We never would have guessed...

We never would have guessed when we started on this adventure how many experiences and new friends would come our way.
We started last fall to head to our first gig in the Texas hill country. A beautiful area.  A different beauty than what we were used to, but beautiful in it's own way.
While working there, we became neighbors with John and Barb Eppler, another workamper couple.

Christmas day, we started heading to our next gig in the Florida panhandle.

Taking a few days to decompress before starting our new job, we made a stop in New Orleans to see Matt and Carrie, the nearly weds!  As always, time with them was too short.

We arrived in Blountstown Florida to such devastation from Hurricane Michael.

If you've never seen how destructive the force of a hurricane can be, it will take your breath away.  Trees toppled every direction you looked.  Homes and businesses blown apart. Blue tarps covering almost every roof you see.

We knew that we would be needed at the Pioneer Settlement.  Not for the skills we thought they would need, but for other skills we possessed.

This collection of historic buildings, had literally, been blown to bits by the hurricane.  They too, were part of the "blue tarp nation".  Walls blown out, roofs ripped off, buildings off kilter.  And the trees!  Once, when you walked into the settlement, the proud southern pines stood sentinel over this idyllic location.  Now they were gone.  Snapped like toothpicks. Littering every part of the settlement.  Some blocking your path.  Some through roofs.  Some laying down like the wounded.  The smell of pine pitch permeated the air.

The work to be done was overwhelming. There was not one building that didn't need fixing.  But, the man " upstairs" knew who would be needed to bring the settlement back to life.  Roofers, carpenters, electricians, office people, computer people, groundskeepers, gardeners, cleaners, the list goes on.

Each of the workampers brought a skill that was needed to see past the destruction, see to the future.

We learned what everyone's skill set was and how best to utilize those skills.

Below you will see pictures of these people that we proudly call friends.  

The founders of the settlement (who are in their 80's!) were there, working alongside those of us who wanted to see hope, once again, in their eyes.

God speed to these amazing people.  See you in the fall.