As Jesse put it from the pulpit the Sunday after we got home to Lamar, Ark., in 46 hours Lamar Baptist Church through the work of our God finished what God wanted done.
PECAN ISLAND – As Jesse put it from the pulpit the Sunday after we got home to Lamar, Ark., in 46 hours Lamar Baptist Church through the work of our God finished what God wanted done.
With His help we:
replaced the roof of Pecan Island Baptist Church,
cleaned the remaining cane from underneath the church,
replaced the old water line with a new one,
built a handicap ramp,
painted the front steps of the church,
painted the holder for the church sign,
cleaned and repaired the fence on the side of the church,
built a new portion to the roof between the sanctuary and the fellowship hall so that it would not hold water in the future,
finished the molding in the Methodist church where we’d stayed for the week,
completely ripped out the flooring in a Baptist member’s trailer – all the way to where you could see the ground – and then replaced the flooring with plywood for the flooring,
completely built a roof over a Baptist member’s porch,
plus delivered 25 quilts to individuals in the Pecan Island area.
This was done with help of the 27 church members who were able to go to Pecan Island, and with everyone’s help from Lamar Baptist.
We had an awesome week. Our members got to see Cajun life up front. They were able to witness many stories from the island people about the storm before and after. They were touched by many people of many faiths.
Two of our girls got to meet a lady who had lived on the island when Hurricane Audrey hit in 1957, Florence Broussard. Now 89, she lost four of her 10 children at that time because of the storm. She was one of the recipients of a blanket.
Mrs. Florence is a neighbor of Mrs. Velma, a member of the Pecan Island Baptist Church. She had taken us to visit Mrs. Florence, and as we walked back out to the car, Mrs. Velma told the girls to look at the huge Live Oak in front of Mrs. Florence’s house.
That tree was what saved the house in Hurricane Rita, because as the water came in, it hit the tree and split in two directions therefore going around the house.
The only water damage was what seeped into the house from the bottom, causing her to lose all of her flooring. Amazing.
Our members got to meet and love Pecan Island residents Danny and Tim Choalte. They were at the church every evening to see if they could help us in some way. They lost their entire home in the storm.
Since the storm, Danny lost a mom and Tim, a sister, and Tim’s parents and Danny’s grandparents have both gone into a nursing home. As Danny put it, “This island is all we have left.”
The church built a roof over their porch on their trailer so they could have a place to sit under in the evenings and watch the cars go by.
Mrs. Gwen from the Methodist church gave a tour to some of the members. They toured the front ridge where there was only one house left standing after Hurricane Rita.
Even today, 18 months later, houses are still sitting there as if it were the day after the storm. This was so touching to see, but at the same time so sad.
The members helped Terry and Michelle Miller replace their flooring. When they bought the trailer after the storm they were told it had a new floor in it. But not long after they moved in, the flooring begin to buckle.
Yes, the floor covering was new but what was underneath was a mess.
The mission team tore out all three layers of the flooring, and replaced it with one layer of ¾-inch plywood topped with a top-grade ¼-inch plywood, which, when income permits, will be covered with flooring of some kind.
The amazing thing about Terry was that he could not hear. We are not sure when, but he had lost his hearing from standing between two airboats as they were being cranked at the same time.
Terry and Michelle had a doublewide before the storm. He acquired a shrimp boat to make a living after the storm. One day someone came running to him to tell him the boat was on fire.
Someone had purposely burned his boat! They now live on what jobs he gets doing handiwork and welding on the island.
There were several big and expensive camps going up on the island. Some looked like what you would see in Florida along the coast.
Many people are leaving the island and selling their land because the school board has elected to not reopen the school, even though the school was not harmed by the storm except for a few broken panes of windows.
If it was said once it was said twice: “This is our home. We don’t want to see our island go to camps only!”
One lady told me they were getting no help from the Road Home program. They were told because her husband had a job they did not qualify for anything except $8,400.
They had a house before the storm and all that is left of that is the carport. Road Home told them they could only use the $8,400 towards replacing a house – not a trailer home.
The pain was written all over her face!
They did not take any of the money because they had no more to go with it to build a house. She was distraught and began to cry as she told us this story.
This kind of pain is still very evident on Pecan Island.
I am glad God sent us there. I needed to see people care for the people I lived with and loved for the six years we were in Gueydan, the people from Lamar needed to witness all they saw, and the island people needed someone who would listen and love them – and help repair what still needed repairing.
One final example of God’s power and provision for us: It had been raining every day for weeks before we got to Pecan Island, but not one drop of rain fell until we packed up on Saturday morning – and then it rained all the way to Lamar, as if God wanted to remind us of what He had done for us.
We’ll remember. All of it.