Big Plans For The Howell Center

This time last year, my wife and I made one of the hardest decisions of our lives. We placed our mentally and physically handicapped daughter in a home. We believed it was best for her and our family. One year later....it is always hard to know that your daughter lives in a "special home" and not your home. We miss having her with us....but we know that it is best and she loves being there.

The Howell Center is located off I485 and only minutes from our home. Over the last year while going to visit Ellie I have noticed that the Howell Center is in need of some outdoor playground equipment and other such things. Knowing that we were having our 10 serving projects to celebrate our 10 year anniversary...I contacted the Howell Center about us serving there and providing some clean up and some new outdoor play areas and just nice sitting areas for the people who live there. They were of course delighted. However, they wanted to know if we could first focus on their largest need....that being their indoor therapy pool. The roof had started leaking 5 years ago and other things went wrong too. So, they closed the pool down 5 years ago. As you can imagine, for many people there who can't walk and live their lives in a wheelchair this has taken away their only means of free movement. It also is a great physical work out for people with physical disabilities.

Once they asked us to look into it......I brought some Team Church members who work in this kind of area over to the Howell Center to see if they thought it was possible. As expected, they said this would be hard. It would be challenging. It would cost lots of money. It would take a lot of volunteer hours.......SO..."YES! Let's do it!" We have set our goals to redo the indoor pool room AND do the out door recreational areas. BIG GOAL....BIGGER GOD!

So started what will be a five month process. As you read last week a Middle School Home Team went over and cleaned the pool area. We have a Team Church lead crew that has made an attack schedule for the next few months. We have also caught the attention of a local store that may help with some material donations. We have had other companies that are represented by our volunteer crew to chip in with some free or at cost supplies as we have to completely redo the inside of this pool room. Everything from sky lights, to dry wall, to a new bathroom. Ty Pennington would be proud.

Next week we will release the workday schedules. Here are the days to be looking for 3/22 , 4/5 and the BIG day is May 16th. Not all can do each day we have...but maybe you can hit one.

For now I need to put out the call for a professional electrician. We need someone to monitor and advise in this area. Please email Kurt Wood for information.

When this is done.....it will be the single greatest volunteer project we have ever accomplished......and it will be for people who will never sit in our great seats at our church. This is what I love about all 10 of our service projects. They are truly mission focused and it is costing us where it hurts....our time and money.

In these hard economic times people like the ones we are helping can't count on a Spending Bill from the Government....nor should they. They can and should count on local churches like Team Church to do the job of the church.

Great job TEAM CHURCH


Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.
- James 1:27