BLOG ARCHIVE :
07.28.10 | Day Seven Wednesday
The last day of Operation Foundation was spent scrambling to finish up projects that had been started for the week. With the threat of rain looming for most of the day, we made almost perfect timing, finishing up just before the downpour.
The Summer Splash and Closing Service were both moved to the Crosswalk on Townline Rd. It was a tight fit, but we were able to cram the festivities into the building. Over 130 school supply kits were handed out and everyone had a great time celebrating the week together.
Thanks for a great week! Over 500 volunteers, 5,000 volunteer hours, 91 locations, and 128 tasks later, Ligonier, Indiana is looking great!
This was just the beginning- now's the time to go out there and "Operation Foundation" every day!
07.27.10 | Day Six Tuesday
Tuesday brought out the largest turnout of volunteers in one day. 211 people came out to help us finish up the week strong!
Projects for the day included landscaping at the Presbyterian Church, Painting a garage, Washing windows downtown, Roofing a house, and continuing work on the Elkhart River Walk.
07.26.10 | Day Five Monday
Monday's volunteer count was 197. Work continued on the Elkhart River Walk and various other projects around town. We were joined by a large crew from The Crossing and also the United Methodist Church youth group.
07.25.10 | Day Four Sunday
Sunday was a day of rest for all of our volunteers. It was a much needed break and everyone was encouraged to attend their church and spread the word about what God is doing in Ligonier this week. It was not quite so restful for the handful of people charged with the task of setting up for the Sunday evening concert and worship sevice, however. Thanks to Nate Reynolds, Daniel Patrick, Tim Schermerhorn, Dewayne and Marsha Patrick and all of the others for making it happen!
On Sunday night, the B. Andrews Band from Hancock, Wisconsin headlined the free concert downtown at the fire station. The opening act was The Soundtrack band from Leo, Indiana.
07.24.10 | Day Three Saturday
Pastor Joey Nelson of Stone's Hill Community Church led devotions. He spoke of the three gardens. The first garden is the Garden of Eden. It was a well tended garden. Mankind was given a mandate - be Adam and Eve, tend to the cultural garden. The second garden is Gethsemane, where Christ came and surrendered His life. We should die a death to our own schedules, everyday we should show up and die to self interest. The third garden was the garden of resurrection-garden tomb. It is important to take the message of the gospel into our community. Newness is spread around wherever we go. We should create new life in cemetery places, wherever we are. Operation Foundation 2010 has to till in three gardens- only God knows what will come...
Saturday was River Cleanup day and we had 22 volunteers go down the river this year. The trash and debris found each year continues to go down which is very encouraging to see! In a couple of years, we will just be taking a nice relaxing canoe ride down the beautiful Elkhart River! Our total number of volunteers for the day was 153.
Also on day three, work continued on the large house on Main Street. The sagging porch columns were shored up and reinforced. They should be standing tall for years to come.
A meal of spaghetti was provided to all workers for lunch by Daniels cafe. Workers were also treated to a free pork burger by The Tire Star. Thank you so much!!
07.23.10 | Day Two Friday
Day two devotion was given by Tom Leitch. He said don't be a doubting Thomas. Trust God and just wait for what He has for you! Don't place limitations on God, He will move mountains. Be totally dependant on God because nothing is too small for Him.
On Friday, Operation Foundation brought out 165 volunteers. Work on the Elkhart River Walk continued with most of the trail being blazed by Jason Becker and his crew. We also had a crew from Jeld-Wen that helped with the river walk. Concrete footers were poured to support the new aluminum bridges which were built and supplied to the city for material cost only.
Prep work continued on our painting projects. A garage on Union St. got painted and cleanup crews continued making their way through the city.
During the day the volunteers were treated to sno-cones, a nice surprise on a 90+ degree day!
