Carrollton Avenue Church of Christ
Keeping Community
December 2006
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
It’s been seven months since I last wrote an “update report.” Much has happened and some progress has been made. The paradox in New Orleans is how little has changed in some ways and how much has happened in others.
Jenny and I moved to New Orleans the first week in July and have been adjusting to the culture, food, and an empty nest. We decided to unpack on an “as needed basis” so we could hit the ground running. We haven’t gotten to some boxes, can’t find others, and spend much time thinking, “I wonder what’s in that box.” In retrospect, I wish we had spent a little more time labeling when we were packing…
In April I wrote, “The building reconstruction is chugging along with most of the building rewired, bathrooms being laid out, and the main support walls in the hallway replaced. A fair amount of the relief supplies has been either distributed or transferred to a warehouse so we have room to work.” Over the past year Carrollton was often forced to choose between 
accepting additional relief supplies (which had to be delivered to the building when we lost our free warehouse) or working on the building. It was an easy decision, although sometimes frustrating to those trying to work on the building, to choose the relief work.
We live by a Christ-inspired, sacrificial theology that calls on us to help others at a price to ourselves. We knew that the supply of relief goods would not last forever 
so we put hurting people ahead of ourselves. We’ve distributed a lot of food, water, beds, and more over the past seven months. As deliveries of relief supplies have slowed and space within has become available to work, Carrollton has begun refocusing attention to reconstructing our building.
I took the picture above last week while the one on the right was taken in April. As you can see (because of the new work lights) we have a temporary classroom/nursery (behind the insulation). We have much work to do as you can tell. Know a good plumber, framer, electrician…? We’re getting plans drawn up and will begin rebuilding in earnest in January.
So many congregations and individuals have blessed Carrollton with time and donations that we can’t begin to list them all here. To choose only one as an example of the tremendous generosity and servant-hearts in our brotherhood, at the end of November Carrollton received a gift of pews which allow us to better utilize the auditorium 
and even match our donated carpet. Highland Oaks Church of Christ in the Dallas area blessed us with all the pews we could use, spares if some get damaged, and some shorter ones to use when the fellowship area is finished. (That would be the fellowship area in the two pictures above…). Highland Oaks also donated the transportation and shipping costs of the pews. They even sent 5 of the hardest working gentlemen you’ve ever seen to help us assemble and place them. A special “thank you” goes out to whoever marked and bagged all the hardware to 
each pew. Awesome!
We put the pews to work within four days of their completion on December 2 with our Winter Festival for the neighborhood children as part of the rebirthing of our children’s ministry. The door just kept opening all morning as more and more children and parents came in for crafts, games, and an 
awesome retelling of the birth of our Savior. While there were only 20 or so children when “Martha” in the picture on the right told her story, we finished with over 40 (not counting visiting parents).
The two shepherds in the picture to the left weren’t sure of what to make of the angel’s message at first but they caught on pretty quickly. As you can tell by the sheep pen, no animals were harmed in the 
production.
Finally, many have asked why there isn’t a picture of Jenny and me anywhere on the website. Hmmm… probably because I get to pick the pictures we include. And, we tend to be behind the scenes kind of folks. But with an eye toward the holidays and our desire to wish everyone a happy new year, we’ll close out an eventful year with a photo gift from Santa that the Musselmans provided at their open house last week. And yes, that truly is his real beard!
May God bless each of you as we go together into another year of service in His kingdom,
Kirk and Jenny