Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It’s a relationship between equals.  Pema Chodron

The beginning of a new week brought several new sites. We did return to finish tiling at the site in Mullens for an elderly lady and her son that we started last week. She treated the volunteers to vegetable soup, watermelon and a lot of wonderful conversation.

We started a new site in Wyco where we began tiling a kitchen as well as installed a water heater. The family hasn’t had hot water for a couple of months, so they were thrilled that by the end of the day there was hot water in the house.

The third site of the day was out in Lilydale to fix a leaking roof for a family that we have know for awhile. Unfortunately this site was rained out with about 20 minutes worth of work left to do. We will run over there tomorrow as one of our new sites is fairly close.

For dinner tonight we had a baked potato bar with all the fixings, salad and vegetable soup from the site. It was a wonderful and comforting meal as the rains began to roll in.

Reflection focused on time, and the idea of time being the greatest gift we can give. We were asked to share what is high on our time sheet. Recurring themes included family, friends and PV time.

Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It’s a relationship between equals.  Pema Chodron

The beginning of a new week brought several new sites. We did return to finish tiling at the site in Mullens for an elderly lady and her son that we started last week. She treated the volunteers to vegetable soup, watermelon and a lot of wonderful conversation.

We started a new site in Wyco where we began tiling a kitchen as well as installed a water heater. The family hasn’t had hot water for a couple of months, so they were thrilled that by the end of the day there was hot water in the house.

The third site of the day was out in Lilydale to fix a leaking roof for a family that we have know for awhile. Unfortunately this site was rained out with about 20 minutes worth of work left to do. We will run over there tomorrow as one of our new sites is fairly close.

For dinner tonight we had a baked potato bar with all the fixings, salad and vegetable soup from the site. It was a wonderful and comforting meal as the rains began to roll in.

Reflection focused on time, and the idea of time being the greatest gift we can give. We were asked to share what is high on our time sheet. Recurring themes included family, friends and PV time.

The PV Community went exploring at Grandview State Park just outside of Beckley today for community day. The park offered beautiful views of the New River and a Amtrak train rolled through while we were there. We also took a hike along the edge of the canyon and had some beautiful peak views of the river, but even the trail was beautiful. It was lined with budding rhododendrons and many rocky ledges.

After the hike we headed back home to share a meal together and have our weekly commissioning prayer service. A great start to another week.

The PV Community went exploring at Grandview State Park just outside of Beckley today for community day. The park offered beautiful views of the New River and a Amtrak train rolled through while we were there. We also took a hike along the edge of the canyon and had some beautiful peak views of the river, but even the trail was beautiful. It was lined with budding rhododendrons and many rocky ledges.

After the hike we headed back home to share a meal together and have our weekly commissioning prayer service. A great start to another week.

As we give of our time, talents and resources to tend the needs of the sick, offer food to the hungry and teach the dependent to stand on their own, we enrich ourselves spiritually beyond our ability to comprehend.     Joseph B. Wirthlin

Today was a day of tying up loose ends at jobsites and wrapping up the week. The crews were able to finish up the work at the addition site outside of Saulesville, wrap up the painting and kitchen site in Mullens, and complete the porch and doors at the site in Mullens. That only leaves one site that will carry over into next week and that is the tiling site in Mullens. A lot of progress was made there today, but the room is pretty big and still has some furniture in it, so doing it half at a time made the most sense.

Besides the home repair sites today, we had Basketball Camp, Glen Rogers Manor, visiting and cleaning at The Way. Needless to say it was a busy day with PVs spread all over the county doing great things.

For dinner tonight we were told we were going to have Macaroni Surprise but weren’t told what the surprise was until dinner. Needless to say that peaked our interest and we aren’t telling what the surprise is : )  Along with the surprise we had green beans, bread and salad. All was very tasty and scrumptious.

Tonight being Friday, the reflection was a chance to look back at the week and reflect on our experiences and begin to integrate them into our lives back home. Tonight we focused on who touched our hearts while we served. It was a wonderful sharing of our experiences.

Another great week has come to a close. A lot of great projects were done, but it is the conversations that we will take with us when we leave.

As we give of our time, talents and resources to tend the needs of the sick, offer food to the hungry and teach the dependent to stand on their own, we enrich ourselves spiritually beyond our ability to comprehend.     Joseph B. Wirthlin

Today was a day of tying up loose ends at jobsites and wrapping up the week. The crews were able to finish up the work at the addition site outside of Saulesville, wrap up the painting and kitchen site in Mullens, and complete the porch and doors at the site in Mullens. That only leaves one site that will carry over into next week and that is the tiling site in Mullens. A lot of progress was made there today, but the room is pretty big and still has some furniture in it, so doing it half at a time made the most sense.

