Getting Settled

Hello All!!!!

So I have officially completed my first week down here in Phelps, KY. I've already learned a lot down here.  We have been working on my little cottage twice while I've been down already and it is really making progress! It feels like it is already coming together well, and we passed electrical and plumbing inspection this week! 

Let me tell you a little bit about my new home.

So our congregation has nine pioneers(including me) and four elders: Herb, Johnny, Danny and Mike.  Ironically, before Danny and Johnny were in the truth, Johnny bought drugs off Danny, 

and now both are elders. How amazing!! 

All four are wonderful, loving brothers and really keep the congregation going.

Here are our elders (left to right) Danny, Johnny, Mike and Herb.

Both Mike and Herb are also Regular Pioneers!

Here is a picture of the Kingdom Hall I took back in summertime.  It's not quite as green today.

So when we go out in service here, there are no Wawa's, Amish Markets or Starbucks.  It usually takes about 30 minutes to find a gas station/deli where we can use a real restroom and get a snack.  It's usually best to pack food here, cause sometimes we don't stop. It's always wise to have napkins or little rolls of toilet paper cause it is totally possible that you may have to use a bush or tree. Although, few and far between are outhouses that people have on their property and generally don't mind you using.  Here's one we saw in service this week!

Outside & Inside...

It's rather nice, especially since it has a seat cover!

Never did I imagine that I would be using one of these!

Our congregation has territory in Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia.  This is the area where the famous Hatfield/McCoy Feud went on and the families are still in the area today.  You may notice that the outhouse had snow around it.  Interestingly, that was in Virginia and they got from 5-8inches of snow earlier this week. I live 'over the mountain' in Kentucky and we got absolutely no snow and we are so close.  Down here the amount of snow you get largely depends on where you live, as sometimes mountains separate the storms.

Here's some other neat pictures I took earlier this week of scenery:

The mountain road we were working on the other day.  I walked down the road a little bit to check out a house.  You often have to walk up/down long mountain driveways because of their conditions. 

As you can see below, there are a lot of dilapidated old buildings around.  I like taking pictures of them cause I think they are neat and have character.

I hope everybody is doing well.  More to come soon on some crazy service experiences, cause we are sure to have some!