Tuesday, October 30, 2007

We Have Drywall!

Late last week, the carpenters started putting up drywall on the partitions in the accessible bathrooms. After a couple of months of staring at framing, this feels like real progress. At left is part of the entrance to the restroom area.








The west wall of the kitchen- ette is getting green board. This wall will back the sink, stove and refrig- erator.






Drywall also covers the framing of the east wall of the kitchen, between it and the Gleaner's classroom. Lighting the photos is a challenge, since the light fixtures aren't connected yet.




We caught up with our construction manager, Zac, today as he met with the carpenters. This is the other side of the entrance to the new restrooms.

Party, Party, Party

On Sunday evening, Compton folks held a chili supper and costume party in Fellowship Hall. (Note: once the new kitchenette is finished and the accessible entrance is built, we can have such events on a level where everyone can easily take part.)

Marsha and Shannon came as the dirty laundry and the detergent.


Mary, our mistress of costume changes, came as Little Bo Peep this year. We still remember the Halloween Happy Friday when she came as a pumpkin!













Jacque and Dave had the most literary disguise. Can you guess what they are? (Hint: if you are from the South, you put them on your New Years Day menu.)
















Jenn came as a bee, much to the delight of the youngsters present. About two dozen Compton folk of all ages, plus some friends from Isaiah 58, took part in the games, cakewalk, food and fun.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Update on Construction and Finance

The accessibility project continues to make progress. As of last week, we were waiting for a second inspection of the electrical work. Once that passes, the framing can be inspected, and after that passes, we can have drywall! The plumbing has already passed inspection.





The top photo shows the framing and some of the electrical behind the door that leads into the new restroom space. At right is the plumbing and framing along the wall that will divide the men's and women's restrooms. A window in this former classroom straddles the new wall and will be bricked over.

Down the hall in the kitchen- ette, all is ready for the next phase. Pipes are ready for the sink, electrical outlets are in place for the stove and new refrigerator. All that is needed for carpentry and installation of the cabinets are those inspections!

An unexpected glitch was the need to install a new cutoff valve for the main water supply. As you can see, that ditch from a few weeks back has now been replaced with this clearly marked valve by the education building door.

We expect the contractor who will do the front entrance work to be available near the end of October. We are all hoping for a mild winter!

Please visit the sidebar articles about our financial progress, both from pledges and contributions as well as from fundraising. GoodShop is really taking off! You can painlessly donate $1.00 to Compton Cares by making 100 web searches on GoodSearch. Or, you can go through GoodShop for an online purchase and spend $100 with a merchant that donates 1%, or $34 with a merchant that donates 3%, or $20 with a merchant that donates 5%. Your cost is the same, but that $1.00 comes to Compton Cares. Just a thought as the holiday shopping season draws near. Thank you, everyone, for your support, your interest, your prayers for this project. We will publish updates here weekly, or when new developments take place.

Monday, October 8, 2007

Invisible Progress

Another week of electrical and plumbing work that doesn't really yield itself to being photogenic. Instead, this photo of Caroline Chueh, with her husband, daughter and relatives in Taiwan, serves as a reminder of what God's radical hospitality is all about. Last fall, three nurses from Taiwan who were studying for their doctorates traveled all the way to St. Louis to take courses at St. Louis University's School of Nursing. Caroline, Nissa and Catherine, as well as a fourth student, Pateree from Thailand, found Compton and worshipped with us until the semester ended. Although homesick and missing their children, they found a spiritual home with us and returned to look for new connections with Christian communities in their hometowns. This photo was taken Oct. 3 as the family was on holiday. On Oct. 6 and 7, Typhoon Krosa battered Taiwan before moving on to southern China. We pray that all of our friends and their families are safe. Thanks to the Internet, once they have electricity restored we can look forward to hearing from them again.

In the last few weeks, Compton outreach has resulted in some 29 hygiene kits being gathered and sent to the Festival of Sharing for women in Missouri prisons. Our Book Circle was featured in the "Find a Book club" booth at the Big Read in Clayton this past Saturday. And our special offering for Reconciliation Ministries is nearly $500, on its way to help transform the larger church and society to eradicate racism.

And giving to Compton Cares continues to grow. Use of GoodSearch is increasing, and we are thankful to all who use this means to contribute. If you have not tried GoodShop, please note that one modest online purchase through this site can equal 100 searches or more in contribution. Case in point: recently a relative was hospitalized in another state and I wanted to send flowers to her. Instead of looking for 800 numbers to call, I clicked on GoodShop, picked flowers and gifts, browsed the selections of some 4 different florists. I made my selection and my purchase. My relative had the flowers I ordered early the next day. The transaction was on secure sites and appeared correctly on my credit card. And just yesterday, 5% of the purchase price of $42, a total of $2.10 was added to Compton's credits on GoodSearch. It's a great way to do good while doing something for yourself or others, so feel free to check it out.

Hopefully by next week there will be more construction progress, and pictures, to show. Meanwhile, thanks for your support and prayers for Compton Cares.