Matt's first lengthy-ish update from New Orleans!

We've completed our second day here with much success! It was a sweaty time, but we're doing good work. Martha and I worked with the Jr. High group at a house in desperate need of emergency lawn care and an inside paint job. We were joined by another group of volunteers from Memphis, who were just as stoked as us to be there. We wrangled the lawn and the inside simultaneously and finished both before a delicious lunch of red beans & rice back at the cathedral. Our Sr. High group met us for lunch as well, after their morning of demolition work. After cooling off for a bit, we worked with the kids in the summer program on academic tutoring in math and other subjects for a few hours, then came back to our house for rest time and eventual dinner preparations.

Tomorrow we're returning to our worksites from today and wrapping things up there. After lunch, Jr. High will move on to another lawn, though Sr. High will probably return back to the same site as today.

I've pulled a few pictures from various activities from yesterday and today, see below!

Peace,

~Matt

PS - for the record, internet is scarce in the house so I'm posting this from the passenger seat of our van (aka, Derek Gets Shotgun, or, the DGS) where there is an inexplicably strong internet connection.

Gabe slammin some dunks behind the cathedral.

Many a ferocious game of late-night speed Scrabble.

Cooking class at the cathedral!

Playing sports with kids with the Anna's Arts for Kids summer program.

The front lawn of a house before we got to work.