Grundy County, MO - Homelessness and Poverty

An Escapade of Grandeur

The only way to describe our trip is 12 brothers turned best friends. From awkwardly waiting in the busy parking lot of Virginia Avenue to board the van, to deep life conversations over cold Casey's pizza; we came a long way these last few days. Being Gumby in Grundy has been an experience none of us will forget.

Friday:

The start of any MAB trip is always full of awkward small talk, one participant getting to know another. As we drove our chatter filled van north toward Trenton, we started to form bonds. To fill the time everyone told embarrassing middle school stories, which ended in laughing so hard that we cried. By the time we had arrived we were already on a much deeper level with everyone. We enjoyed some Casey's pizza for dinner and then ended our night with some card games; ready for a day of service ahead of us.

Saturday:

An early start left the group a little groggy as we left the community center headed towards breakfast. Dennis offered to buy us a nice hot meal from McDonalds to get us a little more energized. Walking into a small town McDonalds, you definitely get a feel for the community. It was one of the first experiences some of the participants had with small town Missouri. After we ate, we headed over to the food bank to start our day of service.

When we arrived Denis told us a little bit about the facility and what work they do. The Grundy County food bank serves about 135 people per week from all over the county. Their programs serve people who fall below a certain income and also residents over the age of 65 who qualify for certain subsidies. Most of these people depend on the food bank every week to help support their families. The food bank has grown over the years from the hard work of all the volunteers in the community who spend countless hours ensuring that people have food every week. The entire food bank 'staff' are volunteers; there are no paid workers.

Our service consisted of lots and lots of painting. They needed a bit of a fresh, clean face to the walls in the food bank that were starting to get a little grungy. Through our day painting, we danced to Disney songs and uncontrollably laughed as the fumes slowly made us crazy. Some recall moments washing paintbrushes and singing "Don't Stop Me Know" that made a perfect moment in their memories. Others won't forget the creepy old dolls found in the connecting thrift store that will haunt their dreams. But overall, we will all remember how everyone was Gumby and willing to step in and do whatever needed to be done for this worthy organization. By the end of the day we probably had a little more paint on us than the walls, but it was worth the hard work to see such a great transformation.

But the selflessness of everyone didn't stop there. A couple of people worked for almost 2 hours making sure that our dinner was delicious and met the needs of everyone. After we eat our dinner we had reflection. Reflection is a safe space where everyone can share moments from the day and their life that had impacts on them, and everyone listens and connects with people from all backgrounds that they may have never had the opportunity to meet in other situations. While I cannot say what was said, I can say that in those hours of deep conversation we went from 12 people to 1 community; we really felt the power of what MAB can offer. We ended our night around 1:30 AM, after more cards, a movie, and some team slam-dunks on the basketball court connected to the community center (KOBE!).

Sunday:
After waking up and enjoying a nutritious college breakfast of leftover ice cream and pizza, we headed out for a few extra hours of service. We re-painted the parking lot and helped move some things around in the food bank. While cleaning up and ready to head out for lunch we took some pictures with our new favorite person, Dennis. He was the one who helped coordinate our service and stay here in Grundy, and he can talk anybody's ear off if they let him. We really enjoyed the wisdom and experiences he was able to share with us over the course of a couple days, and were extremely sad to leave him, but knew that he will stay in our hearts forever. We ate at a local dinner for lunch, with some of the best food may I add, returned our Redbox, took a few pictures with local "landmarks", and embarked on our journey home.

This trip we have experienced leadership, service, and most importantly friendship. We laugh uncontrollably together and accepted each other's quirks. We started the trip 12 relative strangers, and ended as a unified group of brothers with experiences to carry with us the rest of our lives. 

Cooper County, MO - Environment

Our experience working with the Master Gardeners in Boonville was nothing less than wonderful and fantastic! As we arrived to Boonville and met out service coordinator, Jackie, she began to show us around our service site. Our service site was at the historic Cooper county jail house. Our job was to restore the garden behind the jail. Not only was the garden beautiful, but the maple trees were stunning due to their red and yellow leaves. After we met the rest of the gardeners, we began to work!
Many of us on the trip had little gardening experience prior, and it was incredibly fun and interesting to learn all about gardening and landscaping from the Master Gardeners. We planted new bushes, restructured the edging and raked up old leaves and weeds. After we completed our service Saturday afternoon, the garden looked totally different!

