Dust danced on the narrow gravel road leading to a Noxubee County address GPS doesn’t recognize. Trees grew close on both sides of the hard-packed earth punctuated by the occasional dip. The only feature unexpected in the rural setting was an unbroken quarter-mile-long line of freshly-turned dirt bordering one side of the road. To John Cotton, that dirt looked like an answered prayer.
Cotton has lived at the end of the remote road for years; he is finally getting running water to the house. The trenched dirt marked the route of pipe buried Wednesday, from an existing county water line to the residence. The work was not done by any county department, though; it was instead thanks to Amish Work Week volunteers.
Several times yearly, Amish young adults travel to Mississippi from Indiana and Pennsylvania to partner with the Mennonite Service Center (MSC) in Noxubee County for a week-long blitz of home repair.
“From May 20-24 we had 53 energetic Amish young adults teaming up with us to make a difference in human life improvements,” said volunteer project coordinator Larry Miller of Macon. “MSC is a network member of Volunteer Mississippi. Our home repair ministry helps the elderly, disabled and handicapped, and we depend totally on volunteer labor.”
This past week that included not only visiting Amish but also local Mennonite volunteers. “And when Air Force trainee Mike Ray offered to drive for our Amish work crews, we were elated,” said Miller.
All that hands-on help was directed toward work at up to 30 sites in Noxubee and Winston Counties. Previous Work Weeks have also included Lowndes County. Funding for necessary materials is generally by homeowners. Often on fixed incomes, they are able to make manageable monthly payments. The Amish volunteers also bring a charity offering to help bridge the gap for needs ranging from roofing, flooring and siding repair to painting, ramps, kitchen and bath repair — and water.
“Four families were given running water into their homes for the first time,” said Miller, glad Work Week teams could make that life-changing improvement a reality.
“This has been our mission for years now, and God gets all the glory in all of our work,” said MSC Area Director Beverly Mayo of Mashulaville, speaking of the projects undertaken.
Miller and Mayo are integral to the advance planning Amish Work Week requires, from project assessments, to organizing materials and equipment, to assembling teams. Work Week itself is a marathon for all involved. Everyone rises early and puts in an active day.
“At 5:30 a.m. they blow a horn, and we all get up and have breakfast at 6 a.m.,” said Lora Miller from LaGrange, Indiana. (She is a distant cousin to Larry Miller.) The 23-year-old and other traveling volunteers are housed in a dormitory, originally a house provided by Larry Miller’s family, converted to a youth dormitory.
After breakfast and a daily devotional, volunteers learn their daily job assignment. Seven sites were on the schedule Wednesday, when Lora helped backfill a quarter-mile water line trench with a shovel. On Thursday, at a different location, she was up on a roof wearing a tool belt.
When each day’s tasks were done, volunteers were transported back to the dormitory to clean up and enjoy supper together.
“After that, we sing or play games, sit around a campfire, some play guitar,” Lora said. “Often we go to bed around midnight, so by the end of the week we’re really tired, but the people you meet, spending time together and making new friends is great. The main thing is — we get to help someone.”
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Mayo alternated between three work sites Wednesday, including the water line project at the Cottons’ house. Holding a white binder filled with organized details about the week’s tasks, she noted the jobs teams wanted to finish before visiting volunteers returned to their home states Friday. Page by page, Mayo’s concern for each person on the schedule was apparent. Even when Amish Work Week ends, she and others with MSC will still be ministering to the community, whether through Meals on Wheels, taking people to the doctor or working closely with the health department or social workers who have specific concerns for someone’s health and safety.
Watching Mayo’s car and a van of volunteers drive away from his homeplace Wednesday afternoon, John Cotton mopped sweat from his brow and surveyed the newly-dug trench he helped on.
“I sure felt good when I heard I was getting water,” the 69-year-old said. “I’ve been praying for a while for this water.”
Like so many others helped during Amish Work Week, he offered heartfelt gratitude to the volunteers.
“I just thank them so much, I pray that God will bless them hundred-fold,” Cotton said. “I know God’s got something for them.”
One of those volunteers, Blaine Shaffer, drove 14 others down from Lancaster, Pennsylvania for the Work Week. It’s his third to take part in.
“I can’t even describe how awesome an experience it is,” he said. “I’ll be 60 next month. I had a heart attack seven years ago, and then I had cancer six years ago. … I was just kind of drifting, and this gives me purpose. It’s amazing just seeing these kids and working with them, seeing their work ethic and dedication. They give, they give of themselves. It’s an inspiration.”
“What means the most,” said Lora Miller,” is we help people that maybe didn’t have hope that someone would ever care. We want to give them hope; we want to show them that there is someone who cares.”
Jan Swoope is the Lifestyles Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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