New Jersey to New York and Back Again: The YAVS Journey to the East Coast

New Jersey to New York and Back Again: The YAVS Journey to the East Coast

What an adventure! We recently made it back from one of the most memorable trips that I have taken. The trip was two weeks long with one being at Point Pleasant area of New Jersey and one week in Jamaica, New York.  We worked under Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) at both sites. Both sites had a different group we worked with and had different responsibilities.  

For the first week we stayed at Point Pleasant, New Jersey but worked at a house is Long Branch, New Jersey. We were picked up at the airport by a person who works with PDA, David Rauer, he took us out to eat and then showed us some of the damage the storm caused. There are several homes that have been repaired. Most of these were homes that belonged to people who had insurance or had the financial means to rebuild quickly. However there were also several houses with damage that hasn’t been fixed and empty lots where houses once stood.

After touring around we met the group we would be working with, Lend a Hand. This is a group from Central Pennsylvania that has a lot of experience in working disasters including the 2008 floods in Iowa. They had also been instrumental in setting up the Point Pleasant site after Sandy had hit and had sent a group every month for the past two years to Point Pleasant.

 The next day we went to our primary location, a house in Long Branch, New Jersey. The residences of this house were a young couple who were living in a camper on the front lawn. Their house had been destroyed by the floods Sandy had created. They also didn’t have flood insurance because the experts had said their house was not in the flood plain. During the storm Russ, the husband, had been checking on the generator outside when the house collapsed. If he had waited just a few minutes he would have been a victim of the storm. April, Russ’ wife, was a first responder who was working during the storm. After the house collapsed Russ took his two dogs and swam to safety.

The Two Home Owners are in front with the Lend A Hand group and us behind them.

                During this week we did a lot to get their house to the point where they could get a temporary occupancy certificate. We finished the flooring, put in counters and the appliances, just about finished the bathrooms, put insulation on the pipes (my primary job) and several other small jobs. It was great experience being there towards the end of the project because one could just see hope, optimism and joy return to them. They were very appreciative of all the help we gave them. They invited us to a barbeque they plan to have to for all the volunteers who had helped at their house this summer.  Another thing I really enjoyed about the sites we were at was the proximity to the beach. Only being a couple of blocks from the beach we ate most of our lunches there including the day of October 14^th which was my birthday.

My view from lunch that week.

On Wednesday we went out to a place called the Shrimp Box. This place had high quality foods and the meals were all around or over 20 dollars and with drinks the average person’s meal was probably around thirty dollars. Lend a Hand invited several people to join us at the site including the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance leaders of Point Pleasant, and a person whose house they had helped rebuilt on a previous trip. This lady was so grateful for all the work the group had done for her that she paid for all of our meals, which was about 20 of us, regardless if you had worked on her house or not. After the group had finished her house she had been given a grant and was looking for a way to repay the people who had worked on her house saw an opportunity and took it. This just shows how appreciative people are for the work Presbyterian Disaster Assistance and other disaster organization do in these areas.

                After the week was over we were picked up again by David and taken to Jamaica, New York. We took our time though and visited the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Both were great but I learned a lot from Ellis Island. Many of my ancestors had been through Ellis Island and the rigors of coming to America so they, their children and eventually me, could have a better life. We had the next day off so we went into New York City and saw Central Park, Times Square, Rockefeller Center and several other famous sites.

Picture I took of the Statue of Liberty
 The group we worked with at in New York was Southern Comfort Mission and Missionary Team from Upstate New York. They too had lots of disaster recovery experience including lots of work in New Orleans where they got the name Southern Comfort.

Me putting mud of the drywall.

Southern Comfort group picture with Don our site supervisor. 

                On Wednesday of that week we went to an opening of a house. Actually we got to two house openings. These houses belonged to friends and neighbors, Gerard and David who had helped each other get through the rebuilding process. David had had his house completely destroyed and Gerard had significant damage to his house. David moved into the damaged house with Gerard after the storm. Gerard didn’t want to do anything to his house because his wife had designed a lot of it and she had passed on before the storm. However, David and Gerard’s family encouraged him to get help. It was cool that these two friends who had relied on each other so much got their houses done at the same time and got to have one big celebration. This event was filmed and was on T.V. that night. Here’s a link to the video. http://7online.com/home/2-queens-men-back-in-their-homes-nearly-2-years-after-sandy/360061/.

