Sister Doctor Brooks

This picture is from a few years ago. I've included it because of the woman in the middle, Sister Doctor Brooks. She retired last year but her footprint and part of her heart remain here in Tutwiler. The other day a few of us walked across the road and visited the clinic. Our tour guide and story teller was Cindy a staff member who worked with Dr. Brooks and is gathering memoribilia to celebrate the 35th anniversary of Dr. Brooks work here in Tutwiler. When Dr. Brooks came here in 1983 the first thing she did was get rid of the colored waiting room and the colored drinking fountain. You read that right, 1983! There are many stories to tell but I'll just give some background and then bring us to present day. One day a number of years ago a man came in with a broken leg. She asked him what had happened and he told her that his foot went right through his porch. From this came her idea to bring Habitat to Tutwiler. The next thing that came to her attention was all of the children running around with nothing to do. She raised enough money to build a community center. She had a patient who didn't take his medicine because he couldn't read and didn't know when to take it. So... GED classes at the community center. Grandmothers were stuck at home caring for their grandchildren... a quilting program for the grandmas and more programing for the kids.

We asked Cindy about the current issues for the clinic and the patients. The cycle of poverty is evident if you look not just for what is present but for what is absent. A grocery store? Nope. The nearest grocery store used to be in Clarksdale, 16 miles away. It closed this year. Now the nearest grocery store is a 45 minute drive. (There is a Walmart in Clarksdale which carries food, just not in the quantity or variety of a grocery store) The only place you can buy food in Tutwiler is at the Double Quick gas station. They do have some hot food, of the fried variety. You can get: fried chicken, fried shrimp, and fried okra. This leads me to the next problem, diabetes. Close to 40% of the clinic's patients are diabetic. Limited food choices, limited money, difficult travel options... You may look around the dirt roads and crumbling buildings and wonder where people find work. The largest employer in the area has been the Tallahatchie County Correctional facility. There are a number of prisions in the area all privately owned. The one closest to Tutwiler has been gradually sending its prisoners to California. the prison population has gone from 2,300 to 400. Jobs have always been hard to find now it is even more difficult.

We asked Cindy to tell us a success story. The community center has recently started a Weight Watchers group. (They received a grant to cover the membership fees.) As a group they have already lost 550 pounds! One of the women came back after a doctor visit and said that she was able to get off her high blood pressure medication and reduce her cholesterol medication.

Finally Cindy told us of their newest nurse practitioner, Sabrina Easter. She called about the job on Good Friday.  The clinic continues in the spirit of Dr. Brooks, they always find a way to treat everyone regardless of their ability to pay. You can find more information about the clinic and Dr. Brooks at tutwilerclinic.org

John's Library Mission

The Tutwiler Library is small and not open many hours each week. But the library certainly has benefitted from the Sheil community but it's biggest fan and contributor is John.  Here is his update.

TUESDAY -

I made a visit to the Tutwiler Branch of the Tallahatchie County Library Monday afternoon to drop off a box of books I brought down.  This saved the cost of shipping it down.  I have been shipping stuff down here for several years now.  Last year we sent down a pallette full of books and DVDs before heading down so that it arrived while we were here, so I spent some time during the week helping Roshella the librarian sort through all the stuff.  I have been told that I can be a little compulsive about this activity, and last year, all those boxes were stored in the Sheil basement.  The Sheil staff were not sorry to see them go, so this year, everything has been shipped down a box at a time - or several boxes at a time, as the case may be.  

I recently discovered that the generous folks at Half-Price Books recycle tons and tons of stuff in two large bins behind the store.  HPB discards materials based upon how much room they have for it in the store and whether or not someone is likely to buy it, so they often thrown out books that are in perfect shape or practically brand new.  Then I found out that they also throw out DVDs, so I have been scavenging some of those as well.  The result is that eight boxes of materials arrived just before we did this year.  

(Note: Contributions to help pay for shipping are always gratefully accepted.)

The Tallahatchie County Library is small in size, staff, and budget, which is the main reason they can use the materials we send down, but also the reason that some of the boxes I shipped a few months ago are still sitting waiting to be unpacked.  Roshella the librarian has since been promoted to be the director of the whole system, so she is only in Tutwiler part of the time.  I suggested to the lovely woman running the Tutwiler branch yesterday that I could come in and help her sort through stuff.  She called Roshella and although I did not hear the other end of the conversation, I gather that her reply was something along the lines of, “Hurry up and lock the door before he has a chance to chance to change his mind.  

The library is only open from 3:00-7:00, Monday through Friday, a mere twenty hours a week, and it has closed completely at least once in the time that I have been sending stuff down here.  But when the doors opened at three o’clock yesterday afternoon five people promptly showed up.  Not bad for a tiny little town like Tutwiler.  And one of them was returning three of the DVDs I had sent down earlier.  When I started collecting them, the library had about twenty total.  Since then, I have sent down hundreds.  

So I have spent the last two afternoons helping to sort things in the library.  (Just for the record, this is not an excuse to stay out of the 86 degree heat, which feels like 92.)  The internet was down today, so I spent most of my time there re-shelving books and putting things in order in the children’s section.  Roshella tells me that this task is often made a bit more difficult as a result of the assistance of some of the library’s young patrons, who organize books by size, color, astrological sign, or some other category.  Never too early to cultivate a love of books.  

Emmett Till

This afternoon a group of us took a few hours off and visited some historic places in the area. Emmett Till was murdered not far from here in Sumner. (If you are not familiar with Till you can Google him.)We went to Sumner and got a private tour of the courthouse where the murder trial was held. The jury seats are the original ones from the time of the trial. The courtroom looks like it has been frozen in time. It really does look like the courtroom in To Kill A Mockingbird. We walked around quietly, absorbing the sadness and injustice of that trial and so many more that have followed. From there we went to Glendora, MS to tour the Emmett Till Historic Intrepid Center. Housed in an old cotton gin the center has memorabilia from the time. I experienced a feeling similar to the photo below, heavy and dark.

An ominious sky..appropriate for our afternoon.

This is the Mississippi flag. Yes that is the Confederate flag incorporated into the MS flag. Yes it is 2018. Yes this turns my stomach.

This sign was placed down by the river where they found Emmett Till''s body. Recently someone shot it up. Kids just fooling around? Maybe. Racism? Probably.

The Sumner Courthouse where the trial was held.

Sweet or Bitter

No wine for dinner last night so I set off with a small crew to the Tutwiler liquor liquor store. I was told that it was an experience not to be missed, that was an understatement! In Mississippi wine and spritis are sold in what is called a package store. You can't walk into the store but have to remain behind the counter while the clerk gets what you want. The Tutwiler package store is in a little building that is not much more than a shack. We walked into a small windowless passage way. A man stood behind a plexiglass window. Pete asked for some red wine and the clerk replied, "Sweet or bitter?" We walked out with a slightly dusty bottle of Cabbernet Sauvignon. We asked for a second bottle but they only had one.

We Survived our first day

One of our first orders of business was greeting Sherri, the current local Habitat coordinator. She remembers us from last year and conveyed her thanks for our work before we'd even begun!

We got right to it. We spent much of the morning stirring up drywall dust and exercising forgotten muscles.

This picture shows my first attempt to work on the site. I only lasted about 20 minutes with this task.

  I switched to sanding and staining with my buddy Lorenzo.

Returning to the Delta

This year there are twelve of us from Sheil participating in a week long Habitat for Humanity trip. We've returned to the small community of Tutwiler, MS for the 15th year in a row! In that time we have aged, expanded our families, changed jobs, and much more. But to me after a two year absence it seems as if the Delta has remained in place, change comes slowly here.

In this blog I hope to share our journey with all of you, both the challenges and the humor. I'll share photos and reflections from the group in addition to my musings. After a long car ride of 12 hours yesterday we've taken a day off today to aclimate before the work starts in earnest tomorrow. This morning some of us went to church locally and some went up to Memphis. Before Mass in Clarksdale a man asked us where we were from and what brought us here. He said, "You don't look like any carpenters"  I gave him a look and told him he'd be surprised!

Casey

Saturday, May 19, 2018

Reflections from John

We are on our way to Tutwiler, MS for our annual Habitat for Humanity Trip from Sheil Catholic Center at Northwestern University.  There.  Now that I have gotten all the titles out of the way, here is what has happened so far.  

Lots of Chicago traffic.  Lots of highway.  Our customary rendevous at Neiberg’s Steak House in Effingham, IL, home of adequate food, congenial waitresses, and pies that frequently do not get eaten.  Our group got caught up in that Chicago traffic and arrived about a half hour after the rest of our company, who were already eating.  A waitress came to take drink orders and told the ladies in the group that both Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi were available.  I ordered a regular Coke, with caffeine and sugar.  They don’t have that.  Just Pepsi.  Not a good harbinger of good karma for this trip.  The temperature is 82 degrees, indicating that we are a fair distance from Chicago.  

At about 4:30, we made a gas stop at the famous Boomland! fireworks and souvenir store and gas station, where an astonishing variety of Southern kitsch is available for purchase.  The atmosphere of the place can perhaps best be illustrated by the selection of baseball caps for sale.  They range from florescent colored ones with the store’s logo, the devotedly Christian (some of which were quite clever,) to those extolling the various branches of the armed forces, to the inevitable one proclaiming the inviolability of the Second Amendment.  The fireworks themselves are in another part of the store, past the summer clothing, every imaginable variety of hot sauce, a surprising amount of African American art, and a wall full of crosses.  I only spent a few minutes looking over the various wares available in the fireworks section, which was about the size of the typical grocery store, but that was enough.  The man in front of me was purchasing something the size of a large waste basket with descriptions on the side of what each of the six shots produced.  There was something called The Godfather and my personal favorite, The Angry Mother-in-Law. All accompanied to the strains of Christian country music.  

We are definitely some distance from Chicago.  

John

Church and Civil Rights

Below are a few pictures from the trip to Memphis. I was fortunate enough to go to the Civil Rights Museum a few years ago. It is a solemn place that incorporates the Lorraine Motel. This year Peter, Mary, John, and Dave made the trip. Mary just told me that as soon as the sign came in to view she choked up.

Casey

Sunday, May 20, 2018
reflections from John

I have always found it a little strange that we drive down on Saturday and have Sunday off before getting to work on Monday, but it gives us a chance to recover after the long drive down, and we usually manage to have fun on Sunday.  As we often do, some of us traveled up the road to Memphis.  We attended Mass at St. Agustine, a predominantly African American church in Memphis.  Some of us have visited before, and it is a pleasure to come back.  Two things it has in common with Sheil are great music and warm hospitality.  This is Catholicism with a definite African American vibe.  The service lasts an hour in a half because nobody is in much of a hurry, the parishioners dress in their Sunday best, far more formally than some of us are used to, the choir just has to belt out a couple of gospel numbers, and they make all visitors stand up and introduce themselves.  But the best part for me was the warmth with which we were received.  We are many parts, we are all one body.  

Andy and Adrian headed off to see Graceland, but I decided that the King of Rock and Roll was a little out of my price range and went to see the National Civil Rights Museum, featuring a King of an entirely different sort.  The museum, located in the former Lorraine Motel where Martin Luther King was assassinated, is commemorating the 50th anniversary of the assassination.  I will leave some of our other members who were visiting for the first time describe the museum.  

Then it was off to dinner on Beale Street.  I am reading the autobiography of W.C. Handy, the “Father of the Blues,” who got his start on Beale Street.  100 years later, Beale Street is still a sight to see, similar to Bourbon Street in New Orleans, but cleaner and not as degenerate.  I vow to return some day when I can just spend hours and hours going up and down Beale Street.  Oh, and we did not get back to downtown in time to see the ducks parade back to their penthouse suite in the Peabody Hotel, an event I always seem to miss.  So I will have to return for that.  It is wise to leave something for old age.

Just after the assassination the remaining leaders gathered in King's room to discuss a way forward.

Home Again

Well, we're back in Evanston. We left the quiet of the Delta and have returned to the sounds of the city. As you will see in my Interview with Lorenzo, Natalie's reflection of Sarah and Nicole's reflection. I think we brought home more than we left behind.

Lorenzo first stopped by our worksite about ten years ago when he was nine years old. At first he would just hang out and then he gradually began helping us. This year he was waiting for us when we opened the door in the morning and stayed until we closed the door in the evening. A few years ago Lorenzo and one of our members, Dino, formed a friendship that went beyond the bounds of Tutwiler. They now regularly text and talk to each other during the year. This year Lorenzo and I spent time working together and teasing each other. I got the idea of interviewing Lorenzo for this blog. I wasn't sure how he would feel about it. He is not a shy kid but I worried that he wouldn't know what to say or that he wouldn't be interested. I was so wrong! For days he walked a little taller with his head held high. "Casey gonna interview me!" I finally sat down with Lorenzo on Thursday. What follows is my interview of Lorenzo.

Interview with Lorenzo 5/22/15 Interviewed by Casey Christensen

Lorenzo is 19 years old and lives in Tutwiler, MS. We first met Lorenzo when he was 10 years old and he came to our worksite. He lived in Memphis a long time ago and he still has folks over that way. They came back to Tutwiler so his Daddy could work at Parchman State Prison. He lives with his Daddy, Momma, brother and sometimes his grandma. Also with a whole bunch of dogs.

What do you remember about the first time you met us?

I rode my bike over and helped move stuff. We was workin’ on that gray house over there.

Do you ever help with other groups?

It depends on how I feel. If I feel they good then I go over to help them. But ya’ll  are the best in the nation!

Why do you like helping us?

It’s fun hanging around with ya’ll and gettin’ to know you. 

Who are the people that you’ve gotten to know?

Dino, Mike, Nicole, Kristin, Casey, Natalie, Kathy, Bob and Jimmy. You fun people and you like to play jokes and sing. I heard you singing this mornin’ I was sitting out front and I thought I heard somethin’ I took off my headphones and heard you singin’, you good!

Why do you like working on houses?

If I want to build a house I can learn from here. I used to work replacing shingles if there was a hole in the roof. But, the guy died so can’t work for him no more.

Tell me about Dino.

He a funny guy. He pretty cool. We talk on the phone and text each other when ya’ll ain’t here.

(Dave walked by) Lorenzo said, he my Grandad.

What are some things you like to do?

I loves to play the drums! I play at my church and every now and then at the community center. I loves football! I play most every day if I can. Bulldogs is the name of my team, we undefeated so far since 2008.

Do you go to school?

I go to a 2 year school. I go to school at night and practice football at night. My coach works durin’ the day, so we practice at night. After my 2 year school I want to play at Valley State. Sometime they be on the tv!

What do you want to do when you finish school?

I want to go to Chicago! I’ll move to Chicago an’ be a street performer, playing drums.

After the interview I typed it up and printed out a couple of copies for Lorenzo. We sat on the porch and both read a copy. He was grinning from ear to ear. Dino later told me that Lorenzo ran over to the worksite with the interview in hand. Dino read it aloud to those on the worksite. Lorenzo was proud of the intervview I am proud to have been able to write the interview.

The other person that we've written about in this blog is Sarah. Here are some reflections by Natalie.

Another amazing week in Tutwiler has come to an end. There are so many amazing moments such as when we raised the first wall, the view of the house totally framed, and I ditto everything that has already been said. 