That night, our group received the opportunity to eat dinner with the Master Gardeners as well as other friends in the community. Jackie cooked us a delicious lasagna meal, and another friend made an apple crisp pie which was too good to imagine.

Sunday morning we were lucky enough to receive another home cooked meal for breakfast. After breakfast we ventured out to a huge garden nursery where we got to look and learn about various flowers, tress and plants. The man who owned the nursery also gave us a tour of his horse farm. A few of us were so fascinated by the plants and the nursery that we bought a little souvenir for ourselves to bring home and grow. 

After the nursery we returned back to the jail house garden and finished cleaning up the garden beds. After we were done, we were amazed by our progress and how much we learned in just two days. Our group was sad to leave. After making so many new friends with the Master Gardeners, learning new things and exploring Boonville, we felt as though we had been there forever. We are so lucky to have had this amazing experience in Cooper county, and we definitely plan to visit Boonville in the future!

Madison County. MO - Children

Greetings from Madison County,

It is Sunday and our trip is nearly over. This weekend has been incredible in every way! We completed so much service in our short amount of time in Fredericktown and Ironton. Here's a little recap of our jammed packed weekend:

After we loaded all twelve participants in our vans – decorated with tiger tails; of course – we headed out to Madison County Missouri to take a weekend away from the hustle and bustle of Columbia to go out and do some good in the world. The weekend program of Mizzou Alternative Breaks is truly unique in that it dedicates its time to the great state of Missouri.

The wonderful people at the MU Extension office in Madison County offered to let us sleep there for the two nights we would be in town. It was awesome to see Mizzou spirit in a whole new atmosphere.  We settled in and got ready for our busy Saturday filled with service and new adventures.

Saturday morning was a cold fall morning but it was beautiful nonetheless. We headed to Twelve Mile Baptist Church to assist in their mobile food pantry operation with Southeast Missouri Foodbank. Families large and small came from all over town to get food just before the holiday season rolls around. As a student with a campus meal plan and all you can eat dining locations minutes from my dorm, it was eye opening to see that not everyone is as lucky as college kids are. Hunger is a real problem in the United States and it was a rewarding feeling to be able to lift the burden of feeding people off of 127 families and over 400 people! Every one at the church just kept thanking us for our selfless act. Something so mundane, such as handing someone a bag of bread, can mean the world to another person.

After our lunch break we headed to Camp Penuel in Ironton. The drive down the highway was gorgeous and scenic with all the mountains and fall colors around. We were greeted at the camp and ready to get to work despite our exhaustion. Camp Penuel has been providing FREE camping to over 82,000 inner city, at risk and underprivileged children for 40 years. We began to help clean up leaves in their eating area where they serve the kids lunch during the summer sessions. I quickly learned that yard work was no joke. I am typing this with sore forearms from raking for over four hours! Other students dug a trench to allow electricity to be provided to the new dormitory they are currently building. Our bravest participants climbed on the roof to help apply plywood to the new dormitory for the campers.

After our long day we headed to a local restaurant and enjoyed dinner as a group. We quickly recognized a couple from the food bank that morning and they were so glad to see us. They came up to us to thank us again for our time and help that morning and told us that the bill was covered for dinner. We were all in shock as we sat their with our food. While we were the ones who were supposed to be giving back, someone gave back to us! It was so generous of them and we cannot thank them enough.

DeNae Gitonga, Community Director of MU Extension offered up her home to us so that we could all shower before bed. Everyone in Fredericktown welcomed us with open arms and hearts. It was an amazing feeling for the twelve of us. A few employees at the Extension office cooked us breakfast before we headed back to Camp Penuel to finish what we started. After raking more leaves and digging more of a trench, we were finished and were thanked with s'mores from the Missions director. Once again, SO generous.

