Hardee Co, FL RV – Nov. 19-25, 2023

Happy Thanksgiving! The Hardee County RV team agrees that we all have much for which to be grateful, and we give thanks to God for his many blessings! 

This week, there were nine RV volunteers working on the new build, plus four volunteers from the Arcadia project on Tuesday, and six on Wednesday, Thursday, and eight on Friday.  Monday, the RV volunteers cleaned up the site and prepared the roof structure for the underlayment and shingles. The rest of the week, they finished the fascia and the roof sheeting. Putting on shingles is now complete! Construction debris was cleaned up from the new build and the house being repaired and taken to the dump. 

Karen Olson’s surgery on her broken arm on Tuesday was a lengthy procedure, but successful! This is high on our list of what we are thankful for!  Since then, pain management has been an issue, but when the pain is mostly under control, Karen is her usual cheerful self. A nurse who stopped by the room said that Karen is her angel from heaven, that she makes her day, and she prays for Karen every day! Karen was discharged from the hospital Friday and Send Me Missions is arranging some meals for Dave and Karen. Team members are also helping.  

The rest of the team has enjoyed getting to know the Arcadia volunteers, finding out where they are from and what type of work they do. As many of them are from Canada along with the Gregorys (and the Olsons), it has been fun comparing ways Canada and the US differ! 

Thursday, we went to the community Thanksgiving dinner at First Baptist Church, Wauchula. As always, the church folks were very warm and welcoming! The weather was a little cooler than earlier in the week, with the high being about 73 degrees, so it was a lovely day. 

Friday was a day for vehicle repairs. The van’s rear passenger side window had a crack that formed a circle, so a technician from Safelite came out and replaced the glass at our campground. The dump trailer got a flat tire that had to be replaced.   

Saturday, we did a van swap with the Arcadia project, so that we can have a van that seats 12. Steve and Cindy Sanderson did the swap and took the dump trailer to Arcadia. They had a good time playing dominoes with the Arcadia volunteers and people from the community who regularly play. Steve had volunteered on the Arcadia Project, so he enjoyed reconnecting with the people from the community that he had met when he was there before.  

Mitch & Ann, Cindy & Steve S., Steve &Cindy D., Dave & Karen, Kathy & Lee, Paul & Sarah