NOMADS – Sumatanga 2022 Week 2 – RVing With a Purpose

Saturday, October 15, 2022

What a beautiful fall week we had to work at Camp Sumatanga. The weather was just about perfect – a little cool in the mornings but never too hot during the afternoon. The leaves have started to turn on the sides of the surrounding mountains with some pretty reds and yellows now visible. We also had some much needed rain over night Wednesday. Thankful for the rain and thankful it didn’t interfere with work.

Last Sunday afternoon, after a very good buffet lunch at Charlie B’s in Oneonta, the team gathered for some games. We had a relaxing afternoon and then Monday we jumped right back on the canoe rack project with all hands on deck. The racks are bulky and heavy and took us all to build and get in position. The racks are very sturdy and look good in front of the lake. They are currently holding several canoes and a kayak or two. We hope people will enjoy using them. We also finished up the last few boards on the floating dock, which is still a long way from floating. We need more rain.

Assembling the end pieces from 2x6s and 2x8s. We were very thankful that Max’s brother had given him an electric impact wrench that made the job easier.

Moving the pieces to be assembled where they will be used

We assembled the canoe racks in place because once put together we wouldn’t want to try to move them.

Putting down the last few boards for the dock approach.

After cleaning up the area and packing up all the tools, the team headed to Retreat Center One to begin a remodeling job. We are tasked with removing a wall, enlarging a conference room, taking down some cabinets, repairing drywall, painting and removing some tile. We have made good progress with that project but since some cold weather is predicted next week, we pulled off that to tackle some outside work.

Our task was to remove this wall to make a larger meeting room.

While some of the team was removing the wall, others were painting the trim.

Thankfully we found a good wall behind the cabinets.

Wall removed. The pieces of stud hanging down will hold a false beam.

Installing trim to cover one end where we removed the old wall.

Building the false beam between the two rooms

False beam completed. Its purpose is to separate the two drop ceilings that are at different heights.

We began work on replacing siding on the outside of the administration building. We removed all the battens and replaced the lower siding on the rear on the building. The siding still needs painting and battens replaced next week. Teresa and Rita have already painted all the battens so they won’t talk long to reinstall. Teresa and Rita removed, cleaned and rearranged all the pictures in the lodge, too. Looks really nice, but sorry we don’t have any pictures of the pictures.

For lunch today we met fellow NOMADS Dave and Carol Hill at Jack’s. They were traveling I-59 from Knoxville, TN today so it was a convenient stop for them. So glad they called so we could schedule a meetup. The eight of us ended up spending quite a while in Jack’s dining room visiting, laughing and reminiscing before Dave and Carol needed to get back on the road. Thanks so much for making the stop!

We have one more week here. Only four work days and lots left to accomplish. Say a prayer for us that we will safely accomplish all God has for us to do. Hope you all have a great week!