July 2013, Sara watched as the slab to her new home was poured. June 2015, Sara will move into her new home almost two years to the day. I worked on Sara’s house last year and helped with finishing touches this year, and without a doubt the time I spent with Sara has had a profound impact on me. Every conversation with Sara began and ended with how excited and grateful she was for her new home. “I am so blessed,” and “thank you so much.” are the words I heard over and over. I said to her “Sara you have been waiting for two years!” “Yes Mam, and I thank God for being so blessed”.

You have heard about the gifts we bring to the people of Tutwiler, but the gift Tutwiler has given me is the true meaning of patience and gratitude. Thank you Sara.

Natalie

Finally a reflection from one of our fearless leaders, Nicole!

“You need to go to Habitat this year”

 

A few weeks ago during the end of the semester stress my office mate, Anita, said to me, “you need to go to habitat this year.”  She followed that by questioning, “ You are going, right?”  I looked at her and said with a smile, “Of course, I would not miss the trip this year.”

For many reasons that I do not wish to expound on, this year has been quite challenging both professionally and personally.  I think that I have shed more tears since our last Habitat trip than I can recount.  For those reasons, I needed to go on the trip this year.  Not only was that evident to me, but also to those who have helped me cope with the challenges that I have faced over the past year.  This trip refreshes me both emotionally and spiritually.  After a week in Mississippi, I return refreshed and ready to conquer whatever challenges I may face.  Now, I do not wish to deal with all of the challenges that my husband Mike and I have encountered over the past year, but I know that I have a renewed sense of empowerment after returning from Mississippi.  There are so many aspects of the trip that are refreshing --- relating my volunteering work to catholic teaching, laughing like I have not laughed in months, pounding nails into a block of wood, and meeting the excited soon-to-be home owners.  All I need to do is to think about Sarah’s infectious smile and that will help me overcome the challenges that I might face in the upcoming year. Plus, I know that my Sheil Habitat family will continue to be there when we build more houses for people in need and when we need support here at home.  That is the power of this trip.

Here are some final photos!

The view out of one of the bedrooms.

Natalie

The front door.

Mike

Sarah and Kathy

Chris and Sarah in our lovely accommodations.

Dave's new friends.

Chris

Mike locking the door.

Here we are!

I have really enjoyed sharing our experiences with all of you once again this year. Look for this blog again next year!

Casey

 

Raise the Roof!

We did it! We raised the roof today. I thought I felt Amish before, today I worked ON the roof. (In case my family and friends are holding their collective breaths, I did not fall or get injured in any way!) In fact I had a great time and felt very accomplished. I will say that the journey, from the ladder, through the struts, and onto the roof was not a pretty one! 

I have lots of pictures tonight and some reflections. The photos are from myself, John, Bill, and Charlotte. Some of us worked on the new house today and others worked on Sarah's house.

More tomorrow...

Casey

From inside this morning

Boards that would soon become the roof.

Bob and Jimmy came out to help us build this house. Bob comes out a couple of times a year to work on houses.

The first boards to go on were the most difficult.

I joined them once more boards were in place.

A view from below...

A view from above...

I took this picture from the top of the roof looking in.

Dino

Mike

Andy

Charlotte

Bernadette

JD our Habitat supervisor extrordinare! 

Getting there...

Almost time to call it a day.

Kristin and Lorenzo

Meanwhile, work continued at Sarah's house.

Jan

John

Natalie, Sarah, and Nicole

Chris, Jan, Marie, our young helper

Sarah laying down seed.

End of the day!

Reflections by Jan

A handful of Sheil people visited the Tutwiler Public Library this evening. It is located just over the tracks in a clean, modern looking brick building across the street from a three story structure with a cornerstone identifying it as a one time Masonic Temple. The library is a very pleasant place with a sizable collection of books, a battery of PC's for patrons, and a brightly carpeted nook with toys and books to capture the interest of the younger kids.  Roshella, the librarian was thrilled to see us and anxiously gave us a update on the library's status and usage. She very graciously received several boxes of books Marie brought from Evanston.

