Moving Day

I hope you take time to read this through to the end. It's really exciting!

Good Morning! Last night the snow was out of this world so Grant and I had our own pizza party and I worked pretty late. I decided to sleep upstairs with our one remaining woman and her two kids in the Womens Wing.

Today, there is no more Womens Wing! We graduated three women!!

Carol moved home to Saskatoon with her toddler and baby. She is the one who had her baby during the last fund raising banquet. If you recall my blog in May, she had the baby up in the dorms! Therrin was not waiting for anybody! And you had Grant, our Nightwatchman, pacing the halls very nervously! I will miss her little girl very much. Several times a day she would bolt from Mommy and run to knock on the office. Just a little hug and visit, she was "helping" Vicki and I!

Lois, who is moving back to her house in the city and looking for a job. She is in the medical field but would like something else. During the last two weeks of her program she and Debbie became my Office Helpers. Lois is very detail oriented and an incrdibly speedy typist. Thanks to both of them, Vicki and I caught up on four months of filing and four years of donor return mail! Lois is our new Tuesday night Women and Family Home volunteer supervisor!

Debbie begins her new job as Womens Family Home Intern. She has felt the Lord calling her to give back to the Mission and those struggling as she did, by spending two years taking RESCUE college. The first three months she is adjusting to her new role and looking after some personal practical issues like selling her house in North Battleford, and finding software that will help her with her disability. She has hairdresser and accident injuries so can't type. If you have a spare copy of VoiceDragon or a similar program (of good quality/calibur for writing essays) or would like to donate one, please call Debbie at 306-543-0011.

And so, at 6:00 a.m. I ambled down without my hairbrushed, etc. My supplies are in the office. I went looking for cream and Larrie and Drew were up, manning the door for us so no one has to come in at this crazy hour. They looked surprised and said, "Michelle! You're up early!!"

"It's moving day, you know!" I replied.
Larrie offered to make me a toasted bagel but I told him I couldn't eat this early. They told me about the strong fresh coffee. Mmmm. We pondered the origin of coffee--South America, or Africa? We decided both.

So, this morning I have already finished tweaking the moving list. 6 women arrive today and one before 6:00 a.m. tomorrow morning! We have toddlers, young kids, moms and single women all making history by being the first to move into our newly renovated Womens Family Centre! It's very exciting to think I can be a part of this time in the life of the Mission.

Grant and I were musing about being here since the beginning and now hardly recognizing the place! New name, new buildings, new staff, new volunteers. The old and familiar is still here, but what a priveledge to have seen this Mission grow from one man on a program which consisted of helping Ken fix up the crack shack, to up to 62 men, women, and children being offered a long term solution for their life controlling problems! Wow!