The Olson Zoo Weblog

Here are some more of the entries from Urban Impact’s evacuation journal. We are still praying for John & Wendy Gerhardt as they continue to be displaced in Hot Springs, Arkansas, waiting to be able to return to their ministry in New Orleans.

Tueday. September13:

Several of those who evacuated with us have left to join family in other parts of the country. While we will miss not having them here with us, it is important for family to be together in these difficult days.

We finally got phones hooked up in our office today!!!! The office number is 501-922-6820 and the fax number is 501-922-6821.

Monday, September12:

We are beginning to see a pattern develop that may resemble a more normal life. The kids are all in school and seem to be adjusting for the most part. The adults have been into Hot Springs to the Red Cross shelter to sign up for whatever assistance is available. The UIM/CRCC staff has been shuttling them here and there so that important paperwork can be filled out.

We are still investigating employment options for many of the adults. A few have found jobs - some are waiting to interview.

Scott Lundeen, Michael Robinson, Tyrone Christoph, and Neil Baumgardner left late last night to return to New Orleans. They will be bringing back a couple of vehicles as well as some office equipment from Castle Rock. Scott and Michael will continue to work the necessary channels to put us at the forefront of going back to rebuild our neighborhood.

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We have just received notice that we are going to be adopting a new Golden Retriever puppy! The puppy is from a litter of nine, born to a Golden mother named Betsy.

Here is a picture of the litter:

We’re not sure which one of the litter will be ours yet, but we do know we will be getting a girl.
We are going to be picking her out on October 8, 2005, and then taking her home the next week.

See the RAGOM site and the photo gallery page for more information.

We got this message from John Gerhardt today:

Dear Friends,

Please excuse the “canned” response but I have been receiving so many emails
that need some type of response that can’t begin to answer each one
personally at this time. When life begins its “new” normal, I hope to be
able to get a personal note to each of you. I choose to send this to all of
you, so if you have heard it before please bear with me.

The verse that keeps ringing in my head is Joshua 1:9 “Have I not commanded
you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged,
for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” We are tired, we
are strained but we are not crushed. God graciously has brought 73 of us
out of New Orleans.

As of Monday, we should have all of our people in “permanent” temporary
housing. Our new office will be open on Tuesday with phone service soon to
follow. Parents will be visiting the local school district on Tuesday to
see if it is a good fit for their kids. People will be looking for jobs
next week. Our goal is bring our people back to “normal” the best we can.
We have other members of our church and ministry that are in need. We will
bring families here who are separated back together the best we can. Others
we will network with y’all to help them through this crisis with housing,
food, clothes and funds. Scott and Melanie Lundeen is as close to NO as
they can get with Food for the Hungry to see what we can do now and possibly
develop a partnership with them.

We see a threefold mission:
1. Bring RELIEF and comfort now
2. RESTORE people to normal, keep our church community together so that
we can return ready to rebuild.
3. REBUILD: RETURN TO NEW ORLEANS to help rebuild and restore our
neighborhood.

Our biggest current need is for cash as we minister to 73 people, coordinate
help for others scattered through out the south and reestablish the ministry
(open an office, make payroll, rebuild our infrastructure) The best place
to go is our web site www.urbanimpact.org and click on our Hurricane Update
link.

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As some of you know, we’ve been building a deck this summer. I have just finished creating a photo gallery with pictures from the deck in various stages of completion:

The Olson Zoo Photo Gallery :: Deck Project 2005

Right now I am in the process of finishing the railings:

After that, I will build two more stairways into the yard, and then probably start on the built-in planter box and bench.

Planter Box frame:

As reported earlier, our friends John & Wendy Gerhardt of Urban Impact Ministries in New Orleans have evacuated to Hot Springs, Arkansas, where they and about 70 others from their church are being hosted by an EFCA church there.

Urban Impact has an evacuation journal on their website. Here are the recent entries:

Evacuation Journal
Welcome to the evacuation experience! We will chronicle our trip here.

Thursday, September 1: Continued activies for kids and families– this time back to community center for basketball, mini-golf, tennis, swings, spelling bee, etc. Staff and evacuation team working hard to address individual needs ranging from medicine to clothing; many continue to try reach family and friends - always a huge relief when someone gets through. We are working with Village Bible Church to find long-term housing, job, and education options for families. May start kids at local school. As always, evening meal and meeting at the church.

Wednesday, August 31: Like you, we are continuing to realize the staggering implications of this storm for our city. We went swimming at a nearby beach; families had a great time. In the evening we joined Village Bible Church for their Wednesday night Bible study. The pastor shared 2 Chronicles 20 with us — Jehoshaphat’s response to an overwhelming report. During prayer time, members of our group came forward to light candles for individuals they were thinking and worried about back home — the flood to the stage was sobering.

Tuesday, August 30: As reports continued to pour in about the destruction in New Orleans, we gave kids a chance to play at the Boys and Girls Club and we all took a trip into Hot Springs in the afternoon. All of this, and of course all of the hosting and meals, has been coordinated by the people of Village Bible Church. They have been incredible. Meal, meeting, and prayer at night.

Monday, August 29: We met for supper and a meeting after spending our days with our host families. For the first time we were abld to see and hear reports after the storm, bringing concern for family and friends.

Sunday, August 28: After breakfast, we had a meeting and then a church service with a message from John Perkins. After a sandwich lunch we began preparing to leave and were out of Jackson by 5:00. Most drivers were going on 2 hours of sleep or less. We arrived in Hot Springs Village at about 2:00 am and divided our now-67 people into host homes.

Saturday, August 27: After realizing the potential severity of the upcoming storm, we prepared our facilities, called church families, and evacuated the city that night at 12:30 am. We arrived in Jackson, Mississippi about 4:00 and stayed with John Perkins and his ministry center.

Please continue to pray for the Gerhardts and for everyone else affected by this disaster. For information on how to help them, go to their News page.

Last week we went on a short camping trip to Jay Cooke State Park (near Duluth, Minnesota). We went with Rachel’s mom, sister Jennifer, and cousin Mike Lapham visiting from Seattle.

We had beautiful weather for the three days we were up there.

After leaving the State Park, we drove into Duluth and spent a little time there.

I just put up a photo gallery with photos from the trip. These are a mixture of pictures we took and pictures from Jennifer. Here the link to the gallery:
The Olson Zoo Photo Gallery :: Jay Cooke State Park, August 2005

Here are a couple sample pictures: