Wednesday, October 4, 2023
We were in the WalMart parking lot in Murfeesboro, TN when we last left you. We were up and on the road to Ellijay before daylight and arrived before lunch. We needed to arrive early because we were ambassadors for this event, meaning we had other attendees we needed to meet and greet as they arrived. We were assigned nine couples to welcome, give them a welcome bag and generally be their point of contact for any questions or concerns for the weekend. We especially needed to be sure that our five people who had not previously attended a Switch It Up Huddle felt welcomed and included in all the activities.
Huddles are all about making friends and building community of RVers. Talona Ridge RV Resort is such a great resort with caring owners and staff. The view of the mountains is wonderful and there is usually a great sunrise and sunset to photograph from the top of the resort. We had 157 people taking part in various activities such as skeet shooting, High Tea, the Give Back, white water rafting, visiting the apple barns and orchards, a winery tour, motorcycle ride, paddle boarding and kayaking, catered meals, fire side music, hiking, pickle ball, and probably several other things we forgot since we couldn’t do them all. (Some of the pictures are from the Huddle Facebook page since we couldn’t attend everything.)
We always do a community give back at the Huddles and this year we worked at the Gilmer County High School. It was a more physical project than some give backs have been, but we still had about 75 people involved with landscaping, clearing trails and painting. Things looked much better when we left, and the school officials were very appreciative. Other Huddles we have done things like work at the local food bank, bring supplies for and then bag up supplies and goodies for all the teachers at the Elijay schools, or work at children’s homes doing such things as repairing bikes, painting/staining, cleaning, etc.
Sunday morning we had another wonderful time of worship together. It is always so special to worship with all our RV friends. Switch It Up, which began as a YouTube channel and still produces great and fun videos, has become so much more than “just” a YouTube channel. We are working to become a group of people (RVers) coming together to inspire others, create community, and impact the world. Many of you know that we lead/facilitate a weekly Bible study. Our group is a part of the Founders Club of Switch It Up crew. We hope to start other groups in 2024. We would appreciate your prayers.
After a few extra days at Talona Ridge to rest and get caught up on some business items, we headed back to South Carolina to visit Randy and Debra and get ready for our next project. We will be heading to Oklahoma in a few days to lead a NOMADS team on a DR (disaster rebuild) for people who suffered flood and wind damage in 2022. Please keep us and all our NOMADS friends in your prayers for safe travel, and then safe work in OK. Love you all!
RVing With a Purpose 