07.22.10 | Day One Thursday
Day one was started bright and early with everyone being so excited to get a new year underway! Mayor Patty Fisel gave our first devotion. She said humility and humbleness are important when out on the jobsite. We are representing Christ and should do everything with gentleness and kindness, to God's glory, not ours. She ended with Phillipians 6:7.
Our first responder Joan went over heat exhaustion.She told us what signs to look for and how to prevent it. Symptoms include, dizziness, nausea, headache, fatigue, and rapid pulse.
The first day started the week out right with 191 volunteers for the day. Despite the high temperatures, many came out to help. Some of the projects that got done today mainly involved prep work for painting and alot of yard work. City crews were working alongside volunteers removing tree stumps.
One encouraging project that was completed was the addition of a new welcome sign to Ligonier on the East side of town. Formerly a rusty abandoned sign to C.C. Rider, volunteers including Kelly Shidler, Harlan Hite, Joey Nelson, and Kreager Brothers made this vision a reality.
Supper for the evening was chicken noodles
mashed potatoes
green beans
applesauce
Thank you to Beta Sigma Phi Sorority and Fern's Noodles for donating the meal.
07.21.10 | Opening Day Wednesday
Here are some pictures from the opening service on Wednesday night. Everyone had a good time worshiping the Lord and celebrating the community. The band sounded great and each of the speakers did a wonderful job. We also had an organization from Florida come in called "Homeless Heroes" and they served free hot dogs and snacks and gave away non-perishable food items. Here are some pictures from the evening:
07.17.10 | Final Planning Meeting on Monday!
Please plan on attending the final planning meeting for Operation Foundation on Monday evening 7/19 at 6 PM. The meeting will be held at the Command Center downtown. (Old Village Market 108 S. Cavin St.)
Even if you are not interested in being a team leader, but would like to learn more about Operation Foundation, you are more than welcome to attend!
During this meeting, we will provide a rundown of the week, including which projects are going to be completed, who is going to be leading those projects, and alot of other exciting stuff!
Hope to see you all there and we look forward to another successful work week!
07.16.10 | Thank you to our Sponsors!
Operation Foundation would like to publicly recognize and thank our sponsors:
- Dekko Foundation- $8,000
- Kreager Brothers Excavating- Use of Big Equipment/ Manpower- approx value $3,000
- Jennie Thompson Foundation- $2,000
- Stone’s Hill Community Church- $1,500
- Kroger/ Owen’s/ Scott’s- $1,100
- Jeld-Wen Ligonier Plant- $300 + 50 hours paid employee time- approx value $800
- Campbell & Fetter Bank- Ligonier- $500
- Ligonier Lion's Club- $500
- Ligonier Chamber of Commerce- $300
- KPC Media Group/ Advance Leader- $300
- Pizza Hut Ligonier- $300
- Superior Sample Company- 32 hours paid employee time- approx value $300
- Lake City Bank-Ligonier Branches- $150
- Ligonier Rotary Club- $100
As an all-volunteer grassroots organization, we depend entirely on in-kind giving from individuals, businesses, non-profits, and foundations. By choosing to sponsor Operation Foundation, you are enabling over 600 volunteers to get out and serve in the community in which they live for one whole week out of the year.
Your donations will be used for equipment rental, dumpsters, t-shirts, and water and snacks for the volunteers. 100% of the funds we receive go toward the project as we have no paid staff.
If you have not had the opportunity to donate or have not yet been asked, there is still time! We accept donations throughout the year, and as a non-profit 501(c)3, your donations are tax-deductible.
NEWSLETTER:
Sign up for our email newsletter.
CONTACT:
Chris Fought, President
Phone: 260.894.2839
Email: chris [at] operationfoundation.com
Matt Kreager, Project Coordinator
Phone: 260.894.4151
Email: matt [at] operationfoundation.com
Barb Donley, Treasurer
Phone: 260.894.2316
Email: barb [at] operationfoundation.com
Christina Pena, Secretary
Email: christina [at] operationfoundation.com
