We’re here at the Gospel Rescue Mission in Tucson, AZ for one more month! We’re serving with Ernie & Gail Schrock from Goshen, IN. We were each familiar with our hometowns (we lived in Niles-Buchanan, MI for 11 years). It was fun to compare notes and learn what we knew of each other – another example of God’s “small” world!
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Meet Rebecca!
She was here with her daughter while we served at the Women & Children’s Center. We got to interact with her and her daughter during lunch times and passing in the courtyard.
Knowing she had to take drastic action to change her life, Rebecca came to Gospel Rescue Mission with her daughter. Rebecca took a leap of faith. She started going to church and recently was baptized. And, for the first time, has hope for the future! Rebecca believes that God brought her here, and she is determined to break the generational curse for herself and her daughter. She has been clean and sober for almost seven months! Rebecca is also attending S.M.A.R.T. school to get her high school diploma, which will get her one step closer to her dream of becoming a veterinarian. Her relationship with Christ grows stronger every day, and she is planning on staying in Tucson to be near her new family and friends.
God is changing lives here! We also got to hear one of the worship times of these women at chapel. The song (above) “You Say” by Lauren Daigle was sung SO loud, SO meaningful, SO worshipful., SO from their hearts…we still have chills! We have been impacted by the depth and sincerity of this ministry…and God continues to change us as we experience these adventures!
Week one was full of opportunities to help at the Center Of Opportuity! (See how I did that! LOL). There are many “completion” type jobs to do here after they recently reconstructed some of the buildings, courtyard, garden, and play areas. This one was a simple “pour a pad of concrete” to protect the water lines next to the building. Ernie knew what he was doing!
Another “simple” job was to plant four bushes and remove those vines against the building. Still at it two days later…we all learned what caliche soil was – it’s another name for cement! We had to use a pick & shovel – and eventually added a hammer drill to dig about an inch at a time. We finally dug as many vine roots as we could and drilled out enough of a hole to palnt these shrubs. (We did provide drainage holes and new soil for the plants – hope they grow!)
Another job in the same courtyard was to weld fasteners to the legs of these benches and tables and then connect them to the cement slab. Ernie and I got ‘er done!
We met up with Jim Brown – Director of Events. He showed Lorree & Gail the steps and explained the process of making Hygene Bags to be handed out at their next event – probably before or during the community wide Easter gathering in April. Dennis & Ernie helped Jim troubleshoot and repair a food-truck-trailer that they use to provide hot food at different events.
You want us to do what? Every once in a while we get an “off the wall” assignment. This morning Dave Velasquez, our GRM coordinator, looked a bit flustered – he just found out that a group of “boys” were going to be here in a few hours. He was going to split them up into different work groups. He assigned us the task of supervising about 10 of them in the cleaning and organizing of the kitchen and pantry as well as washing carts of stacked dishes. Gulp! We had never been in the kitchen yet! Were these “boys” Jr high? high school?
Turned out that this group of “boys” was the Baseball Team from Wheaton Bible College! These were pretty big guys – and worked hard! They never caught on that we didn’t know what we were doing – just two volunteer groups serving the Lord together in the kitchen!
On the weekends we ended up at a variety of great churches in the area. One weekend we traveled to Benson, AZ and met up with some friends of Ernie & Gail from Indiana. What a shock to us to also meet up with Alan & Karen Johnson at the same cafe afterward! Such a small world with a big God directing all of our life adventures!
Another weekend, we had a great mini reunion with other SOWER’s in the area. We met at the Golden Correll and learned of the adventures from other Sower’s and various updates about the SOWER Ministry from Wayne and Gail Feiler (Trustee).
Each day we checked in with Dave for our daily assignament. He even added a few that we had mentioned – I think he was grateful that we saw things to do and wanted to help with!
The gals were able to help prepare for dinner one day by cleaning the cafeteria and cutting up over 40 pounds of potatoes for potato salad. They were smiling the whole time (…right?)
Ernie and I were able to do more landscaping – this time building a retaining wall for a future “desert-scape” and area for bicycles.
We repaired and built about 12 screens for the Transition House and replumbed the drains in one of the kitchen sinks.
We repaired, bottom sealed, and painted the 60 upright support poles in the courtyard area of the Women’s Recovery Center.
We tilled areas, fertilized, seeded, mulched and watered several areas to grow new grass at the Women’s Recovery Center.
BUT – our favorite job of all (one that we suggested) was to deep clean the cafeteria/chapel at the Women’s Recovery Center. It had been a while since any attention had been given to this.
We received so many comments and “thank-you’s” from the women and staff. “Are these NEW tables & chairs?” Sometimes we all get used to living with what we have and not pay attention to the condition of our surroundings. A good sprucing up, deep cleaning, and fresh paint can change our whole disposition. The ladies and children had some new smiles & upbeat joy in their eyes as we worked to bless them. It was so fulfiling to us – and WE were so blessed!
…and then we looked up! We saw the vents and the sound accustic boards. The next day we attacked the ceiling with a determination to get these all clean again! We removed vents, to be scrubbed & washed, vaccumed the hanging accustic boards, and replaced light bulbs and ballasts. The room was literally changed in just a few hours! One of the guests shared that during worship, when she looked up in praise to the Lord, she was thrilled by the bright and clean sight. Little things do make a difference!
It was our joy to work with and be a blessing to these special women and the staff that serve here!
We’ll miss this place! God has moved our hearts in a special way while serving here. It wouldn’t surprise either of us if Gospel Rescue Mission will be back in our adventures again someday!