                After the hard work we did during the day it was great to come back to and have a hot meal already prepared for us. Every meal excluding lunch, which was eaten at the work site, was prepared by Dora Sawh and sometimes she had help from another Dora. The meals were delicious and a much needed boost. Also after work we made it into New York City a couple of nights. I was able to go in and see my cousin. Molly was able to attend a Broadway play. We went to the 9/11 Memorial Site on the last night which was a very well done tribute to the people who had lost their lives that day.

Final thoughts

                Disaster assistance isn’t just about building homes for people. It is giving people peace of mind, hope and joy. Having a home again can bring all of these emotions. These people are very appreciative of the work we had done.  

                Physical labor isn’t the only type of job one can do after a storm.  There is a need for spiritual counselors and several other jobs after the storm. There is also a need for cooks. After a hard day it was nice to have a hot meal provided. At New Jersey it was groups from the area and at New York it was Dora. There are also several jobs that people can do at a work site. Some of the group we worked with had great carpentry and handy man skills while others were willing to learn and/or do the cleaning jobs.

                We should be more appreciative of our things. April told us that she had hated her old house before the storm. There were several spots that needed repairs and she complained about them a lot. Then the storm came and took out her house and she would do anything to go from the camper she lived in back to her old house. Luckily for them we were building them a nice house that won’t need any repairs for quite a while.

Presbyterian Disaster Assistance offers some good mission trips. There are several sites around the country and the world. I would recommend this organization to anyone or any group that is looking for a trip to go on. 

                If there are any questions about these trips let me know. I took a lot more pictures and posted them on Facebook so check them out on my profile or the YAV-Little Rock Facebook Page.

                 

               

                

Six Weeks In…

I should have done this blog a long time ago but I have been busy (which is a good thing). There have been many challenges and also many real enjoyable times.  I will try to post more often about other events but here is what a typical week looks like so far. My placement this year is at Ferncliff Camp working with Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA). Ferncliff is home to one of two Disaster Assistant Centers (DAC). I spend most of my time either working in the DAC or doing stuff for the DAC. 

Picture 1: The Three Little Rock YAVS. From right to left Alex, Molly and I.

A typical week

Sunday: Church at Second Presbyterian Church of Little Rock (Will have a blog all about my experience here later) I also try to make it to their youth group activities at night to help out with junior and senior high.

Picture 2 Heather, the Youth Director at 2nd Presbyterian, and I both supporting our Iowa Colleges

Monday: Work at Ferncliff and in the DAC. Volleyball at 2^nd Presbyterian at night.

Tuesday: Work at Ferncliff

Wednesday: Work at Ferncliff during the day. On Wednesday three men come out to volunteer. This really helps me out because a lot of tasks require extra hands.

Thursday: Work at Ferncliff part of the day. I have also gone to disaster cleanup meetings which I talk about below.

Friday: Community days. This is when our group goes out into the community and volunteers at a nonprofit or learns about different ways to serve. (I will post more about these at a future date as well)

Saturdays: This is a free day for us but I have never used it to sit at home all day. I will also try and post about some of the fun things I have been doing.

Picture 3: Me leading a group of senior high youth from 2nd Pres. in Little Rock

In this blogpost I want to talk about what I do the days I am at camp. There is no typical day here at Ferncliff or the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance Center (DAC) but most of my job responsibilities lay under three categories.

1.       Working in the DAC to make sure everything is organized and making sure boxes that get sent into us are receipted and put into the right places. Many churches make boxes as a mission outreach read this website to find out more about these boxes http://pda.pcusa.org/page/kits/. I also am in charge of leading groups that come into the DAC to sort through boxes and/or make kits.

2.       I am also in charge of the Ferncliff Mission Team’s program. For this program we partner with local organizations. Groups will come in and spend time volunteering at the DAC and then they go to local organizations to volunteer. Here is some more about the program http://www.ferncliff.org/programs/mission-teams/.

3.       I am also coming up with program ideas for the DAC. I am currently working on a disaster simulation experience that will try and help people empathize with those affected by disasters.

Along with these responsibilities I have also been a part of two disaster rebuilding meetings. These two meetings took place in Mayflower, Arkansas which was hit by a tornado this spring. This meeting brought together several different Christian organizations. It was cool to see all of these organizations from many different denominations come together and work so well to rebuild these areas that were devastated by tornados. Many of these organizations have assets that when used with other organizations assets can really speed up the rate of rebuilding than if one organization tried to do it alone.

