Amory, MS – Nov. 24-30, 2024

Long-term volunteers this week continued from last week:  project director Fred Hershey (AL), construction supervisor David King (VA), crew leaders Ken Hollinger (MI) and Jon Stuckey (OH), joined beginning this week by Joel Short (OH).  Also continuing from last week were office manager Stan Kauffman (MI), head cook Judy Schmidt (Manitoba), and long-term volunteers Suetta Hollinger (MI) who also doubled as a crew leader, Millie Hershey AL), and Jenny Stuckey (OH) who served as assistant cook.  Ten new weekly volunteers came from New York state, joining two others from the same area who stayed on for their second week at Amory, and one other volunteer from Kentucky. 

Volunteers continued working on five projects from previous weeks and started four new projects.  Two projects were completed and signed off.  More than 70 percent of this week’s work concentrated on two houses.  At the Rainey home volunteers, with crew leader Jon Stuckey, finished hanging and taping drywall throughout the house and nearly finished 3 coats of mudding.  Another crew at the same home worked on plumbing a shower and installed an exterior door.  Volunteers at the Hubbard home painted the entire exterior as well as some interior doors, while another crew at the same home worked on electrical repairs, storm doors, shelving, replaced an outdoor deck and installed soffit and fascia.  Volunteers on seven other projects worked on flooring repair and replacement, lots of drywall sanding and painting, roof vents, roof repairs and new steel roofing and window and door installation, all despite frosty mornings and colder-than-usual Southern daytime temperatures for outdoor work. 

On Wednesday, the Amory MDS crew were treated to a very tasty early Thanksgiving noon meal by the kind people at St. James United Methodist Church in Amory, where one of the local Monroe Strong case workers attends.  The church cooks had prepared much more food than we could eat, because they were also taking dinners out to people in the community who could not come to the church for a meal.  Thursday was a workday for our MDS crews, but in the evening our cooks, Judy and Jenny, treated us to a second Thanksgiving meal, and weekly and long-term staff spent the rest of the evening playing games and just having fun together. 

Next week’s leadership team continues from this week, and we look forward to welcoming a new group of weekly volunteers from Pennsylvania to finish some of the current projects, start a few new ones, and make new MDS and community friends.