Pictures!

This week at Olive Tree we were blessed with four wonderful groups from Maryland, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Washington. We worked at eight worksites and ended our week with a home dedication on Friday afternoon. We all know that Katrina hit over three years ago but the work in New Orleans has not slowed down and will continue as an ongoing project for many churches and people across the States and beyond.



We hope that you are able to find a way to join us in the Crescent City as we assist families in the rebuilding process. If you have any questions about an upcoming trip or about planning a trip please email the village manager account at
olvtree1@pcusa.org



As a side note, our laundry facilities are now up and running!

Shrimp and Jersey

Last week we opened our doors to five states and about 60 people. People who have stayed at some of the other PDA camps arrive at Olive Tree and automatically feel spoiled so it's no surprise that some of the groups go to great lengths to make it feel like the "real" Hilton. A group from New Jersey treated the group to fresh-from-the-dock shrimp three times last week! Talk about being spoiled. Of course they have all worked very hard on the sites as evidenced by all of the people hobbling around moaning and groaning about their sore muscles. The good news? People are working hard and having a great time. We will update with pictures soon as promised.

We just started with a new bunch of people (about 70) and are looking forward to another great week here at the Village.

East to West

This week at Olive Tree we are hosting two large groups from opposite sides of the country. We have a group from a Presbytery that covers parts of both Oregon and Washington as well as a group from Virginia. We are excited to see what kind of relationships develop and what kind of work gets done.

Every Thursday at Olive Tree we host what we call Neighbor Night. This is an opportunity for the volunteer groups to invite their homeowners to celebrate in fellowship with us. Our groups cook a large meal and have devotions (worship) afterward. We also invite all of the long term volunteers and staff from Project Homecoming who organizes our work projects. This includes people serving in the Young Adult Volunteer program with PCUSA, Louisiana Delta Service Corps members, and Project Homecoming staff. Last week we hosted an additional 15 people which made a total of about 60 people. Neighbor Night is a very important part of our week here. It is a chance to sit down and share a meal in community with one another. It reminds us that we are not merely "helping" a person or "fixing" a house but we are building relationships and serving a cause greater than we could ever imagine. We are looking forward to another great party this Thursday.

Pictures will be posted soon.

Peace be with you.

Kentucky and Florida at play

The week of September 28 brought two groups, two guitars and a tamborine. How could it get any better?

By Your Side I Will Seek Other Seas

The Greenville, North Carolina and Sewickley,Pennsylvania teams finished their week out with one final singing of Hymn #377, the "Lakeshore" song. We sang it all week and it fit our work. The version we sang at camp was a little different due to translation from the original but has the same meaning. For many volunteers who come to the coast to help rebuild after a hurricane, their lives change. Their boat has been left on the shoreline and they follow Christ to "seek other seas."

Our Musical Camp

Olive Tree is the only camp to have our own piano..
Our dining room is located in the former sanctuary of the Eastminster Presbyterian Church in New Orleans.
So we have the perfect area for devotions after breakfast and dinner.

This week we've been blessed with an accomplished musician, Allen Amos, a Junior High band director from North Carolina. Here's Allen in the kitchen:

We've also been gifted with two ladies who who "cooked" instead of "caulked."
Mary Helen Stasavich and Chris Riddle from First Presbyterian in Greenville, North Carolina cooked breakfast and dinner every day, most of it "from scratch."

Olive Tree in Great Shape After Gustav

Our camp came through Gustav without a scratch. The Shower Trailer folks at St Andrews called to check on it so I thought I'd update any of you planning a trip to our camp.

We should be ready for us on schedule without much effort. Certainly there will be plenty of work for you. Right now the Olive Tree camp manager is helping clean up and rebuild some of the other camps that weren't as lucky. Our Houma camp took the brunt of Gustav. That camp's manager, Kevin Henry, also lost his home. The entire PDA staff is going to Houma tomorrow morning to see what we can do to bring this camp back. The Pearlington camp also lost a tent or two but not as serious as the Houma camp.

I have a video of the last night in New Orleans. It was really a very surreal experience. The night we evacuated the camp was also the third anniversary and the Project Homecoming people gave a big party for the homeowners to celebrate their rebuilding. So while I was packing up for Gustav and carrying boxes out the building, the Project Homecoming people were celebrating their victory over Katrina and bringing in helium balloons and food through the same door.