Ham Sandwiches

Tis the season . . . for decorating, baking, caroling, shopping and bell-ringing!  Have you heard them?  The Salvation Army Bell Ringers?  I rushed past one at the grocery store today . . . I'm sure most of us have done it several times already this year.  As I did so, I was reminded of the following words I sent in an email April 6th, 2009.  (If you remember, the Red River Valley was experiencing a record-breaking flood at that time.  We were sending email-updates frequently.  This was one.)

 

For weeks, Beret has been waiting for a ham sandwich from the Salvation Army . . . the kind you'd never make for yourself . . . ham and cheese between two slices of buttered white bread, wrapped in a sandwich bag and made by volunteers whose gift in these situations is found in the kitchen!  Most us had one after a night of sand-bagging weeks ago . . . I'm not why Beret passed them up, but she did and has been waiting for another chance ever since.

 

Yesterday afternoon, Cory, Beret, Jason and I got to see what happens when your house isn't on the safe side of the dirt levies and your sandbags don't hold.  George, age 77, and his wife live in a community  just south of Fargo.  They have a beautiful riverfront home which George had helped build.  Yesterday, we helped with the jobs that need to be done before he gets to rebuild . . . His basement had been filled with river water all the way to the ceiling of the basement (but fortunately didn't reach the 1st floor).  In fact when we took out the light fixtures in his basement, water poured out of them.  Not just any water. . . yucky Red River water . . . and they don't call it the Red River for nothing . . . this isn't your beautiful mountain fed crystal blue water running through Fargo . . . It's dirty and stinky!

 

After sending the water soaked carpet through the basement window, we used flat edged shovels to scrape carpet pads off the cement floor.  We used our rubber boots to kick holes in the sheet rock before we ripped it off the walls.  We used garbage cans and Rubbermaid totes to carry load after load of disintegrating sheet rock out of the basement.  These are jobs that need to be done and need to be done quickly to prevent mold from growing . . . and before the next crest.  These are not fun jobs.  There's very little hope in the devestation we were surrounded by, and we know others are much worse off than George.

 

We'd been working for maybe 2 or 3 hours when the guys came downstairs and said "The Salvation Army is here if anyone wants some hot chocolate or coffee"  . . . You know where this story is going . . . they also had HAM SANDWICHES!  And they were delicious!!!

 

Many people have been wondering what can be done . . . and I beg of you to keep praying!  A second crest is still predicted.  Today I saw the National Weather Service has stated there is a 90% chance the second crest will reach 40 feet or more.  That means it is quite possible we will break the record we set last week . . . and we'll need to "re-sandbag" for George and many others like him.  For many, it feels like half-time of a really bad game, as we wait for the 2nd crest.  For others, they reached their overtime days ago and are faced with more than many of us can even imagine.  People are tired and trying to find strength and hope to go through this again.  Your prayers are not unheard and we need every last one of them!

 

I also ask that you consider making a donation to the Salvation Army, who is still delivering ham sandwiches, and most likely will be doing so for weeks to come in the Fargo community!  Whether the money goes to the Red River Valley, or your own community, there are thousands of people who benefit from their presence every day!  Yesterday it was the 4 of us, standing outside George's beautiful home, drinking hot chocolate and eating ham sandwiches.