Thursday

The goal for the afternoon was to put all of the beams on top of the posts. This was a big challenge because the beams were to be put on top of the posts which were at least 14 feet high and the beams were heavy. The plan was to have Allan and Dr. J cut the tops off the posts and then have John, Troy, Adam, Chuck and me come behind. Troy, Adam, and John were going to climb the ladder as one beam covered three posts and each of them would nail the beam to the post. Chuck would organize and I would help them with anything they needed. I helped carry the beams from the spot they were stacked about 75 yards to where they were being put up. Most of the time Adam and I carried the beams and by the end of the day we were exhausted because of the walking and heavy beams.

The project took us until sunset and was very hard because of the sloppy muddy ground. We kept slipping and sliding and getting our shoes stuck in the mud. It just added time. Chuck said that the job should have taken us about 2 hours less, but because of the mud it took longer. No one complained, though.

Another challenge came in the afternoon when one of the guys overheated and was probably starting to get heatstroke. For about 30 minutes I helped him get cooled off and get plenty of water. Thankfully, he was okay. Chuck wouldn’t let him get up on a ladder anymore. Chuck switched with him and did a lot of the cutting and nailing himself. He is such a hard worker. 

We finished around 7 and then went to the compound as it was getting dark. It was a good day and set us up to complete the tresses tomorrow. Lord-willing, we will finish tomorrow evening and not have to work on Saturday morning before our flight. We enjoyed the sunset as we finished up for the day.

Check back next week to see how the construction of the secondary school continues to unfold.

Wiley Kennedy serves as Director of International Ministries with Connect 2 Ministries. To learn more about Wiley, visit Who We Are, and to learn how you can make a difference, visit Join the Impact.