The Blue House

I know it sounds like a cliché at this point, but the week I spent in Biloxi was one of the best of my entire life. I've rarely felt so proud or satisfied with something I've been a part of, and I feel like we made a real difference in the lives of the people we encountered. I was very glad to take part in the two projects I worked on: the Relief Center parking lot and patio, followed by the Blue House (I think there's a picture farther down.) The parking lot was hard work, but it was nice at the end of Tuesday to be able to look at the patio we'd completed and realize that we'd made a real and visible difference. I was also happy to be able to work on a home; we painted a house for a mother and her two children. At first, we were a little taken aback when the family seemed shy, and almost reluctant to interact with us. Mrs. White and Mrs. Yehling explained, though, that the mother seemed embarassed to need help, and had tried to explain why she did. They were amazing people; the mother had had to disobey her boss to return home to her children as the hurricane blew in; during the storm, her cousin had tragically drowned as a rescue team tried to pull her off her roof. Now, the woman whose house we were painting was going to college and working hard to turn the inside of her house into a home; her extremely bright daughter (only a rising sophomore) has already been promised scholarships by Washington University. Once we learned the family's story, all of us were eager to make their house look beautiful for them.
My other favorite part of the week was the Baptist service Reverend Morgan invited us to on Wednesday night. The members of the congregation were so warm and welcoming; the pastor went out of his way to tell us that they were grateful for our presence in Biloxi. We even got up into the choir pews and sang for them: "Testify to Love," and another spiritual. The event that touched me the most was forming a circle around the church and praying the Our Father with these wonderful people that we'd just met. After the prayer, members of the congregation came up to shake hands with and hug us. In a way, the service showed me the true meaning and value of the work we'd come to do in Biloxi.
Thank you so much to Mr. Magee, Mrs. White, Mrs. Yehling, Mr. Finnegan, Mr. Messmer, Mr. Mindel, Mr. Lestmann, and all of the parents who went with us, to the people of Biloxi: you made last week amazing for everyone.
~Jill Patton