Well, summer is here: school's out, vacations are planned (and some are already done!), and the temperature is hot. Life is good. Fortunately, our Hands-On Mission Trip to Project Crossroads in Marion, Virginia happened before it got really hot in June. Ten people went: Joe Dooley (lead), Rebecca Young (cook), Mark Graham, Dean Little, Randy Creswell, Andy Morris, Leslie Little, Emma Creswell, Monika Fuller, and Logan Housewright.Once again, we exceeded expectations. Not only did we build a handicap ramp, refloor a bathroom, and install a new high-rise toilet, but we also cleared the woodlot at the Project House (splitting and stacking the wood in the sheds)...which facilitated lawn mowing and made more room for future loads of wood to be received. Rebecca kept us wellfed and able to focus on the work...but I did hear a rumor of a nighttime brownie raid in the kitchen!! Well done, team!

 

Stay tuned for information on the Project Crossroads Golf Tournament. This is the primary fundraiser for Project Crossroads, and BRUMC usually sends 2-3 teams to this event in August. Contact Joe Dooley (865-216-8796) if interested.

 

Fourteen food buckets for Zimbabwe and roughly $130 were collected for the annual Holston Conference request. The extra money will be used to fill in missing and/or outdated items in the buckets received by the overall conference.

 

The Food Pantry is continuing to provide boxes of food for our community on two days of the week (Mondays 1:00-2:00 & Wednesdays 6:30-7:30). In June, I went with Pastor Teresa and John McClure to the downtown Market Square to glean produce from vendors that would otherwise be wasted. The vendors were happy (they get a tax break), we were happy (we got a LOT of kale, bok choy, squash, cucumbers, zucchini, and dill), and our Food Pantry neighbors were ecstatic about getting fresh vegetables to supplement their larders! Surely a win all around! BRUMC has this opportunity every third Saturday through the summer; If you would like to help, please contact me at 865-804-6642 or let Pastor Teresa know.

 

The work on relocating the Food Pantry is ramping up. The asbestos tile in three of the old classrooms (the future Food Pantry, the Missions room, and the old Art room) in the Education Building will be removed on July 1. These rooms have been/will be cleared out by volunteers: Randy Creswell, Joe Dooley, Tim Brown, Dean & Leslie Little, and our Boy Scout Troop 50. After the asbestos has been cleaned out, our BRUMC Youth will be instrumental in removing bulletin boards and painting the first two rooms and the hallway leading up to them. Epoxy flooring will then be installed in mid-July. After appropriate ventilation, we can then install shelving and move the Pantry down the hall. Depending on how long we need to air out the rooms, we may be looking at September for our new Pantry location....but it's in sight!!!

 

Blessings to all,

Leslie Little, Missions Chair