forward to working with them this year. Keep checking our blog for more updates!
Hey everyone! Presbyterian Community Outreach is now on Facebook as well.
Check us out HERE, and become a fan. Help spread the word about the work that is still being down in Southeast Louisiana, more than four years after Katrina. Thank you!
After Christmas vacation, PCO has been gettin’ back into the swing of things. Right now, we are working with 3 volunteers from Owens Community College in Ohio. They’re pretty great, and doing lots of work on 11th Street and Hill Road.
As many of you likely know, having received an email from me a few weeks ago, we are currently fundraising for our big Wheelchair Ramp build on January 18th, 2010 – our MLK Day Service Project. Just to let you know, we have raised $310 so far!
Thank you so much to everyone who has donated so far – and, of course, if you haven’t, there is still time to do so. All funds raised go straight to supplying materials for the wheelchair ramps that will be built – no administration or maintenance costs.
And when you donate, you will receive one of these in the mail soon afterward, to recognize your generous support of PCO:
Five people will receive these these within the next day or two, and more are on their way to the post today! Snail-mail may have that title for a reason… but I certainly enjoy getting a physical piece of mail instead of letters on a screen!
Remember, we are still accepting donations until January 11th – that means you still have just over a week to donate! Make checks out to: Presbyterian Community Outreach, with MLK Day in the memo line; PCO, attn: Maggie Mullane, 1041 9th Street, Slidell, LA 70458.
Finally – today is the last day of 2009! May you all have a wonderful holiday, and we look forward to working with you in the New Year!
We started work on the 11th Street project in October. During that month and the following, we had volunteers from the United Church of Byron (IL), Valley Presbyterian (OH), Crossroads Presbyterian (WI), Woodlands Church (AR), and Fountain City Presbyterian (TN) work on the project. A few weeks ago, before Faith Presbyterian Church came and discussed their experience working on this project with me, this is how far we had come on the 11th Street Project:
Some new siding, rebuilt laundry room in back, new windows set
Beginning framing of interior walls
New doors, windows, some roof work
It all looked so much better than it had in September! Great job, guys! But now, even four weeks later, the project has continued to come along beautifully! Volunteers that worked on this site since the above pictures include Faith Presbyterian Church, Orchard Lake Community Church, and Colonial Presbyterian. Check out these pictures I took today:
New front porch
Finished exterior of laundry room, beautiful trim around windows
Bathroom and kitchen framed, tub installed, and now the plumbing and electrical are done! The framed wall on the left is the “wet wall” that includes plumbing for kitchen (on the left side of the wall) and for the bathroom (on right side of wall)
Plumbing for sink in kitchen
Water heater – in the ceiling!
Electrical work in ceiling in guest room
Plumbing for laundry room
So that’s how 11th Street looks now! We’ve really made awesome and well-timed progress on this house since we started in October – again, we’re expecting to be done by late February/early March! How exciting! Thanks so much to all the volunteers that have worked on this home so far, and for showing love in the work that you do to the homeowner and to all of the PCO family. And thank you, again, to the Wayne Bell Memorial fund for helping allow the rebuilding of this home. The electrical and plumbing was all subcontracted out, allowing it to be finished in less than a week – and the Memorial fund helped make that possible.
Today also marks the last day of work before Christmas break. We will be back in business on December 28th. So, until then, I hope you all have a very merry Christmas and that you feel the love and blessings of the birth of Christ. May the time with your family and friends, or just with yourself in the presence of God, be filled with cheer and awe at this most wonderful gift – the birth of the Son of God.
Peace, Joy, and Cheers!
As we wrap up the last week of work before the Christmas holiday, I’d like to take a moment to update a little bit about one of the projects underway here at PCO. This is the 11th Street project, funded mostly in part by the Wayne Bell Memorial fund. I know that, a few weeks ago a group from Faith Presbyterian Church was here, and they busted out the muscle to do a great job framing and siding on this house. They were curious as to where things would stand by Christmas.
Unfortunately, while we won’t be able to get the home owner moved in by the Christmas holiday, work is still moving very quickly on this house. This week we completed the electrical and plumbing work, done by a local contractor. Since we have limited volunteers in January, work will slow down a little bit (such is the nature of the beast), but will pick up with a bang in February. During those two months, we will be able to insulate the house, install drywall, flooring, cabinets, trim, painting, and any other last detail work. The home owner should be moved in by the end of February!
So that’s how 11th Street stands right now. I think that we are actually moving along quite well; perhaps not as fast as we would all wish, but this project has definitely been running extremely smoothly for a complete rehab.
Hopefully I will have some pictures for you tomorrow. Until then, click below to read more about the homeowner and the history of this project with PCO.
So we just said goodbye to our volunteers from Colonial Presbyterian Church. They worked with us on three house during this past week, and they also did some great work on our facilities! Check out the new addition in the men’s restroom downstairs:
Thanks, Colonial, for all your help keeping our home a safe and comfortable place for the PCO Community! And also, thanks for the fantastically delicious breakfasts, dinners, and early-morning cheer. I hope you have a very safe drive home and that we’ll see you again next year!
(Check out Colonial Presbyterian here)
I was so excited to see this morning that the number of views on this blog has skyrocketed! Thanks so much to those who came to check out this site after getting the email yesterday. By visiting this site and reading about the goings-on at PCO, you support not only us – but also each other and all of the families that we have served.
Today, I am excited to inform you that we are adding a new person to the PCO staff! His name is Larry, and he will be our new Construction Coordinator. Sadly, Ben is leaving us in January to go work for another organization in Tennessee. We will miss, but we are so thankful to have someone as qualified as Larry step up to the task. The next month will be very interesting for all of us – having two Construction Managers, Christmas vacation, projects, and various volunteers! A little chaotic – but hey, that’s what keeps the energy flowing.
As one can easily tell from the last few posts – obviously, PCO is thankful for so very many things -
our volunteers, past and present
our homeowners, whose grace and patience allow us to invade their home even after it has suffered so much damage
First Presbyterian Church, who allows us to operate out of their building(s) and has supported us for the last four years
our board of directors!
our dedicated staff, and the staff of FPC
that God continues to provide us the materials and funding that we need to serve His people
PCO has received so much… but above all, it is the perseverance of the volunteers and the homeowners that allow us to do what we do. We are merely a vessel connecting people that want to rebuild houses with those whose homes deserve to be rebuilt.
As Thanksgiving Day approaches, I want to express the deepest gratitude of all of the PCO organization to those who have helped us and worked with us over the past four years. We have received so much from our family, friends, and people of the faith. Thank you so much for all that you have done for us – every single one of you has made an impact – and I pray that we are all able to continue working in this vein of giving and receiving love.
PCO is excited to announce that we will be hosting a service project on Martin Luther King Jr Day in January!
Partnering with the Wheelchair Ramp Ministry of First United Methodist Church of Slidell, volunteers from around the area will gather on January 18th, 2010 to build ramps for citizens in need in and around Slidell. Louisiana’s Delta Corps program has already promised 40 volunteers, which already means at least 4 ramps!
FUMC’s Ramp Ministry began about 15 years ago. They took a break during the year of Katrina, at which time the church focused its efforts on rebuilding their building. According to the head of the program, since they started back up again in 2007, the rate of requests for wheelchair ramps has increased – likely due to changes in population and damaged housing that has yet to be repaired, in addition to the need that was already there.
I invite the entire PCO community to follow us on this endeavor! Find more information in the MLK Day page (link at the top of the blog) about the project, its needs, and how you can help! And keep checking the blog for updates on how the planning is coming!
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