In the coming weeks my fellow Little Rock YAVS and I are going to New York and New Jersey to help with Hurricane Sandy Relief with Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. I will make sure to update my blog with stories and pictures from this trip. I probably won’t be able to post anything until then unfortunately. Feel free to ask questions or to leave support just post in the comments section.

Orientation Week

Week 1 of my YAV year started out with a week of orientation in Stony Point, New York. This was a week full of mixed emotions. It was both hard and rewarding at the same time. Orientation brought together all the first year Yavs and gave us the information that we needed for our years of service. At orientation we had many different sessions from several speakers, including several YAV alum who gave us just a small sample of what to expect this year. I could write a lot about the different sessions I went to and everything I learned from them. These are just some of the highlights of each day.

Day 1: Arrival and making new friends

I arrived at Stony Point in the late afternoon. After two plane rides, a short wait in the airport and an hour trip via van. This day including meeting several new people including those in my small group and opening worship services.

Day 2: Culture Change

Day 2 was a long day of getting information thrown at us that was hard to take. We learned that certain people have most of the power and it’s not about changing culture instead it’s about learning to live with in it. We also learned through an activity called bafabafa about how challenging different cultures meeting

Day 3: History of missions and advocacy

We learned about the history of mission’s especially in the PCUSA. We also learned about where missions currently are today. In a second session we learned about the work the church is doing in DC to advocate for people who have no voice.

Day 4: Trip in to New York

On Thursday we were taken into New York City and dropped off at train station. We had to find our own way to our destination which for my group was church of the master an intercity Presbyterian Church. Thanks to the other members in my small group we were able to find the church without any problems. At the church we were able to here from different members of the church talk about what there ministry does. I was really inspired by the work this church does. They run several different programs out of this church these included a youth basketball program, family movie night, all sorts of choirs, dance groups, a credit union, youth summer camp and other programs. The thing that was really surprising was that this church only had 100 members. Even though this church was small most of their members were fully engaged in their mission.

Day 5: Partnerships

In this session we learned about partnerships and how they can be helpful and break comfort zones. We talked about how DOOR Network (a Mennonite organization) and Presbyterian YAV have come together to create a great relationship. We also talked about how getting out of our comfort zone can help create new friends and relationships. We also had site conflict meetings and  ate lunch with our small group.

Day 6: Commissioning and free time

On Sunday all the Yavs went to different churches to be commissioned. Two other Yavs and I went to Watchung Ave Presbyterian Church in New Jersey. We felt very welcomed there. Afterwards we were taken out to eat at an Irish pub. The rest of the afternoon we were given free time. After that we had small group time and an end of the orientation worship.

Day 7: Leaving

I woke up early to get in the van and head to the airport. It was hard leaving all of my new friends but I knew that God has great things in store for all of us.

The 3 most important things I learned this week.

-This year is all about breaking your comfort zone and seeing the good things that happen when you do.

-This year is going to be tough but there will be great moments as well.

-There are a lot of great people in this denomination and in this program. I wish I could have learned more about everyone at orientation but to those I did talk to I can see that they have a big heart for God and he is going to do great things in their lives this year.

Thanks for reading if you have any questions about my week let me know. Also feel free to leave comments with support for my year if you feel inclined to do so.

                 Next year I will be participating in the Presbyterian Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) program. The Presbyterian YAV program is for adults 19 to 30 who want to grow their faith and have a full year of service.

                 I have been accepted in this program and in August I will be heading to Little Rock, Arkansas, to work with the Presbyterian Disaster Relief Agency. I will be helping fill boxes, helping social media outreach, and other projects. I decided to become part of this program because of the people I have talked to on mission trips who were YAVS. They talked about how their lives their year of service had changed their lives.  I also want to be of service to people and have Christ work through me to help others.

In order to be part of this program I need to raise $3,000. I invite individuals to be part of my experience by helping me fundraise and by praying for me. By giving me a donation and helping me go on this year of service, I will send the church and individuals updates on my year, ensuring your money goes to good use.

To donate online go to http://www.presbyterianmission.org/donate/E051479/. Under billing information In Comments/Instructions/Name of local congregation put for Daniel Bohnker’s YAV year.