Color on the Walls!

We are making huge amounts of progress here on the CCO grounds! Volunteers both locally and from the Pittsburgh area have continued to show their support. 

The residential house on the grounds has come a long way. The framing went up, the sheetrock went up, and now it's finally time to paint! This has been a long process, but things are starting to shape up and you can truly see how far we've come. After the walls are painted, there is still much to be done. Floors and appliances still need to be installed, but we can't help but be excited that the end of this particular project is near. 

There are still buildings on the grounds that need work. What used to be the catering kitchen has gone untouched since demolition, the basement of the school has sheetrock but has not received much other attention. Please continue to lift up our mission and all of the work that surrounds it.

Fundraising

On October 7th, members from the Church of the Crucified One's music ministry (a.k.a. Soulfire), performed at the monthly Coffee House held in the sanctuary of the Trinity Methodist Church in Montpelier.  Many other groups and individuals performed as well - among them the Unity Singers from Woodbury and Terry Nally from Barre, and "The Mayor - Lucien Dufresne from Hardwick.  Over $2,500.00 were raised that evening, and the proceeds from the evening were dedicated to the rebuilding of the CCO and Juniper's Fare Restaurant!  

 

Switching Gears

Much has happened in the past weeks. Juniper's Fare has been totally renovated and is now OPEN! We couldn't be more thrilled about the new look & feel of the restaurant. We encourage you to stop by, say hello, and grab a bite to eat! 

 Now that construction is (mostly) finished over at Juniper's, the focus will once again be on the CCO grounds. Volunteers from Pennsylvannia are back, framing & installing dry-wall. We will share photos of the process as it occurs, as well as stories and testimonials. Please continue to keep this re-building in your prayers!

Week 3- The Beginning

The CCO grounds are very quiet right about now, but that doesn't mean that we're resting. Things at Juniper's Fare are happening FAST! The tentative re-opening date is NEXT friday, September 23rd. We will be posting more information on re-opening as that day gets closer. 

If you've ever stopped in at Juniper's, maybe for a delicious sandwich or a scoop of home made ice cream, you'll remember the old space. Yellow walls, black booths & tables...Well, things are going to be much different when we re-open. We're not ready to give anything away just yet, but that doesn't mean we can't tell you that the new wall that separates the kitchen from the dining roomhas already gone up, insulation is starting to be put in, and interior design plans are heavily underway. We can't wait to unveil the new Juni's! Here is a picture of the progress.

In other news, an incredible testimony was given on Sunday at mass. Karen (pictured below), who had been diagnosed with cancer which doctors said would never go away, went in for a test last week and was completely CANCER FREE! Amazing miracles are happening in this time, if you have a testimony feel free to send it to us!

Week 2

The past week seems like a day. After a very productive weekend on the CCO grounds, things have shifted gears and the attention of most volunteers is now over at Juniper's Fare. At this point, it is critical that the restaurant re-opens as soon as possible so that we can continue raising money for the rebuilding of CCO as well as supporting our missions abroad. Pictures of Juniper's Fare will be posted on a more regular basis as well as the progress and plans of reopening. You will also be able to follow Juniper's on a daily basis on their blog which will hopefully go live this weekend. (Link to be posted)

In the mean time, here are a few of the many inspiring flood stories we've witnessed. These particular stories come from Sr. Ruth Young, teacher at Precious Moments School, Resident and Wife of assistant-pastor Fr. Steve Young.

•For the past several days, our church community has been receiving meals from the Waterbusy Flood Relief Center. Last week I spoke with Maime - the woman in charge of organizing the meals, and she said the following: "You folks at the church are always on the front lines, helping out whenever there's a need, so we want to make sure that you are taken care of first." What a blessing!

•I wrote a letter to everyone I could think of to let them kno wwhat had happened to our church and restaurant, asking them to pray and help us to get back on our feet. I heard back from a mother of a former preschooler who now lives in California. She told me that he r son, (now 11) was thrilled to know that his old preschool was "Command Central" for flood relief efforts at the church, and that he wanted to give his Christmas money to help us re-build! He also went online and made a contribution through paypal with his own money. Now that is a giving heart!

•The preschool at Moretown Elementary School was flooded along with most of the school last weekend. I approached the (new) principal and new preschool teacher to see if they wanted to share our preschool space until their classroom was ready, and although they were very excited at the prospect of taking the children on a pre-pre-school field trip of sorts, they decided to get their room cleaned up and delay the opening of the preschool instead. However, the preschool teacher came to visit last week and asked if we could collaborate this year - doing pen pals and taking trips to each other's classrooms etc. It just goes to show that something good can come out of terrible circumstances.

Thank you, Ruth for sharing these inspiring stories with us. If you have a story or testimony that you'd like to share about the flood, please please contact us.