If this weekend has taught me anything, it is that service can be so rewarding. Twelve students came together not knowing one another and by the end of Saturday, we were all so close and had bonded a tremendous amount. Giving back in such a simple way was a great experience. The point of service is not to do it so you feel good about yourself. Its purpose is to help others in a way that you cannot even comprehend. I can say wholeheartedly that this weekend with MAB has changed my life and my perspective on a lot of issues – and I couldn't feel more grateful to this organization.

MIZ,

Madison County crew 

p.s Check out our pictures from the weekend!

Jackson County, MO - Environment

So far this weekend has been an eye-opening experience. From everyone being basically total strangers with each other, to opening up and coming together to serve a purpose greater than each of us, it has been a truly exhilarating experience. When we were volunteering at a homeless shelter one employee even asked the group "Are y'all court appointed?". Most find it hard to believe that college students would take time out of their lives to even bother serving the community, and it was especially rewarding to show them differently.

We've  engaged in three service events so far ranging from raking leaves for the elderly (Extreme Yard Rakeover), to sorting through clothing at "Restart homeless shelter", to finishing up the evening with serving a meal to patient's families and staff at a Hospice House in Kansas City. Each event was extremely different, but equally rewarding.  

Not to mention the awesome BBQ we had for lunch! J

Our group as a whole became aware of issues that never necessarily presented themselves to us in daily life. We became more conscious of how truly fragile the line is between being affluent in life and homeless. We got to see the impact and joy that came with the older women who appreciated the extra helping hand to get a task done that they were physically unable to do themselves. We experienced the gratitude that comes from the staff and families of people who are entering their last phase of life and are searching for peace. Overall it was just a truly worthwhile experience.

Despite all we gained from the day of service though, we do realize that there are many issues people are not aware of within the community and the only true way to understand it and bring awareness is to experience it on your own. Most of us didn't understand what went on behind the doors of a homeless shelter until we sat down and talked with the volunteer specialist named Tim. Tim brought light on the subject of how many become homeless, and erased the line between the homeless and ourselves. He explained how us as humans are very dignified people, and whenever we fail to produce shelter and basic necessities for our families and ourselves, we lose a piece of our dignity little by little.   He also pointed out that homeless shelters have plenty of food, plenty of clothes, and plenty of toiletries; what they lack is hope.  If we can motivate someone struggling by giving them a sense of hope we will be so much more successful. 

"We need to decide if we are serving for ourselves, or if we are serving for other people." –Timothy (the guy from ReStart)

Many of us are unable to put ourselves in other peoples shoes, but in order to truly serve and be empathetic with others we need to at least try. We need to stop dividing ourselves and distancing ourselves from other people due to different circumstances and backgrounds in life, and start making connections with one another.

Not only have we had an amazing day today… I think we could all say that we are becoming super close and sharing plenty of personal stories. 

So far this weekend has been an eye-opening experience. From everyone being basically total strangers with each other, to opening up and coming together to serve a purpose greater than each of us, it has been a truly exhilarating experience. When we were volunteering at a homeless shelter one employee even asked the group "Are y'all court appointed?". Most find it hard to believe that college students would take time out of their lives to even bother serving the community, and it was especially rewarding to show them differently.

We've  engaged in three service events so far ranging from raking leaves for the elderly (Extreme Yard Rakeover), to sorting through clothing at "Restart homeless shelter", to finishing up the evening with serving a meal to patient's families and staff at a Hospice House in Kansas City. Each event was extremely different, but equally rewarding.  

Not to mention the awesome BBQ we had for lunch! J

Our group as a whole became aware of issues that never necessarily presented themselves to us in daily life. We became more conscious of how truly fragile the line is between being affluent in life and homeless. We got to see the impact and joy that came with the older women who appreciated the extra helping hand to get a task done that they were physically unable to do themselves. We experienced the gratitude that comes from the staff and families of people who are entering their last phase of life and are searching for peace. Overall it was just a truly worthwhile experience.