Besides the home repair sites today, we had Basketball Camp, Glen Rogers Manor, visiting and cleaning at The Way. Needless to say it was a busy day with PVs spread all over the county doing great things.

For dinner tonight we were told we were going to have Macaroni Surprise but weren’t told what the surprise was until dinner. Needless to say that peaked our interest and we aren’t telling what the surprise is : )  Along with the surprise we had green beans, bread and salad. All was very tasty and scrumptious.

Tonight being Friday, the reflection was a chance to look back at the week and reflect on our experiences and begin to integrate them into our lives back home. Tonight we focused on who touched our hearts while we served. It was a wonderful sharing of our experiences.

Another great week has come to a close. A lot of great projects were done, but it is the conversations that we will take with us when we leave.

A pessimist, they say, sees a glass of water as being half empty; an optimist sees the same glass as half full. But a giving person sees a glass of water and starts looking for someone who might be thirsty.     G. Donald Gale

A lot of water water was drunk today as the temperatures outside soared, PVs got thirsty! Today we continued at two home repair sites that we had previously started. The site outside of Saulesville is now complete except for the EPDM roofing that will be applied tomorrow. It really is amazing how much has been done up there is 4 short days.

We also continued at the site in Mullens where we have been all week. The painting is done and the kitchen is very close. Part of the day tomorrow and we can call it a day as well.

Two new sites were started in Mullens, literally down the street from the other site. One site was patching a hole in the floor and putting down underlayment and soon tile.  The other site was building a small back porch so the home owner could have another way out of his house, as well as replacing two doors. We will be back at both of these sites tomorrow.

To cap off the day, we also had Basketball Camp in the afternoon. Each day the camp has grown in numbers. While it hasn’t been one of our biggest camps, the kids are really learning a lot and enjoying their time with the volunteers.

There was a little bit of a catastrophe on the way home from the painting site as the car carrying the leftover paint descended the hills of Mullens and tipped over. The PV community rallied together to help get as much paint out of the car as possible. You could hardly tell anything happened : )

After the clean-up we were treated to a nice dinner of leftovers as well as a few new items to freshen everything up. Needless to say we never run out of food here, we are always well fed.

The evening concluded with a nice reflection done by some of our younger PVs with a focus on who or where we saw Christ today. After a nice sharing we were encouraged to write a nice note to the person sitting on our left as another means of building community.

The evening concluded with benefit showing of a movie made by some of our PV kids. Not only do we have a talented group of youngsters, but they raised money for the PVs in the process!

A pessimist, they say, sees a glass of water as being half empty; an optimist sees the same glass as half full. But a giving person sees a glass of water and starts looking for someone who might be thirsty.     G. Donald Gale

A lot of water water was drunk today as the temperatures outside soared, PVs got thirsty! Today we continued at two home repair sites that we had previously started. The site outside of Saulesville is now complete except for the EPDM roofing that will be applied tomorrow. It really is amazing how much has been done up there is 4 short days.

We also continued at the site in Mullens where we have been all week. The painting is done and the kitchen is very close. Part of the day tomorrow and we can call it a day as well.

Two new sites were started in Mullens, literally down the street from the other site. One site was patching a hole in the floor and putting down underlayment and soon tile.  The other site was building a small back porch so the home owner could have another way out of his house, as well as replacing two doors. We will be back at both of these sites tomorrow.

To cap off the day, we also had Basketball Camp in the afternoon. Each day the camp has grown in numbers. While it hasn’t been one of our biggest camps, the kids are really learning a lot and enjoying their time with the volunteers.

There was a little bit of a catastrophe on the way home from the painting site as the car carrying the leftover paint descended the hills of Mullens and tipped over. The PV community rallied together to help get as much paint out of the car as possible. You could hardly tell anything happened : )

After the clean-up we were treated to a nice dinner of leftovers as well as a few new items to freshen everything up. Needless to say we never run out of food here, we are always well fed.

The evening concluded with a nice reflection done by some of our younger PVs with a focus on who or where we saw Christ today. After a nice sharing we were encouraged to write a nice note to the person sitting on our left as another means of building community.

The evening concluded with benefit showing of a movie made by some of our PV kids. Not only do we have a talented group of youngsters, but they raised money for the PVs in the process!