h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

As some of you know, we moved back to Del Norte county from Sacramento to plant a church in Klamath. (OK, technically the idea was more of a mission, because there's a large homeless population up here (proportionally large, anyway) but it evolved into a church instead.) Reach Out Ministries was launched shortly after. The first service was after the 2005/2006 New Year's flood (the one that destroyed the Vroom-Vroom Car)--a soup feed for those who had to move their trailors from the RV parks they were at, because the parks were right on the river. Reach Out Ministries Community Church (though not called that until much later) held its first evening service the last Sunday of January, 2006. Weekly, we had an evening service with a meal following. We were housed in the Klamath Community Center, and started out in the foyer. A few weeks later, we were allowed to use the main room, as well. A few weeks after *that*, we were using the foyer for the service, and the main room for the meal (and, during service, for somewhere to keep Faith out from underfoot) when, while I had my back turned for a few seconds getting the food arranged, the very heavy bookcase was pulled down on top of Faith and another little girl that was there (no injuries, though the bookcase was heavy enough to cause a tragedy--the girls were both small enough to fit between the shelves when it fell)--they were climbing it. After that, we were allowed use of what we called the playroom--a room set up by the Del Norte Child Care Council, though never used by anyone but us. It had several toys and games still in packaging, a couch, a glider rocker... Eventually, weekly meals were phased out, partly because the main cook (me) moved to Crescent City, and it was hard enough carrying a huge pot of soup and keeping it hot while we lived in Klamath, thank you, much less over 20 miles of Highway 101, a road not known for its straightaways. Sunday morning services began in July of 2006, meaning that the Paper Clan stayed in the building all day, as 2 round trips (Crescent City-Klamath) would be a bit much. While we had impressive turnout for the Halloween party, the Thanksgiving service, the Christmas service (over 100 people out of a community of roughly 800), and the Easter service, the normal attendance, counting the 3 of us and Tom's parents, was a dozen or so at its peak. I think that, when newsletters were actually written, more were mailed to Sacramento (and later emailed to various places--though none have actually been written since the emailing started...) more went out of the area than there were people in the church I do know that there have been times that there have been more visiting vacationers than non-Pawloskis Not that numbers matter--it's just a bit telling of a community's interest when the only time most people bother is when something's being given away (especially bicycles).

Last fall, a ministry called Our Daily Bread Ministries began in Crescent City. It's a feeding ministry, that feeds Del Norte County's homeless and poor 3 nights a week--over 7800 meals by the 4th of July parade. Tom began working with them soon after. A few months ago, he began working with them full time, once they had a permanent building (that in itself is a saga), while still pastoring the church in Klamath. Changes have happened elsewhere, too--there was a community rummage sale at the Klamath Community Center, and afterwards, 90+% of the toys were gone, and all of the furniture in the playroom, as well. The toys being gone wasn't much of a hardship, as we could bring those from home, but I, personally, really miss the couch... (All this time, all of the ministry equipment was hauled between our home and the community center--everything but the chairs and tables.)

July 29th, 2007 was the last day of Reach Out Ministries Community Church. Reach Out Ministries still exists, and will still do events in Klamath (we're going to be at the Salmon Festival on August 19th, for instance), but its base of operations will be in Crescent City. (Those that have the Klamath PO Box can still send mail to it--the mail will just be checked a bit less often.)

The focus of our life for 19 months is gone, but I think I can get used to seeing my husband a little bit more...

Indeed the end of an era, and very important slice of your lives. I think the pair of you should be so very proud for all that you have accomplished with Reach-Out. And somehow, I expect that you are not going to really find any more free time ... Folks who are so involved in community and volunteerism ALWAYS fall into things that will eat up every minute. 'Been there and done that', you know.

You could be right *says the person doing the cooking this Sodit (though that has to do with a deal that I forgot to mention in my other journal, which is where it rightly belongs...)*

But at least Tom won't be working on the Dontbry service after helping with the Doobry carwash all day, and I won't be sitting in a desk chair in a denuded room all day long, or napping on a floor that's little more than indoor-outdoor carpeting laid directly on cement.

I swear, Amy, you're doing so much cooking that you'll soon be running a restaurant.

Doing taste tests with your tongue, I see.