Despite all we gained from the day of service though, we do realize that there are many issues people are not aware of within the community and the only true way to understand it and bring awareness is to experience it on your own. Most of us didn't understand what went on behind the doors of a homeless shelter until we sat down and talked with the volunteer specialist named Tim. Tim brought light on the subject of how many become homeless, and erased the line between the homeless and ourselves. He explained how us as humans are very dignified people, and whenever we fail to produce shelter and basic necessities for our families and ourselves, we lose a piece of our dignity little by little.   He also pointed out that homeless shelters have plenty of food, plenty of clothes, and plenty of toiletries; what they lack is hope.  If we can motivate someone struggling by giving them a sense of hope we will be so much more successful. 

"We need to decide if we are serving for ourselves, or if we are serving for other people." –Timothy (the guy from ReStart)

Many of us are unable to put ourselves in other peoples shoes, but in order to truly serve and be empathetic with others we need to at least try. We need to stop dividing ourselves and distancing ourselves from other people due to different circumstances and backgrounds in life, and start making connections with one another.

Not only have we had an amazing day today… I think we could all say that we are becoming super close and sharing plenty of personal stories. 

Lucie and Michael on the first night out!

The before!

The after!

Site leader LOVE

Cooking dinner at KC Hospice House!

Anna Koester

Alpha Chi Omega Sorority

Mizzou Alternative Breaks-Site Leader

Honors College

Nursing Christian Fellowship - Vice President 

Phone: (636)-295-1380

University of Missouri Columbia

---

From: Koester, Anna M. (MU-Student)
Sent: Saturday, November 7, 2015 11:13 PM
To: Brown, Kaiya S. (MU-Student)
Subject: JACKSON COUNTY!!

So far this weekend has been an eye-opening experience. From everyone being basically total strangers with each other, to opening up and coming together to serve a purpose greater than each of us, it has been a truly exhilarating experience. When we were volunteering at a homeless shelter one employee even asked the group "Are y'all court appointed?". Most find it hard to believe that college students would take time out of their lives to even bother serving the community, and it was especially rewarding to show them differently.

We've  engaged in three service events so far ranging from raking leaves for the elderly (Extreme Yard Rakeover), to sorting through clothing at "Restart homeless shelter", to finishing up the evening with serving a meal to patient's families and staff at a Hospice House in Kansas City. Each event was extremely different, but equally rewarding.  

Not to mention the awesome BBQ we had for lunch! J

Our group as a whole became aware of issues that never necessarily presented themselves to us in daily life. We became more conscious of how truly fragile the line is between being affluent in life and homeless. We got to see the impact and joy that came with the older women who appreciated the extra helping hand to get a task done that they were physically unable to do themselves. We experienced the gratitude that comes from the staff and families of people who are entering their last phase of life and are searching for peace. Overall it was just a truly worthwhile experience.

Despite all we gained from the day of service though, we do realize that there are many issues people are not aware of within the community and the only true way to understand it and bring awareness is to experience it on your own. Most of us didn't understand what went on behind the doors of a homeless shelter until we sat down and talked with the volunteer specialist named Tim. Tim brought light on the subject of how many become homeless, and erased the line between the homeless and ourselves. He explained how us as humans are very dignified people, and whenever we fail to produce shelter and basic necessities for our families and ourselves, we lose a piece of our dignity little by little.   He also pointed out that homeless shelters have plenty of food, plenty of clothes, and plenty of toiletries; what they lack is hope.  If we can motivate someone struggling by giving them a sense of hope we will be so much more successful. 

"We need to decide if we are serving for ourselves, or if we are serving for other people." –Timothy (the guy from ReStart)

Many of us are unable to put ourselves in other peoples shoes, but in order to truly serve and be empathetic with others we need to at least try. We need to stop dividing ourselves and distancing ourselves from other people due to different circumstances and backgrounds in life, and start making connections with one another.

Not only have we had an amazing day today… I think we could all say that we are becoming super close and sharing plenty of personal stories. 

THIS IS THE BEFORE PICTURE!!!

30 BAGS OF LEAVES!!!

Cooking dinner at the Kansas City Hospice House!

