Brethren Disaster Ministries has committed to doing six complete rebuilds by the end of 2008 for persons who lost everything in the August 2007 floods. The goal is to work on 3 or 4 houses at once, in various stages.
In addition to the new homes, volunteers have been doing major repair work such as insulation, drywall, flooring, cabinets, and painting since the project started last October.
One particularly energetic and enthusiastic bunch of volunteers was a group of Manchester College students, who thought that drywalling crawlspaces was "extremely fun" according to student Stephen Schellenberg.
Another student, Carol Fike, remarked, "I was completely unsure what to expect, considering I have very little construction skills. But Jerry convinced me that I could do it and I was capable of framing a basement - who knew?" Sam Wysong felt that "the sense of accomplishment when we finished a project made the trip worth it."
All photos were taken by Jerry Moore