Their front stairs were falling apart and the gravel and dirt was being washed away. Ron had fallen and seriously damaged his leg. All the tendons and ligaments on his left knee were torn away. He underwent surgery two weeks and will be another 6 weeks recovering.
The stairs were simply risers holding back the dirt with slate layed on each step. The slate had all broken and the risers were coming apart. President Sherwood and I went there Wednesday, reviewed the problem and designed a new stair system. We need to remove all the slate and the dirt to below where the individual steps will be. We then will build a stair structure for each step and attatch them to the sides of the stair well. Susan and I went back Friday and reviewed the plan with the Ron and Mary. They were delighted and gave us the go ahead.
The first step needed to have a small concrete slab under it so that it was not sitting on the dirt. They had 3 bags of concrete sitting in the garage. Since the slab needed to be placed before the rest of the work could start we decided to do that while we were there. Susan and I dug out the 1st two stairs and poured the slab Friday. That was a lot of work moving that dirt for the two of us and it was only 2 of the 11 steps. When the slab is cured we will begin work on the rest. We need to get some younger helpers to move the rest of the dirt.
Below are some pictures of the stairwell, the dirt we removed and the slab we poured.
Part of missionary work is giving service and this is our first opportunity. It should be fun to see the project completed. There is great joy in being able to help someone who has a real need. When it is someone you know and love it is even sweeter.
Associated with this project we have a decision to make. Mom thinks it would be worth it to buy a sawsall and a power screwdriver to use on this project and to have available for other projects that may arise. We already have 2 power screwdrivers in Provo, and I have always wanted a sawsall. The question is, is this a good enough excuse to buy tools? We are looking for input to sway the decision one way or the other. What do you guys think?
The Fairport and Pittsford wards are doing an interesting service project in Rochester. They along with a few other congregations from other denominations in the area are sponsoring a Habitat for Humanity home. They are ahead of the fund raising schedule and start work on the construction this week. With this program a family is selected to receive a new home. The organization then raises the funds, then builds the entire home. This home is being built for a single mom with several children.
We hope you are all doing well and look forward to hearing from you. Are you all reading your scriptures and preparing for missions? They sure are fun.
3 comments:
I bet that once you buy those tools, many opportunities to use them will arise, and you will be grateful you were able to help. Just remember the rod/spear that Paul Rowe got, and you didn't think he'd ever use it, and yet the opportunities came. You will never regret being prepared to help others.
We love you and miss you!
I agree with Maryle. I think if you have the tools, the opportunity to use them will arise. I say go out and buy them!! And yes, we are reading our scriptures. We started a new system in our house. We only read about 10 verses a day but afterwards we ask each kiddo what they learned from those verses. It's going to take us a long time to finish the Book of Mormon, but we hope it will be a little more meaningful to them. Love you guys!
On the other hand, your suitcases are going to start being very heavy if you, like Paul Rowe, buy a new tool each time you do a service project. But perhaps you could start a collection of tools that you donate to the mission home, so that they can be made available to all the missionaries to use for service, even after you are released and gone.
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