Cedar Rapids VIM 2008

FLOOD RECOVERY in IOWA 2008


In November 2008 twenty-two volunteers from Wisconsin VIM went to the Cedar Rapids , Iowa area to help with FLOOD RECOVERY.

That area of Iowa had a huge flood in June 2008. Our trip to New Orleans was re-routed to Iowa due to its closeness to Wisconsin and high fuel prices to travel to New Orleans . We slept in the United Methodist Church in Marion , Iowa . We cooked our own breakfast and supper at the church. We had lunch on the worksite every day. We went a few blocks away to shower each night at a local middle school. The weather was unseasonally warm as we began our week’s work. On Friday we were working in snow showers.



We all worked on finishing projects at one home in Palo , Iowa , for two days. Projects were replacing OSB walls in the garage, replacing drywall in the lower level of the home, changing two overhead garage doors into a wall with four windows, adding insulation, replacing wiring, mudding the drywall, and hanging a sink.

Part of our crew moved on Wednesday to a home about six blocks away to begin insulation replacement, fixing joists, and drywall installation.



A few other crew members moved into Cedar Rapids to do some finishing work left by crews of the week before.



By the end of the week we had done many things. Each day we were tired. Each night we had supper and devotions together.



Another trip is planned for October 11-16, 2009, to Cedar Rapids , Iowa .