Site leader LOVE J

Lucie and Michael on the first night out J

Anna Koester

Alpha Chi Omega Sorority

Mizzou Alternative Breaks-Site Leader

Honors College

Nursing Christian Fellowship - Vice President 

Phone: (636)-295-1380

University of Missouri Columbia

Stone County, MO - Environment

MAB Takes on Stone County with a Table Rock Lake shoreline cleanup:


Our trip, Stone Cold, was incredibly blessed to have beautiful weather this past weekend. We had a beautiful car ride down to Kimberling City with wonderful views of the fall foliage. First Christian Church of Kimberling City was incredibly generous in letting us use their facilities for the weekend.


Saturday morning we went to the Table Rock Lake Water Quality office and got our supplies for the cleanup. We cleaned up around Joe Bald park and took a pontoon across the lake and cleaned up a few shorelines. Because of the flooding this past summer, most of the trash was further up into the trees. Although it may have been tedious combing through the dense forest, we definitely saw the effects of our work when we had several trash bags full of litter.  After a wonderful day of service, we went to the historic strip of Branson and Branson Landing. It was interesting to see a lot of the culture of the area we were serving. Later that evening, we attended a show on the Showboat Branson Belle. The Showboat Branson Belle was incredibly generous to give us free tickets to the show.

Sunday morning we left the church and had breakfast as a group before our service. It was incredible to see how friendships had formed even after only a day of serving together. Sunday we cleaned up the Table Rock Lake State Park marina area. We learned a lot about the lake and what the Water Quality office is doing to keep the lake clean. Not only did we clean up trash, but we talked about how different the lake would be without development and critically looked at how we affect our environment. Before departing Branson, we went to the Fish Hatchery nearby. We got to learn about conservation efforts. We saw a turtle with a deformed shell because it had gotten stuck in some litter, this really made us see that the work we did this weekend made a difference. After having some fun at the hatchery, we departed for COMO.

One of the most incredible things about our trip is the friendships we made and the discussions we had. Look out Columbia, Stone Cold is back and ready to make a difference.

Schuyler County, MO - Homelessness

Visiting Schuyler county was an experience I'll never forget. A lot of people think you have to travel to impoverished countries to really help people and make a difference. Yes, it's important to help those in need, but our trip to Lancaster proves that you can make a difference right here in the States- right here in Missouri! We got to help work a haunted house that raised food & money for the community and work in the community garden. Members of the community showered us with "thank you's" and words of gratitude. I've never felt so appreciated.  

-Madeline Borowiak

This past weekend I went to Schuyler County with nine other incredible individuals.  Before our trip I looked up some pretty interesting facts like how Schuyler County is the second least populous county in all of Missouri and William Preston Hall, "Horse King of the World", is from Lancaster, the town we stayed in.  However, what the internet does not tell you is how kind and genuine the people in Schuyler are.  Everyone we met treated us like family. We were even invited to a local church's potluck dinner after their Sunday service.  We saw how close knit the community was, and we were welcomed with open arms and a box of home baked cookies.  Over just a few days, we became part of the community, and got to know how amazing the people of Schuyler County really are.We were able to work at a local clothes shop, the community garden, and a local haunted house during our time in Schuyler County.  The haunted house was personally my favorite part.  Everyone who participated was genuinely excited to be there.  Everyone working the haunted house, from middle school to adult, was excited when someone wanted the "hardcore" level - the scariest level in the haunted house.  Everyone working would run around screaming "HARDCORE" and you could tell how happy they were to be there. Not only were the people who worked the haunted house excited to be there, but everyone in the community supported it and was excited to be apart of it.  Admission was either money for a local emergency fund or cans for the local food pantry and everyone was excited to take part in it.  Local high school students came and were excited when they recognized their classmates working the house, the women that ran the clothes shop came, and one group of friends even traveled from Kirksville, MO to join in the excitement.  Through the haunted house, we were really able to experience the closeness of the community and none of us were ready to leave at the end of the weekend. I am so thankful for everyone I met this past weekend.  Special thanks to Darla for helping Julianna and me plan this whole trip.  We would not have been able to do this without you. Thanks to Norm as well for making us feel so at home at the haunted house. Although Schuyler County is small, it definitely made a giant impact on all of us.

