In April 2009, a group of 16 volunteers joined the Lehigh Presbytery Helping Hands Mission trip to Oakville, Iowa to rehabilitate houses that had been destroyed and/or damaged by the floods in 2008.

The mission of the Helping Hands Care Team is “to show God’s love and caring by training and organizing members of Lehigh Presbytery Churches to help in the emergency, relief, and recovery phases of disasters and emergencies.”

Oakville is located at the confluence of the Iowa and Mississippi Rivers in eastern Iowa. A levee in the Iowa River broke and all residences in the town sustained damage of various degrees.

While there, the volunteers installed vinyl siding, hung sheet rock and spackled, did some demolition work on a porch, insulated and installed new subflooring, leveled a floor, insulated part of a foundation, installed two vented windows in a foundation, framed out walls for handicap access, hung two exterior doors, and framed and enclosed a back porch.  Some volunteers went throughout the village doing various electrical jobs.

The group interacted with the homeowners and listened to their stories. The interaction with the local people included Phil Fair walking into the middle of an informal wedding ceremony on the end of a pier. With much humor, he was graciously asked to leave.

The mission experience introduced the volunteers to people in grass-roots America who demonstrated warmth, hospitality, and Christian fellowship. We are grateful to the people of Mediapolis who lodged the volunteers in their private homes and also to the United Presbyterian Church in Mediapolis and The Apostolic Christian Church in Oakville who supplied tools, housing and meals.

Kevin Kehoe
Member of the Helping Hands Care Team

 

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