Making a Difference - Nashville Mission Trip
June 2011
"Feeling this much pain and misery never
felt so good!" Ray Woods shared this during
evening devotions in Nashville. Many SSCC
volunteers stretched and strained muscles
beyond their general use...especially their
hearts...while working on disaster relief
with Disciples Volunteers in Nashville.
A total of 26 Sandy Springs CC volunteers,
ranging in ages and skills, participated in
seven different projects during the week. Ed
lost his wife three months before the flood
and on her death bed she made him promise he
would never sell her car or their home. A
year later, the memories were still fresh
and painful enough to bring tears to his
eyes as he explained that her car washed
away in the flood. We were able to help
rebuild his home by installing insulation,
hanging dry wall and finishing a concrete
pad for the air conditioner. Susan bought
her house two weeks before the flood but
hadn't moved in before it made it
uninhabitable. We mudded, sanded and primed
the interior of her home. For LoRee, who
initially had trouble getting rid of
anything, we cleaned, discarded and
organized decades of "stuff" and agreed to
help pay for a new kitchen floor that was
uncovered in the cleaning process. Chris's
mother's home sat ten feet above the river
but was ruined when the water rose. Shortly
after the floods, she lost her battle
against a terminal illness and now her
elderly mother and son Chris live in the
house. Chris worked alongside us as we
painted the exterior of that home. At
another location, we installed floor joists
and subflooring for a new room being built
for a displaced flood victim. Some of our
youth volunteers enjoyed a day of demolition
while another group made great progress
painting the interior of another home.
 One volunteer declared, "It was the most
amazing week! Everybody worked hard and the
projects were very meaningful. The
opportunity to meet most of the homeowners
made a difference because we heard their
stories and received their gratitude. One of
the best elements was the nightly devotions
where people shared where they saw God that
day. The entire experience was very
powerful." As is often the case, those that
went to give ended up receiving more.
Thanks to your generous support, Sandy
Springs Christian Church is able to assist
in specific Nashville Flood Recovery
projects. The money raised at our Poolside
Picnic Fundraiser paid the fees for three of
our volunteers to participate in the
Nashville mission trip; allowed us to
contribute $500 towards LoRee's new floor
and gutters; $600 for new, concrete footings
for Susan's porch; a baseball outing for our
volunteers; and a little left over for a
treat for Ed. It is especially rewarding to
be able to specifically direct your
donations to benefit those we got to know
while working in Nashville. Thank you for
giving us that opportunity to make a
difference.
click here to view picture album | 