-Sydney Delin

This weekend we spent time working at a haunted house and cleaning up a community garden in Lancaster! The people in the town were so welcoming and happy to have us there! Spending two nights in the haunted house was a very different, fun, and unexpected experience. Even though the nights were long, it was so much fun scaring people and knowing that just us being there helped the community. I really enjoyed my time in Lancaster, Missouri and loved knowing that the little good I did helped these wonderful people.

-Jaime Gottlieb

Mizzou Alternative Breaks (MAB) traveled to Lancaster to serve the local community. We worked the local haunted house which raised money and food to help out the community. We cleaned the community garden, which was so much fun! We also worked at the clothes and more shop sorting clothes. We all had an amazing time and thank you to everyone in Lancaster. The trip was a success because of all the wonderful and caring people that helped out with her trip! Shoutout to Darla, she was so sweet and her cookies were amazing. 

-Taylor Graetz

It's likely that you haven't heard of Schuyler County in Missouri, but if you are ever nearby and have the chance to go, I'd highly recommend it. Fun facts courtesy of Sydney: it's the second least populous county in Missouri and home to the horse man of the world. Sydney and I led a Mizzou Alternative Breaks trip with eight wonderful participants to Schuyler County to serve in Lancaster for a weekend, and we all had an incredible experience. Our trip wouldn't have been possible without our fabulous County Program Director, Darla Campbell. She is the sweetest lady, who was so welcoming- she even baked us cookies and invited us to church on Sunday. When we first arrived, there was a sign that said "5 ½ people dead," a little terrifying, but it was a prop for the haunted house we were working at. The haunted house began because of Norm Garr, in honor of his wife; it raises money and is a food drive for the local food pantry. He is the most caring and dedicated man, who also works at the Clothes Nook and Food Pantry in town- both places we were able to visit. Hearing about how many people the food pantry serves, and seeing the people at the clothes nook really made me stop and appreciate what I have. That's the power of Mizzou Alternative Breaks- it allows you to step away from your homework, cell phone, and life in Columbia, and expose you to issues that you were somewhat aware of, but weren't completely on your radar. I'm so lucky to have been able to a lead this trip with Sydney, learn about the tight-knit community of Schuyler County, and meet some incredible people.

-Julianna Kubiak

When we arrived in Schuyler County, I immediately noticed the level of care and compassion members of the community have for each other. Everyone was extremely welcoming to us, and they were appreciative of every little thing we did. I think this is what makes the community so successful in helping one another. Everyone in the community cared for each other, and if they saw a need, they did their best to find a solution. Each project we worked on had a purpose to help a specific need in the community. The most impressive was the haunted house. Along with being a creative idea, it has been very successful for many years. It was very obvious that the community supported this project and that they were proud of how much it has grown. I have seen how important the community support aspect of community service is, and I hope I can support more service projects in my community, just by taking part in them.

-Sam McDonald

I loved the adorable little county of Schuyler. Lancaster had such kind people and lovely food at Buddy's. Everyone worked in the haunted house Friday and Saturday night. Our goal was to help scare people. I, with other members, went to Walmart in Kirksville and bought food (soup, tuna, hamburger helper, etc.) to be donated to the haunted house. The group worked in the community garden. We all pulled weeds and made sure the flower beds were nice and clear. Other group members worked at the clothes shop and organized the items. Going to church, sleeping at the warehouse, and eating a home cooked brunch with the other townsfolk made my experience in Lancaster so fun and genuine. 

-Jessica Niewald

On my Mizzou Alternative Break weekend trip to Schuyler County I was given many opportunities to serve the welcoming community of Lancaster.  Along side other students who were also on the trip I got down and dirty working in the community garden, sorting and organizing clothes in the local Clothes and More store, and finding my inner scare in the haunted house to raise money for those in need.  This was a weekend well spent and a truly positive and warm experience.  Meeting all the smiling faces of the local community was refreshing and made me remember what service and giving back is really about.  I am thankful that I was able to have this experience.

-Natalie Seck

Last weekend a group of 10 of us went to Lancaster and worked with the community members to help them with their haunted house and community garden.  Working at the haunted house was a lot of fun and I'm glad it gave people a chance to give back to their community while also having a good time.  It was amazing to see how grateful the people were after just working for just a day with them.  I loved meeting all the people and I'm so glad we were able to go to Schulyer to help out in any small way we could!

