A Summer at Missionary Acres

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Quarantine put a lot of our plans for 2020 on hold. Thankfully, God still had plans for us. We were able to spend the past several months down in Missouri, volunteering at Missionary Acres.

It was such a blessing to introduce this wonderful place to our children. This was their first time seeing it, and they fell in love with the place that God has called us to. We are all so thankful for this extended time at the Acres. And more importantly, we’re praying that the day when we could move down there permanently would come quickly.

But, we can’t do that without you. If you’d like to join our support team, you can learn more here. And if you aren’t able to support us, that’s okay. We still ask for your prayers. Please pray that we would raise our support quickly so we can get back down to Missionary Acres.

And if you’re wondering exactly what we’ll be doing down there, this summer gave us a pretty good idea of the practical needs. Here is a quick recap of our summer, and how we spent much of our time at the Acres.

Remodeling #28

This is house number 28. It’s the new home for Alan & Sandy Fluegge. They served as missionaries to Russia, and then he was a pastor in Michigan for many years. Now, they’re at Missionary Acres.

When we arrived, they were staying in guest housing, waiting for the completion of the remodel on their home. At that point, the team was working on the sheet rock. When we left, the carpet installation and cleanup were the only things they were waiting on. That means the Fluegges should be moving in soon!

Bryan was able to jump right in, and use the skills that God has equipped him with to help move the house along.

Making Progress

He helped mud the sheetrock, and sponge the mud. The wall above the stairs was a bit difficult, and required this scaffolding:

Electrical work is some of Bryan’s favorite. He was able to diagnose an electrical problem with the HVAC system, rewire the doorbell, identify and relabel every circuit breaker in the circuit panel, replace the outlets and switches, hang lights and ceiling fans, reroute and rewire the HVAC control circuits, and more. Here he is preparing a light box in the dining room for a new fan:

In the master bedroom, the box needed replaced with a stronger one to hold up to the weight of a fan. This meant a trip to the attic. Since it was so warm in Missouri, we decided to do this step late at night. It was still very hot in the attic, but thankfully the new box went in without problems.

Painting took a lot of Bryan’s time this summer. He helped prime and paint a lot of the house. The Fluegges picked some beautiful colors! That’s one of the neat parts about Missionary Acres. The residents get to have a big say in the remodel, and pick their colors. Every house is so different.

Bryan spent a lot of time in the basement of this house. He replaced a false ceiling, primed and painted the two bedrooms, and refinished the downstairs bathroom.

The stairs also got painted. That took a little while and required climbing out of a window in the basement when the job was done. The neighbors were disappointed they didn’t get to see that part.

The kitchen looks so nice in this house following the remodel. Here’s a panoramic shot of the kitchen and living room. You can also see a bit of the hall and dining room. Please excuse the clutter, we left before the final clean up got completed.

Yard Sale

While we were down at the Acres, they had one of their biannual yard sales. Bryan and some of the kids were able to help set up for this. Lisa got to help set up the books, which was a lot of fun. The yard sale helps raise money for the Acres.

Picking up Rocks

The roads at Missionary Acres are all gravel. They occasionally get grated, to help keep them in better shape. But, when they’re freshly grated, there are many large rocks on the top of the road.

These can be a tripping hazard to the residents. They can also be rough to drive over.

Lisa and the kids helped pick up these rocks and add them to the drainage ditches around the property. The younger kids really enjoyed this task.

And they really, really enjoyed a ride in the empty yard cart when we were done.

Enjoying Life at the Acres

One of the best parts of our summer was getting to know many of the residents. With quarantine protocols, we didn’t get to spend as much time with them as we would have liked, but it was still a blessing.

We had a great get together for the 4th of July. And went on two picnics with some residents to a nearby state park. We enjoyed meals with residents, and so many of them generously shared extra food with us.. There was also a lot of time spent just visiting.

Ellie learned that there’s a group of quilters on site, and she is REALLY looking forward to learning from them when we get back.

The residents were so welcoming for the kids, and many said they appreciated the youthful energy that our family brought. At the church on site, some of the residents taught Sunday School, and after having churches in Washington be closed for so long, the kids had so much fun getting back to Sunday School.

Upcoming Fall Meetings

Unfortunately, our time at Missionary Acres had to come to a close this time around. With several meetings scheduled in the fall, we had to say good bye.

Bu, we are praying that God would help us get back down there quickly. The need for more workers on-site is great, and we’re ready to help.

If you’re interested in having us present in your church in the future, please send us an email.