Bastrop: Week 6 - February 6-10

  Our Work team for Week 7 was from Illinois: Washington, Congerville, Cissna Park, Forrest, Eureka, Morton, Bloomington; Missouri: Taylor; Indiana: Indianapolis; Iowa: Burlington; Ohio: Sardis, Rittman; Oregon: Silverton; Michigan: Midland, Alto; and Texas: Bastrop. 

Project #1 - Lyon House 

The house was insulated with foam. 

Trimming the foam back to the studs. 

The mess of unwanted foam has to be picked up and put into trash bags. It expands greatly. 

Project #2 - Cramer House 

Cutting metal for the roof 

On the roof 

Our man-lift to get the metal to the roof 

Cutting cardboard strips to close openings inside the house before spraying the foam. 

Project #3 - Myer House 

The house was roofed with metal. 

Accurately measuring and cutting the drywall. 

The drywall hanging team uses a lift to get to the vaulted ceiling.

The mudding process. 

Project #4 - Lopez House 

The carpenters finish the Densglass walls.

Plumbing is completed. 

Project #5 - Ashabranner House 

Wiring is done

Wiring 

The windows were installed. Note the cedar beams in the foreground. They were purchased and cut by Ken Ashabranner at the sawmill where he is a sawyer. We will put them up on the ceiling of the great room.  

Project #6 - Williams House 

We had a blitz on this house during week 6.  

We enjoy working together. 

Plumbers, electricians, carpenters. 

Spraying foam insulation in the rafters. Look closely. He is dressed all in white protective clothing and a mask. 

Everything we don’t want drips on must be kept under cover.

Bastrop: Week 5 - Jan 30 - Feb 3

The WEEK 5 Workteam was from Smithville( Ohio), Goodfield, Congerville (Illinois), Denver (Colorado), Morris (Minnesota), Sabetha (Kansas), Silverton (Oregon), Eureka, Morton, Midland (Michigan), Bloomington, Alto, Bastrop (Texas) 

Project #1 - Lyon House 

The felt on the roof needed to be re-secured due to the storm last week. 

This hardworking couple is taking a break from wiring the house. They were blessed with the presence of Bethany, the homeowner, who worked with them on her day off. 

Bethany ‘s black dog has already claimed his spot in the house.  

Project #2 - Cramer House 

Digging post holes for the porch. 

 The crew working

Building a porch roof and tying it into the main roof. 

Preparing the roof to put on the steel. 

Project #4 - Lopez House 

A sudden shower is in progress. 

Back to work

 Project #5 - Ashabranner House

Trusses went up  

The outer Densglass was put up and windows were cut out. 

Project #6 - Williams House 

Framed up  Ready for next work team.

Bastrop: Week 4 - January 23-28

The Week 4 Workteam was from Bern, Prescott, Morton, Elgin, Alto, and Bloomington. 

Water running down the road in front of the church. It rained about 7 inches early Wednesday morning. There was a tornado in Austin and several high-water rescues on area roads. Water leaked into some of our house trailers overnight, even onto a sleeping occupant.   

Even our church driveway formed a series of gullies. 

Project #1 - Lyon House

Huge gullies formed.   

It took a major effort to pull the bundle of electric wires through the box into this house.   

The heating system was installed. 

Project #6 - The Williams House 

Preparing to frame this house. 

Happily at work.

Project #5 - The Ashabranner House 

Charlie arrived on Friday and work began in earnest.

At Church

The food pantry at Church was patched, painted, and better lighting installed.

Our new cook put everything back in order on the shelves.

Bastrop: Week 3 - January 16-21

Project #2 - Cramer House

This 3 person team nailed the Densglass board to the outer walls. 

Interior framing and furnace closet. 

Project #3 - Myers House

The plumbers working in the crawl space under the house. 

The shower was installed. 

Local electrician Andy Atteberry explains “how it works” to our team member and she became an electrician for a couple days. 

Project #4 - Lopez House 

Daniel Lopez, the homeowner, talking with the girls. 

Team Leman boxes in the foundation and begins the subfloor. 

Project #5 - Ashabranner House 

Notice that this palm tree survived the fire that burned the house to the ground. 

Putting in the septic pipes. 

Laying the subfloor. 

This thank you note and cooler of snacks appeared on Thursday. It was written by a grandchild.  

Project #6 - Williams House  

Working with their shovels, this workteam finished covering the water and septic pipes and backfilled the walls with a Bobcat. 

All of the materials have been delivered for this house! 

Bastrop: Week 2 - January 9-14

Week 2 work team - From Congerville, Bradford, Peoria, Alto, Bay City, Bastrop

 

Project #1 - Lyon House 

Working on the Lyon House 

Cutting roof boards. By the end of week 2, this house was under a roof. 

Our cook, on her grand tour of the projects, found a burned knife and is chipping at a tree to see how far in it has been burned. 

 Project #2 - Cramer House

Beginning the house of James Cramer. 

 Project #3 - Myers House

The boss of the week for this project worked energetically and conscientiously on his house. 

Measuring and cutting the Densglass outer sheeting. Densglass will add an hour of fire rating to these homes. 

Searching for nails in the tool trailer to put the Densglass up. 

Progress is evident as the home is framed. 

Doing the underground water connections on all projects. 

Under roof by the end of week 2 thanks to these energetic young folks. 

Project #4 - Lopez House

Walls were poured during Week 2

Project #5 - Ashabranner House

Wall forms were put up and cement poured.

Project #6 - Williams House

The project was begun by using a bobcat and trencher. 

The ground was so hard that it had to be chipped into soil in places. The walls were poured and all of our cement foundations were completed by the week's end. 

Visiting with the people at a nursing home. We sing at a different nursing home in Bastrop every Tuesday night. 

In the evenings, we were serenaded with hymns on the accordion and entertained with storytelling. Some songs were sing-along’s.

Bastrop: Week 1 - January 2-7

Week 1 work team – From Rittman, Smithville, Akron, Bradford, Peoria, Bay City, Alto, Bastrop

The Apostolic Christian Church at Bastrop, TX, is also the World Relief Wildfire project headquarters. There are beds for 18 in the men’s dorm and 10 in the women’s.

All that remained of the Daniel and Pat Lopez home was the front steps and the 2 American flags beside them. Project #4

Project #1. Lyon House – oiling the forms

Project #2. Meet homeowner James Cramer on porch of his FEMA trailer.

Putting the subfloor down.

Pouring the walls.

Pulling cement down an extended chute to the other side wall.

One group sawed up burned trees and hauled the pieces to a huge burn pile. This was at the home of Chester Lathan where we did some work two years ago. Their trailer survived with only a few burned boards on the bottom.

Filling the sonotubes from a wheelbarrow at the end of the pour

This was one hot sooty job!