-Carleigh Thrower

My first MAB trip was a huge success for me because of so many reasons. One, it was great to make so many new friends who all cared about making a difference in a community who is less fortunate than most. Secondly, I was thrilled to be able to help in a community garden which helps feed many families who can't afford fresh vegetables or simply don't have enough time to. It was also neat to see and help in the local clothing and food nook, which has very affordable clothing and completely free food for those in need. Mizzou's own food bank in Columbia actually sends generous amounts of food to that local food panty which truly represented the large impact our own community's can have on some over 2 hours away! Lastly, working the haunted house which raised food and money to help those less fortunate was a blast, and I can finally check working at a haunted house off my bucket list! The time I spent with new friends while working in the small town of Lancaster will always be one to remember!

-Tim Williams

Cape Girardeau County, MO - Children/Homelessness

This morning after a breakfast of bananas, english muffins, and cheerios everyone straggled into the front room of Centenary Methodist, our lovely home for the weekend. All 12 of us, after sleeping on the floor for the night, waited for our community service coordinator to show up.


Billy, a wonderful retired carpenter, walked into the church with more enthusiasm than seen in most toddlers. As we listened to his instructions. he warned us that what we were about to do would be difficult and disgusting. We were still determined. We set out at about 8:30 with Billy taking lead. When the van finally came to a stop we all seemed a bit shocked. A lawn scattered with random belongings and trash was only the start.






Billy made sure to repeat his message, "Are you sure y'all wanna do this? It's real bad in there". With hesitant determination, we followed him into the house. As we walked in, Billy told us about the older couple that were trying to take back control of a home that was falling apart. The kitchen was pilled with boxes, the bathroom floor was literally non-existent, and the stairs to the basement had fallen apart. We were told that the basement would be our main objective. Well-dressed (in the latest jumpsuit) and completely unprepared, all but two of us descended into the lower level. Piles of remains from the stairs, broken jars, and random pipes littered the floor; dirt was caked into every corner and cob webs hung from the rafters. Everyone glanced around in disbelief. Billy began to hand out tasks; some were asked to shovel dirt, others were asked to throw anything that would burn out the window to the girls outside.






The girls outside piled up trash and other burnable material. Everyone worked tirelessly to complete their tasks. At around 11, lunch was calling our name. By this time. we were all down and dirty, had experienced bugs, frogs and plenty of manual labor. This was by far more interesting than the painting that had originally been planned. With a quick lunch at a nearby gas station, we refueled and refocused.


Coming back to the house we were ready to get everything we set out to do finished. We scooped dirt into buckets and hosed down the basement, cleaned all the walls, and vacuumed out the left over water. Within the last few pumps of water, the shop vac gave out and we were unable to finish the job completely but it was clear that Billy was so happy for our help. Billy joyfully told us about how much help we had been and took plenty of pictures, complete with his version of a sorority squat and peace signs. We left that little dirty house feeling exhausted and gross but with a sense of solidarity.






With all of our effort we made a dent in a huge project that would have been absolutely overwhelming for one middle-aged retired carpenter to all by himself. After we left and all had our showers, it was unanimous that it was worth the muck and mess to help out someone as awesome as Billy.

Too bad Megan couldn't hang. 

Much love from your Bae Girardeaus  

Schuyler County, MO - Homelessness

Last night we got to Schuyler and went straight to the town's haunted house! It is the haunted houses third year and last year it raised over $1000! All the money raised goes directly back into the community to help people get to the hospital or pay for repairs like a broken water heater. They also received 700 cans as donations that go back to the food panty in Lancaster. Last night I dressed up as a butcher and it was so much fun! After working in a clothing store and a community garden today we cannot wait to go back to the Haunted House tonight! - Jamie G

Getting to know the people in Schuyler County has been amazing. There's so much support the community has for one another, and getting to contribute to their projects has been a great experience. Working in the haunted house was a lot of fun, and knowing that the proceeds go back to help the community's needs makes it even better! - Sam M