Thursday and Friday was a new house for each group. Our group repaired Nelson's roof, did some interior paint scraping and yard cleanup. Nelson is an elderly widower. He has no family nearby. His home was quite bare. He had a few kitchen chairs but no table, a small loveseat and a bed. We surprised him with an early Christmas basket which held some basic essentials. There weren't any dry eyes in the house. He told his caseworker, who translated for us, that he wished we could stay. So much devastation, loneliness and frustration with the slow recovery. An elderly neighborhood woman stopped by with a cold bottle of water and a prayer card for each of us. She thanked us for helping in their neighborhood. Home tomorrow with many memories of lives we have touched. But almost as important is how our lives were blessed in return.