Bethel Student Reports On Service Project: ASP 2011 ~ By Paul Rodgers

Editor’s Note: On Saturday, July 30, a team of 50 volunteers from the Bethel United Methodist Church embarked on a week-long journey to repair homes in Appalachia, West Virginia. Click here to read article. Below is an article one of the volunteers, Bethel 15-year-old Paul Rodgers wrote about his experience on the trip.

We arrived at the Methodist Church in Fishersville, Virginia, around 10:00 p.m. on Saturday night, the first night of our trip. The next morning they woke us up early to prepare for the ride from Fishersville to our ASP center in Guyan Valley in West Virginia. It was a four hour drive from Fishersville.

My team consisted of Steve D, our team leader, three adults- Sharon, Kasia and Uta, and three kids- Max, Erin and I. When we arrived at our work site the lady wasn’t answering the door so we starting working. Our job for the week was underpinning (blocking the animals and wind from entering the space below the trailer) and putting up siding. After an hour the woman whose house we were working on, Anita, came out. With one look at me she said “Your mischievous aren’t you. Steve, just look at his eyes.” She smiled at me and I immediately knew it was going to be a fun and humorous week.

Tuesday was an average working day. We went to the work site, had lunch with Anita, worked some more and finished the underpinning. Now it was all siding. That night we were treated to a band called “Crossroads Bluegrass Band”.

On Wednesday were heard reports of a thunder storm coming our way. One the way to the work site Steve Deuschle said that as long as it is only a quick shower we’ll stay. Right around lunch time it started down pouring so we went inside to eat. Anita found out it was Max’s Birthday and insisted on making a cake for the next day. Anita’s husband Jeffrey showed us is extremely large model train collection. After about two hours we resumed working and Jeffrey and Anita joined us outside. Thunder started to rumble and clouds started moving in. “How long does it take you to pack up?” asked Jeffrey. When Steve D replied “20 Minutes” Anita practically made us leave, for our own safety. Thinking of workers standing on metal ladders, hammering iron nails into a metal trailer a week after she had lighting strike her yard didn’t seem safe to her.

On Thursday we started to finish the siding around Anita’s door. During lunch she presented Max with a chocolate birthday cake. Thursday on ASP is always the day where we go for a picnic in a state park. The ride to the park was a little less than a half hour long. We were the last car to arrive an when we did everyone was gathered at a low wooden fence. The view was absolutely amazing. It was a farily large but steep drop to a lake which was surrounded by a mountains and dams.

On Friday we said goodbye to our families.  Anita’s grandkids, Mikey, Casey, Matthew and Caden were over. We were immdedialty attached to them as they were to us.  Everyone on site, the crew, Anita and her grandkids, were very upset that we had to leave. It was an emotional time. ASP isn’t just about repairing someone’s house; it is about creating a bond with them and others.

I really enjoy doing this mission trip because it gives me the opportunity to help people. After this trip I came back really appreciating things. One of the things Anita said was “I never though I would need to ask for help.” We can all relate to this because someone could happen to us in an instant and might need help.

What I took away from this experience is that every home is different, everywhere you go, but theres no place like home.

To learn more about ASP please visit www.asphome.org. For information on next year’s trip, please contact John Esposito at espo@bethelmethodist.net.

Don’t forget Thursday is DAWS Kitten Adoption Open House from 4:00-8:00p.m. Reduced fees!Below is information, courtesy of DAWS.

Event Details

Jun 30 2011

Location: DAWS Shelter

4pm – 8pm

First come, first served

Adoption fee: $75

We have more than 25 kittens currently in foster care looking for loving homes. We have both male and female kittens that range in age from 8 – 14 weeks old….they’re really little and cute and come in a variety of colors and fur lengths!  To help them find their forever-homes, we will be having a special Kitten Open House on June 30 at the DAWS Shelter (147 Grassy Plain Street, Bethel) from 4pm – 8pm.

We will show kittens to potential adopters on a first come, first serve basis. Please come prepared to wait as a few people may come or a lot of people may come. We will do our best to limit visits to 15 minutes per family.

Pre-Approved Applicants can take kittens home the same day!  For fastest service, the day of the event, please complete and return a cat application (download it here) to cats@daws.org by June 28.  NOTE:  We reference check all of our prospective adopters.  If your application is approved, you will be able to take your kitten home on June 30.  Applications received during the open house, will be processed following the event.

All kittens will have age appropriate vaccines/medical care at time of adoption and will be altered. If you have questions, please email cats@daws.org.

The kittens are cute, cuddly, and playful.  Take a look at a few of the little ones waiting to meet you:

Sharon:

Union:

Berlin:

Jetson:

Kimshi:

Wren:

 

Please download the event flyer and post it on a community bulletin board at the supermarket, gym, coffee house – anywhere you can think of.  We appreciate your help to make sure everyone knows about our Kitten Adoption Event!

We are also in need of foster homes for kittens.  If you’re interested in fostering, please email daws@daws.org.

Own a piece of Bethel’s history by purchasing the Bethel Women’s Club 2011 Soldier’s and Sailors pewter ornament.

Bethel, CT's Soldiers & Sailor's Monument in Center Cemetery on South Street. Photo Contributed.

The Bethel Women’s Club is happy to announce their new 2011 pewter ornament featuring the Civil War Monument located in Center Cemetery on South Street. The ornament commemorates the 150th Anniversary of the start of the Civil War. It is oval-shaped, made out of pewter and features Bethel’s historic Soldiers & Sailor’s monument in Center Cemetery on South Street. (pictured above) Wendy Gillette designed the new ornament. The Bethel Women’s Club chose the statue to commemorate the 150^th anniversary of the start of the Civil War and will sell it as their club fundraiser throughout the year.

Although the monument’s lettering reads “Soldiers and Sailors,” the monument was originally known as the “Soldier’s Monument.” It was dedicated on May 30, 1892 to honor 14 fallen Civil War heroes. A special train was brought from Danbury to transport several thousand people who came to the dedication of the statue. The dedication on the front, north side of the statue reads “In memory of the soldiers and sailors of Bethel who gave their lives in defense of the Union. 1861-1865.”

On the south side of the monument it lists the names and regiments of the 14 residents who were killed in the war and whose remains were never recovered. Three of the soldiers fell at Gettysburg.

The 14-foot high monument was carved from a 14-foot block of solid granite and designed by Miller & Luce, according to the www.chs.org website.  It features many distinctive carvings, raised scroll for the dedication lettering and intricate stone cutting. The total cost of the monument was $17,000, a town meeting had appropriated $1,000 and the source of the additional funds is not known.

Ornaments are for sale at Hedgehog & Company, 152 Greenwood Ave. or across the street at A Country Touch, 145 Greenwood Ave. The cost is $10. The Bethel Women’s Club will also be selling the ornament at the Bethel Chamber’s Summer Sidewalk Sale, July 15-17, 2011.

For more information about the Bethel Women’s Club, contact Co-Presidents Elaine McCormack at (203) 744-2254 or Bonnie Clark at (203) 748-6243.