Francis Seivert greets assessment team in Montaña de la Flor

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Welcome to Mississippi

As Seivert reported, our team arrived in Mississippi a little after 7 p.m. It was a LONG ride, but everyone did well. The only mishap was a failure to follow the GPS in Memphis, and that resulted in an interesting, rather circuitous, route through the city. Other than that, the trip was fairly uneventful.

We stopped in St. Joseph's at iHop for breakfast this morning. Fr. Ries generously bought breakfast for the whole group. At each pit stop all missioners switched into different vehicles so we 'd get the chance to visit with various fellow missioners. We can already feel the team bonding.

Upon our arrival we were met by Lois Harrison and Kelly Tartt. They introduced us to what the Sacred Heart Southern Missions is all about. Something that surprised us was that Mississippi is the poorest state in the U.S., and the county in which we are working is the poorest one in Mississippi. She described the pride of these people and how excited they'll be to meet us. They do not think of themselves as poor, but she says they most definitely are in great need. Many times they will actually give of their need because they are such a generous people.

We were given a quick tour of our living quarters. It is quite secure and comfortable. The girls were excited because there is a large room where they can all be together. Linda and I decided to bunk together, and Janet chose a room close to the kitchen, since she'll be in charge of overseeing meals. The guys will have to sleep in two or three separate rooms. There are more of them and the rooms were not set up the same way. The 'compound' is very nice. However, we had a (what I will call) Honduras moment when Abby found a spider in her bed. The girls were successful in eventually cornering and capturing the trespasser, much to their relief.

After our tour everyone got busy emptying the trailer and storing the materials. Janet and Dave got to work on grilling hot dogs and making beans, which we finally ate a bit after 9. By the time we had our 'junta' and a 'nuts and bolts' meeting, the team headed for bed around 11. They should be exhausted from the early morning, long vehicle ride, and the general excitement of the new mission experience. They get to sleep in until 6:30 tomorrow. Lois is coming at 8:15 to divide us into groups and send us off to work.

Oh yes, I see some of you are concerned about Jacob. Of course, he's with us. When he didn't show up at school and I couldn't reach him or his dad by phone, we drove to his house to find him. They saw us leaving the parking lot and followed us to his house where he climbed aboard. Everything is fine! We never considered leaving anyone behind. I guess that's one of the negatives of leaving cell phones behind: you just can't call them and find out where they are.

Speaking of electronic devices - they are only missing them a little. Within a day or two they won't even think about them. Remember, though, you can communicate with us through your comments. Those will be shared at the nightly 'juntas' so send your comments!

Take care, ya'll. Pray for a great mission. Like they said tonight, we are the #1 Gehlen Catholic Mission Honduras team serving in Mississippi. We plan to set the bar high for any others who might follow us one day.

14 comments:

  1. Congrats on your arrival guys. I think you'll find out you don't have to leave the country to find people who need your help. We are all proud of you guys. Abby, If you get used to that spider I can make sure there are some in your bed when you get home.

    Love Dad

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  2. Hey! Glad to know you guys made it safe! We are having fun here in Web Design Class today, but we are surely missing Mrs. Bickford, Maggie, and Elizabeth :)It is very quiet in the halls without all of you here! This morning we had a total of 9 people in the Senior hallway...very weird! Love you all and hope you have fun!

    Love,
    Kersey, Trisha, Alli, Merrissa,and of course...SchroDog

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  3. Glad to hear everything is going well. Hey Maggie! I bet you FREAKED at that spider! :) and loved ihop. I'm jealous. I'm sure you got bacon and chocolate chip pancakes. :)Miss ya girl and all the other senior. Spanish class is the most awkward...its actually quite!

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  4. Happy to hear you made a safe trip. McKenzie, Jacey missed you at CCD last night. When I told her that I would be taking her tonight because you were in Mississippi, she wanted to get her bike so she could get you. At bedtime she said a special blessing for all the people that went on the trip.
    Love, Mom

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  5. Glad to hear the trip went well. I am already missing Ryan & Elizabeth but I haven't shed any tears lately. Ruby is a little confused on where you guys are at - she paced most of the night yesterday. Hope all of you had a good day.

    Love
    Becky

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  6. Love the picture of Ryan & Fabio!!!

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  7. Glad you made it safely. Andrew we watched Jeopardy last night just because...Praying you have a great mission trip.
    Linda L

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  8. Hope you guys had a great day. Shelby, aren`t you disappointed the spider wasn`t in your bed?! :)

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  9. Hey Joey, glad you made it safely. Hope you are having a ton of fun. I think many people people are missing all of your little sayings exspecialy one hop. :) Can't wait till you get home. I miss you already. Love, Danielle

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  10. Hey Joey again. Your mom and dad wanted me to tell you somethings. They are glad you made it okay. Your mom got your housing applied for and your scholorship stuff taken care of. They miss you and love you. From your parents and work hard

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  11. Jacob,

    This is David - Be safe and work hard! Do you know where my baseball glove is at? Miss you, Love David

    This is Madeline - I have been crying for 2 days because I miss you so much, please come home soon!

    This is Chris - Hi. I made rice crispy treats today, I will eat yours, thanks.

    This is Dad - I hope you are sleeping well. Love, Dad

    This is Sarah - Goodnight

    This is Emma - Waaaaaaaaaaa, waaa, waaaaaaaaaaaaa, waaa

    This is Mom - I miss you, love Mom

    This is Joseph - I hope you are having a good experience so far. Your room is a mess!

    This is Madeline for real - Dad wrote the other note, I have not been crying, but I do miss you. Love Madeline PS, can I use your laptop?

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  12. Hi Maggie & Stu,
    Glad you made it there. Maggie how did you not get the spider (did you scream????). Work hard and we really miss you!
    Love, Donna D.

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  13. Hey SportsCenter,
    We promise to at least try to get the dents out of your car before you return ..... Michaela has been getting better at backing out of the garage every day!
    All is well here ........ Miss you!
    The Fam

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  14. Hey Carolyn and Fabio! It looks like you guys are having fun. It is nice to see Fabio actually doing some work! Mya keeps asking to go to Grandma's house and play with her new baby. You will have to have a play date with her when you get back. Basketball has taken over Drew's life now so not too much new with him. Mya is going to go to the water easter egg hunt at the YMCA tomorrow and I will make sure to take lots of pictures for you! We miss you!

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