Spike #1- The arrival

After caravaning for 3 days, we finally dropped off Chris's team at Bay Point, Mississippi. We stood in front of the church where they would be sleeping on the floor and rolling up their bags each Sunday for Sunday school. We watched their faces as they were told by their sponsors that they would be showering in a trailer behind the church. As we stepped away as to not confuse the sponsors, the members of Fire 3, aka "Team Funk" joined together in a circle of hope to give off good vibes for a better housing situation in our own town.


We bid them a fond farewell and arrived at the Pascagoula Recreation Center on Pascagoula St. in Pascagoula Mississipi at 7pm.

And breathed a huge sigh of relief.

The center is FABULOUS. Picture a camp gone amuck, with handmade signs, cutesy galore, and hundreds of handmade and painted bunk beds spread across the gym surface. There are lounge areas, bikes, offices, a tool room, a private kitchen with a huge family table, and even a room with 10 bunk beds and cubbies perfect for the Americorps teams that come in to run the center.

Oh wait. Run the center, you may ask?

According to our kick-ass caretaker/employee Kate, the sponsors from rock-and-roll liberal heaven, Tammy and Annie, and everyone else we've met, we ARE the staff of Operation TLC.

Which means that rather than mucking houses all day or working together to build a house, we're all given supervisory positions and are going to be working 24/7.

Doing what?

I'm working with caseworking, which means evaluating people as they come in that are in need of various grants or material objects (beds, washer/dryers) labor or supplies in order to get their lives back together.

I'm also in charge of the media for the project, which is already becoming pretty intense. Meeting with various newspapers, reporters, and getting together story ideas, press releases for here as well as in our hometowns, and calls for donations and volunteers. I'm so overwhelmed but excited to get to put my degree to work and actually make some connections. Media for a good cause? Ideal!

Other positions that my teammates have received are:

David - Volunteer Coordinator
Sara and Alex - Case Workers
Des - Facilities Manager and Webmaster
Scott and Tana - Program Coordinators
Curtis - Tools and Grounds Manager
Carlo - Warehouse Manager
Ryan (Team Leader)- Asst. Warehouse Manager, Jack-of-all-trades

So off to work! Volunteers come in 24/7, and essentially the need never ends, so I'm going to use my well-honed camp methodology of resting when necessary and not over working myself in order to survive these next 6 weeks. While, of course, doing a great deal of good for the people in the community.

Wish us all luck!!