As we mentioned yesterday, the PV crew from this week is made up volunteers who have been involved with the program for 20 years plus. That is a lot of experience, a lot of stories and a lot shared history (and a lot of laughter.) It seems rather fitting that the site we are working on this week was one that we have worked on twice in the past, once almost 15 years ago and again 4 summers ago.

The first time we met Billy was when we brought down the girls from TGIA, the young womens empowerment group from Brooklyn, for their spring break back when they were in high school.  This was the first time we connected the two programs together. The girls helped to do flooring for Billy in his living room. The second time we worked for Billy was four summers ago when volunteers put fiber roof coating on his house, did some flooring work inside and painting the outside. Those that were there might remember a couple of cars getting stuck in the mud : )

Today at Billy’s house our task was to repair his dining room floor, which had a couple of holes around the edges. We were able to get the wood cut to cover the area and will continue tomorrow. Volunteers had a lot of fun working together, but also working with Billy.

We were treated to dinner tonight at Arnie and Kathy’s house in Pineville. We enjoyed a great meal and even better company. Being with Arnie and Kathy again reinforced the idea of the roots of the PVs yet again.

After returning back to The Way we had our reflection. Tonight we reflected on how being involved with the PV Program has changed our lives. Again going back our roots…

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This year’s spring break trip in West Virginia is a little different than we thought it would be just a month ago. Usually for this week we are joined by Northern Illinois University for a week of service. Unfortunately this year they had to cancel the trip a few weeks ago. Fortunately for us, we have a few long time volunteers who were free and decided to come down and spend the week in Wyoming County.

So after that quick catch up….

Dan, Patti and Jill headed out from Cincinnati this morning for West Virginia with a quick stop at the Charleston Airport to pick up Walt. In the car on the way we realized that as a group we have know each other for 22 years. Talk about “old” PVs! After a quick stop at the grocery store to load up on supplies and snacks, we arrived at our home for the week, The Way Youth Center in Mullens. When we unlocked the door we set off the security alarm. Talk about making an entrance! After a quick catch up with Debbie to get our sites for the week we made a quick run into Pineville to our storage to pick up an air mattress and a pump. Of course on our way back we couldn’t pass up the Dairy Queen without a quick a treat. What kind of PVs would we be??? The night came to a close with the group gathering to share in the PV Commissioning Service. It wouldn’t be a PV experience without this ritual. We are looking forward to a great week of community, service and reflection. Keep coming back for updates during the week.

Macadoos in Beckley has closed for good. We can hear the PVs weeping and wailing from here

“A strong woman stands up for herself. A Stronger woman stands up for everybody else.” Happy International Women’s Day to all the women PVs out there! You are an inspiration!!!

The PVs had a unique opportunity today to work in Covington, KY in the City Heights neighborhood helping to start a community garden. The project is community driven, but they were asking for extra hands to start it off. We were able to gather nine Cincinnati area PVs and our two staff to work alongside the community members to jump start the garden. To start the day off we were treated to a dance performance by a group of local children. After the dance we broke into two groups to help till the garden and prep the area the garden will be planted, while others planted seeds to start the vegetable plants growing. It was a great day! Thanks to all who took part!

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This past weekend PVs gathered at the Jersey Shore for our annual reunion. The tradition of these annual gatherings started back in 1992 and have continued in one form or another each year since then. We have been hosted by several different PVs in their homes, we have had them at retreat houses and even on a farm in Kansas, but the thing that holds constant, the gatherings are a lot of fun and are a nice reminder of why we do what we do.

This year we came together in Bradley Beach on the New Jersey Shore. The group gathered included volunteers who are still very active volunteering with the PVs, but also some who haven’t been able to make it to one of our sites for some time but still feel connected. We started the weekend with a reflection asking the volunteers to share an experience they have had as a PV, from anytime, that had an impact on them and in turn on impact elsewhere. It was inspiring to here the stories shared and reminded us the importance of the PV volunteer experience. After lunch, the group reconvened to hear about all the activities from 2019. The chance to share about all the different programs is important, as most people only volunteer in one location. We also went over our financial picture and talked about our continued need for fundraising and grants.  Several great ideas were shared for ways to help support the PVs. Stay tuned for more information on this  : )

After the “work” portion of the day was done the group took the short walk to the beach. While it was sunny, it was a rather chilly walk so we weren’t able to spend too much time outside. The evening concluded with a wonderful meal with lots of laughter and love. Thank you to the volunteers who were able to come. Being able to spend time with you outside of service activities is always a gift and gets us excited for all the activities to come!

A HUGE thank you to Jo and Wayne for hosting the reunion again. From providing us a place to meet and sleep, to feeding us throughout the weekend your kindness and generosity is second to none. We could not have these gatherings and continue the now 27 year tradition without you!!!

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