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Hurricane Helene_October 2024

It is all. so. surreal.

-Wine To Water etched in dirt on a truck, hauling relief supplies to remote areas of these mountains.

-A family owned trucking company bringing 3 tractor trailer loads of donated goods from hours away.

-A c130 refueling a helicopter while circling the sky above our warehouse.

-Hundreds of volunteers showing up to sort donations and package food bags and hygiene kits.

-Water. And more water.

-Prayers with a young couple who lost their home and business in the storm and came to us, just the clothes on their backs, to get food and supplies.

-Tractor trailer loads at our loading docks around the clock.

-Getting 15 minutes to sit down and eat food and laugh with a friend while all of the above happens around us.

-Standing in my 3rd floor room at a local hotel one evening, and longing to go back to what Autumn in the mountains usually looks like.

-Turning into my driveway to find the porch light on at my house after a week without power and water.

My mind can't really process all that I've seen and experienced this past week, but I know God is at work in the midst of the chaos. Giving hope, comfort, supernatural strength and peace.

I appreciate every call, text, email, and prayer. I'm surrounded by a team of incredible humans who won't stop. There is a new normal now. This season will forever be etched in our hearts and our minds.

May God be glorified in all that we do and say, may He be near to the brokenhearted, and may He continue to sustain us by His grace, and use us to meet the needs of those around us...

“I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” Psalm‬ ‭121‬:‭1‬-‭2

What inspires you?_January 2024

The spare room/office at my place features paintings from my Mawmaw, Charlotte Freeman.

Painted in 2001, 2010, and 2012, I think about the seasons of life she was in when these strokes of brilliance were put to canvas. In 2001 her son had a life-threatening injury and spent 8 weeks in a hospital. In 2010 and 2012 after over 50 years of marriage, she was still adjusting to life as a widow, building community, making meals and hosting her neighbors and people from her local church. Seeing these paintings, you wouldn't know her heart was breaking or that she was a worried mother, or the times she may have felt really lonely... you only see the beauty that she saw in the world around her. I believe this was one way she felt joy in the hard times and likely had a scripture or song in her heart as she created these. In her final years on this earth, she gave away so many of her paintings, never made money from them, just gave them in love. Outpourings of the depth of her faith, the generosity of her spirit, and the joy and contentment she found in serving others. God gave us a masterpiece in the form of my sweet Mawmaw, and she gave us this legacy. It's not a trust fund or life savings that she passed down to me, but this art, these extensions of her creative mind and loving heart, and caring hands, are to me, priceless.

God gave her an incredible gift, and she gave us her heart. I miss her more and more each year, but I continue to be inspired by her!! To use the gifts and talents and wisdom that God has given me, to be selfless and kind, and like she did through these beautiful paintings, bring joy and beauty to the world around me.

The Enemy of Love… May 2023

I read somewhere recently,

"the enemy of love is not hatred,

the enemy of love is apathy."

It is overwhelming to see a need so great and feel so powerless. But what is worse, is to see a need and turn away, to not care, to not try!

Traveling to other countries, meeting new people, and learning about other cultures reminds me how important it is, to embrace and value our differences.

And yet, I'm also learning that we are all the same, in this way: We all have needs. Some needs are very visible, more drastic, such as the need for clean water. Some needs are internal, less obvious, such as the need to be seen and heard and loved...

I believe God, our Creator gives each of us unique gifts and resources. Wherever we have been placed in the world, when we see a need, we can use our God-given gifts and resources to meet it! And that is what brings the most meaning and fulfillment in life!

Love does not run from the needs of people, love runs to meet the needs.

And that doesn't always require some great sacrifice, or a major life change, or a visit to another country.

Maybe it just means that I listen more, show up, be a friend, lend a hand, show kindness, stay when it gets hard, give a hug, be a mentor, make a donation, send a text...

For me, last week, it meant getting my hands (and some sweat) into some clay, to make water filters...

I know I cannot be everything to everyone, at all times, but I can be someone who cares, who tries, someone who loves! We all have needs, and we all need each other.

To the WTW staff & volunteers I was privileged to meet, and laugh and explore with, in Dominican Republic, you inspired me!! I needed this trip and time with each of you, more than I knew- Thank you for meeting my need!!

May 7-12, 2023