notes from the field
More updates at www.mds.org
Tour of a future MDS work site in Grand Isle, Louisiana. Pictured left to right: Brittany Giles-Jones (EM Management), Karla Morton (Pacific Northwest Mennonite Conference), Kevin King (MDS), Jesse Huxman (MDS), Richard Watkins (Bayou Community Foundation), Heidi Regier Kreider (Western District Mennonite Conference), Nathan Luitjens (Central Plains Mennonite Conference), Phil Helmuth (MDS).
full circle from cutting plywood and assembling cabinets in Goessel to final installation in southwest Louisiana. I was able to see a couple of ways we could even make improvements.” The cabinet shop has ramped up capacity to fabricate kitchen cabinets for at least 50 new homes a year.
CANADA
MDS Annual Celebration in Fresno, California
The Spirit of MDS fund supports congregations across Canada serving their communities. “It was so encouraging to hear the impact and responses these hampers had on the recipients as well as those who volunteered to deliver them,” said Associate Pastor Brenton Friesen of Gospel Mission Church in Winkler, Manitoba. A grant from MDS Canada’s Spirit of MDS Fund supported the church’s efforts to distribute 190 hygiene hampers to low income community members in May 2023. Grants from the Fund can be used to support people in need with home construction or renovation projects; food or resources for those in crisis; ministry and service projects where volunteers serve the neighbourhood; or other creative ideas that fit MDS Canada’s core values: Faith in Action and Caring Relationships.
Elder Theresa Dardar of Pointe-Aux-Chien Indian Tribe (PACIT) talks with Aaron Levy of FEMA.
MDS ANNUAL CELEBRATION
ARIZONA
Under the theme “Ready, Set, Grow!” the annual celebration held Feb. 22- 23 in Fresno, California, drew more than 250 people in person. Attendees heard stories of hope from disaster survivors, joyful reunions among volunteers, and a glimpse of a future in which MDS grows in its witness of being the hands and feet of Jesus. Hosted by MDS Region 4 (Western U.S.), MDS California Unit, Butler Church, and Fresno Pacific University, the intergenerational crowd at the gathering swapped stories and advice during interactive training, in the hallways, and during a signature MDS ice cream social.
Hopi school has a new outlook.
Radiating faith in Louisiana A group of Mennonite conference pastors, representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and MDS staff and volunteers toured several MDS disaster response sites in Southwest Louisiana in January 2024. What did they observe?
The Peace Academy—a school of the Hopi Tribe, a sovereign nation in Northeastern Arizona—needed repairs after the furnace failed and waterlines burst, causing widespread flood damage. With about four volunteers onsite each day, MDS replaced plumbing, ceilings, and drywall, working on bathrooms, the teachers’ lounge, a hallway, and 24-by- 23-foot classroom. They upgraded the insulation to help keep heating costs down and keep the school cooler in the summertime.
“One man spoke of the helplessness he felt as a father, husband, and son who couldn’t care for his family because they had no place to live. Not only is MDS rebuilding homes, but they are rebuilding hope! So many of the homeowners we met have faced such devastation and trauma here in Southwest Louisiana, especially with the onslaught of storms from August 2020 through October 2021. Many homeowners shared the sentiment that “This is home for us,” because often they were being asked ‘Why don’t you move somewhere else instead of living here?’ Every homeowner wanted us to understand that home is so much more than a building, but having an affordable home that is well built means so much to them.” —KARLA MORTON Moderator-elect, Pacific Northwest Mennonite Conference
“I have seen the homes you’ve been building. They are to some of the highest standards and they’re built from the heart. You radiate faith. I’ve been really impressed with your work. I felt that there was a unity of purpose and a unity of mission. There is a lot of appreciation for MDS and the partnerships you’ve created. I have a challenge for all of you. Is there one thing that you can do wherever you are working on an MDS project to help people prepare for the next disaster? I guarantee you if you just take one step together as a family, as a community, whatever that might be, you’re going to be a lot safer for the next disaster.” —AARON LEVY Director of Individual and Community Preparedness for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
“We observed the joy and diligence of the volunteers as they gave of themselves. Nothing, however, could match the palpable elation and gladness of the new homeowners. It was not possible to remain unaffected by the beaming delight and thrill in their eyes. I came to a new appreciation of the work of MDS and the difference they are making in devastated lives. I also came away with a new admiration for the work of a government agency like FEMA. In those few days, days when I often felt my breath taken away, I learned that collaboration by people of goodwill, undergirded by a spirit of compassion, creates room for hope to dispel fear and despair.” —STANLEY GREEN Executive Conference Minister for the Pacific Southwest Mennonite Conference
BRITISH COLUMBIA
KANSAS
Apply for a grant by July 15, 2024, at https://mds.org/spirit-of-mds-fund.
Volunteers needed to rebuild homes in two locations this spring/summer.
Galen Waltner likes making cabinets.
A resident of Moundridge, Kansas, Waltner volunteers in the MDS cabinet shop in Goessel once a week, where he helps make the cabinets that are installed in MDS-built homes across the United States. During a recent volunteer stint in Louisiana, Waltner, for the first time, was able to help with the installation of cabinets in homes being built. He remarked, “It was awesome to see how they fit, and to see the project come
In response to destruction caused by wildfires, MDS is building homes in Lytton (the ancestral and unceded territory of the Nlaka’pamux Nation) and Shuswap (the ancestral and unceded territory of the Secwépemc Nation). Those interested in volunteering can contact MDS Canada.
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14 behind the hammer
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