Chinese sheetrock

Well, you may have heard the rumblings out there, but here is the confirmation, we have indeed been flooded by Chinese sheetrock. If you haven't heard about this, it is low-cost sheetrock made in China that has been found to corrode copper, discolor silver jewlery, cause air conditioner and electronic device problems and it poses potential health complications.

I found out just before my last post that The Quad, the apartment building I live in, is full of the stuff. Therefore, it now has to be totally gutted and we must start over. Dingo has moved into the Yellow House and Ms. Deb has moved back to Iowa, so they started downstairs first. Those units are now gutted and we will begin the process of re-sheetrocking next week.

Praise God that there are several general contractors on the teams next week and we hope to accomplish a lot. Anthonika and I remain upstairs (with windows often wide open for ventilation) until the bottom units are finished and then we will be moving downstairs temporarily until they finish our apartments.

So the packing begins. Seems like just yesterday I moved in and just as I was finally feeling very settled it's packing time again. But God has been go throughout this process and he is providing for all our needs.

With all of the current properties affected, the estimated cost without volunteer labor is $39,000. The quad alone has 6,240 square feet that need to be redone. Our goal is to be finished by June 1. So, if you would like to help, here's what we need:

1. We need small teams of skilled labor, ie: professional drywallers, general contractors, skilled carpenters. We will provide the housing and meals and we have waived our Sunday to Saturday guidelines to allow teams to come anytime that is convenient for them. If you are interested in helping, contact Katie Hooks at katrinarelief@efca.org or give her a call at 704-305-3427.

2. We need financial contributions. As I mentioned, the cost of redoing all these homes is great but we believe that with financial contributions and volunteer labor we can keep the cost to around $8,000. Financial contributions can be made through http://www.urbanimpact.org/, make a note that it is for drywall repair.

As you can see, this past week has been very full of ups and downs and I am both physically and emotionally drained. The Beth Moore conference could not have come at a better time and God has been faithful to remind of his goodness and provision in the midst of this daunting task. Your continued prayers are greatly coveted. Please stay tuned here for updates and photos.