Jesus coming, get ready! Go Wildcats!

Frenchburg is, if possible, even more rural than Sunbright, TN (where I spent about nine weeks last summer working for Appalachia Service Project). Frenchburg has two roads, 551 residents, and countless dogs and cats.

I arrived in Kentucky on Tuesday night, after driving for about 9 hours. Before coming to Frenchburg, I visited my friend Elizabeth, who I worked with in Sunbright last summer, and who is working in Barbvourville (pronounced Bahr-vull), KY this summer. On Thursday, I arrived at the Glenmary Sisters' Frenchburg Mission around one pm. I arrived to a home-cooked lunch, including cherry pie made with freshly picked cherries. There are two sisters here, both named Kathleen Mary. Sister Kathleen is Irish and loves to give me lots of homemade pie, cobbler and other desserts. Sister Kathy is from Wisconsin and loves to give me Ale-8 (a delicious type of soda not unlike gingerale that can be found only in Kentucky). Last weekend, Sister Kathleen celebrated her fiftieth anniversary with Glenmary at the annual Glenmary Sisters jubilee in Owensboro, KY, and so this week has been a little bit slower than usual. I have been getting the lay of the land and meeting community members (including going to a little league baseball game for eight year olds and seeing nearby Cave Run Lake, a very beautiful and large lake that I can't wait to swim in!!).

I have also been learning about the projects that I will be helping the sisters with this summer. We will have two volunteer groups for one week each, who will work on some construction projects. I got to visit one of the houses they will be working on yesterday, and am sure that I will see the other home (apparently in dire need of many repairs) soon. Sister Kathy and I are also working on starting a 4-H club to provide activities for some of the highschool aged youth who have little in the way of positive activiites to keep them occupied when school is out. We will also begin helping an elderly (94!) man who lives near the Church and needs some help around the house with simple things. Sister Kathy, who took final vows in October and is spending her first summer here in Frenchburg, would like to expand the sisters' ministry to the elderly here. The sisters are also working on getting citizenship for a woman who immigrated illegally from Mexico with one son and is now married with another son here in KY. After she improves her english (and we improve our spanish!), we may be able to work more with the mexican immigrants who work in the nearby sawmills. Finally, the sisters opened a community center and thrift shop a few years ago, and I will be spending some time helping out with that. Beyond this, there are many other community members to whom the sisters provide much needed ministry.

In terms of prayer life, we pray twice a day in the chapel next to our house. On tuesdays, the sisters have Mass here at the chapel. The nearest Catholic Church is about 20 miles away, and this is where we will go on Sundays. Another one is about 30 miles away. There are very few Catholics here in Menifree county, and the sisters provide a much needed Catholic presence for these few Catholics.

The Drive Down

10 June 2008
Barbourville, KY

I am FINALLY in Kentucky, but not with the Sisters quite yet. After driving for almost nine hours through four states (Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee and Kentucky), spending $80 on gas (1/4 tank left), listening to 135 songs and stopping three times (Burger King, gas station, and roadside pullover), I finally arrived at Union College in Barbourville, KY, where a friend of mine is working for Appalachia Service Project (asphome.org). It is both weird and wonderful to be back in Appalachia, just about two and a half hours from where I lived and worked for ASP last summer, Sunbright, TN. The last two or three hours of my drive were STUNNING, though I am not surprised: Kentucky is one of the most beautiful states in the country, believe it or not.

Below is my packing list - this is everything I brought for eight weeks in Appalachia. Well, perhaps you will think it is a lot, but I really tried to pack light!


Clothing
• 6 T-Shirts
• 4 Painting shirts
• 1 long sleeve shirt
• 5 other shirts (Mass appropriate)
• Four skirts
• 2 Cardigans (black and blue)
• 5 undershirts
• Overalls
• Sky blue jumpsuit
• 2 pairs chino shorts
• 1 pair painting pants
• 1 pair khakis
• 1 sweatshirt
• 4 pairs Sofie shorts
• Underwear
• Socks
• 2 dresses
• veil

Shoes
• Chaco’s
• Rainbows
• 2 pairs flats (black, blue)
• Crocs
• Work boots

Toiletries
• Toothbrush
• Shampoo and conditioner
• Face wash
• Lotion
• Make-up
• Aromatherapy things
• Perfume
• Razor
• hairbrush

Entertainment
• I-pod, headphones, adapter, charger
• Cross-stitching thread, cloth and patterns
• Camera, camera connector
• Computer, cord

Books:
o Spirit of the Liturgy (Benedict)
o The Latin Mass Explained (Moorman)
o The Sacrament of Charity (Benedict)
o (Pieper)
o Milestones (Benedict)
o (Schall)
o The Great Divorce (Lewis)
o Freedomnomics (Lott)
o Short Stories (James)
o (Newman)
o Missal

Other
• Dirty laundry bag
• Towel
• Nalgene bottle
• Rosary
• Pillow
• Cell phone, charger
• Wallet (license, credit card)
• Tote bag
• Glasses
• Stationery
• Sunglasses’
• Alarm clock

Not included on the list is the Bible, though I brought two copies.

Please forgive the dullness of this entry; I've just driven nine hours.

First Phone Call

After playing phone tag with Sister Kathleen for about three weeks, I finally reached her! She was warm, friendly, energetic and enthusiastic. She has an Irish accent with a slight Appalachian twang, if you can believe it. I immediately felt right at home speaking with her. I had caught her at a busy time, but look forward to speaking with her again sometime during the coming week.

It sounds like the sisters have a very busy life, and have a lot planned for the summer. We will have two groups of volunteers during my stay, which is very exciting. With the groups I will get to do painting and other construction work which means... carhart overalls and blue jumpsuit!!! Get excited, as there will certainly be pictures.

I also learned that I will have internet during the summer, which is exciting (and the reason why I started this blog). Stay tuned for an update on my next conversation with Sr. Kathleen!

Howdy

In just under three weeks (June 10), I will depart for the lovely land down South. I will be spending approximately seven weeks with the Glenmary Sisters in Frenchburg, KY. The purpose of this blog is to make updates on my adventures. I hope to update the blog about once per week. Enjoy!