Marie, a former Evanston Library North Branch clerk, made Roshella's acquaintance on her first trip to Tutwiler nearly ten years ago.  Since then, they've maintained regular contact. Marie and Linda Balla, another EPL staffer and HFH veteran, routinely sort through the titles culled from the EPL collection for books and materials that Roshella has indicated would be of interest to her patrons. At least two shipments per year come from Evanston to Tutwiler, librarian to librarian, a practice that will likely continue even when Habitat completes its work here.

It is connection like this which keeps the Sheil Associates coming back to Tutwiler year after year. We've become part of the community here, albeit in a limited way. Our work does not end when we return home.  Tutwiler is always on our minds, and Marie and I routinely track the weather forecast for this part of Mississippi.  Sheil Associates are not the only volunteers who come to Tutwiler but I do know that many of the people in Tutwiler remember who we are and think of us as well.

Reflections by John

I finally found a job down here that I am really good at!  Usually I find myself following the rest of our talented crew around and hope that I can contribute something without making too many mistakes.  Today I spent the day sanding down and refinishing doors in Sarah’s house.  The crew that came before us did a pretty sloppy job with the doors and left them full of drip marks.  I have done enough woodworking lately to know what I am doing, and the defects stood out to me like spotlights. It felt good to be able to smooth out the defects and turn the doors into something to be proud of.

 

Sarah came by to help and I showed her the first door I finished.  I am not sure she noticed the difference, but she was appreciative.  She kept hugging us and saying things like, “I love y’all to death!”  The slab for Sarah’s house was poured in July of 2013 and it was framed in October of that year.  Finally, after almost two years, it is nearing completion.  She is not even trying to hide her excitement at this point.  Late this afternoon, she was scattering grass seed over what will soon be her lawn.

 

Today a little girl named Maya came by to visit.  I taught her how to refinish woodwork, a skill I am pretty sure she was not at all interested in acquiring, but she seemed to enjoy the attention.  Then she ran off with my camera and proceeded to shoot a dozen or so out-of-focus and underexposed pictures.  She brightened the afternoon.  

 

We come down here for a bunch of reasons.  We all love the fellowship, the food is great, and the work rewarding..  But of course there is a spiritual dimension to all of this.  We begin each day with someone leading a morning devotion.  This morning, Charlotte did it and played the song, “God is Love.”  She concluded by having Bill read a prayer.  Here is the second half.

 

Father,

Allow me to serve others with a joyful heart;

Never keeping score;

Always giving;

Never expecting to receive.

Allow me to give of myself,

To give of my talents and of my goods,

To give of my time and of my energy,

To give of my heart and of my soul.

Allow me to serve others as You serve,

With gentleness, compassion, and tenderness,

Never diminishing the worth of another,

Choosing to extend mercy to the brokenhearted,

Like You have repeatedly shown it to me.

 

Oops!  I fall well short of that standard, but I’m working on improving!

 

I have also been thinking today of the story of the last judgement of Matthew.

“In truth I tell you, in so far as you did this to one of the least  these, you did it for me.”  Matt. 25:40.

 

It is not hard to of grasp the concept that what we are doing for others we are doing for Jesus.  It is especially easy when Jesus is coming up to us and giving us hugs and telling us how she loves us all to death, or when Jesus is a cute and  precocious little girl.  But Jesus is not always so easy to find, or so attractive in appearance.  Jesus referred to the least of these, not the greatest of these.  What if Jesus is the really dumb store clerk? What if Jesus is that annoying person on the other side of a customer service call?  Or most challenging of all, what if Jesus is somebody I just do not like?  That is when Jesus is harder for me to find.  That is something I still need to work on.  Perhaps this trip will encourage me to look a little harder.