Blueprint Ministries - Middle School Mission Trip - Summer 2022
by Audrey Veal, 7th grade
Blueprint Ministries has been serving the San Antonio area since 2005. Countless groups have gathered together all to fulfill one common goal: to restore homes and hope in San Antonio. Since it is a tradition for the WHPC middle schoolers to serve with Blueprint, I traveled on the two-hour van ride to the Blueprint facility with my group consisting of Taleesa Fox, Mae Housely, Kristie Min, and me. My leaders were Jose Suarez, Mitchell Shultz, and Andrea Murray.
Mitchell Schultz, Taleesa Fox, Kristie Min, Mae Housely, and Audrey Veal (author) pose on the roof they repaired.
On the first day, we met our homeowner, Ms. Gomez. As my group and I walked up to her house, she burst into tears and welcomed us even though she did not know us. Ms. Gomez was very grateful and came to watch us begin the deshingling process on her roof. The first time that I climbed onto that roof, I found myself shaking. Taleesa, Mae, and I hammered some tin pieces into the roof because we found holes in the existing wood layer. Once we finished deshingling half of the roof, we tar papered it which protects the wood from the tar on the back of the shingles. Before we packed up and left the worksite after a successful first day, we asked Ms. Gomez if we could pray for her in any way. She squeezed Taleesa’s and Mae's hands and replied, “I just want to be happy.”
The second day arrived, and we eagerly devoured our breakfast of cereal, Pop-Tarts, and kolaches at the Blueprint building! We drove to Ms. Gomez’s house and her three dogs, Coco, Chammie, and Midnight, wagged their tails and jauntily jogged out to us. Ms. Gomez laughed as we waved and approached her. We climbed up the ladder and started deshingling the rest of the roof. Deshingling the rest of the roof took us until lunch, so after that we installed a weather-proof barrier topped with rolled roofing material that protects the wood on the house from rain. Jose, Mitchell, Kristie, and I placed it down, and then we discovered that we allowed too many air bubbles. The second time was a charm, and we reapplied the material. Ms. Andrea made sure that none of our crew fell off the roof. It was then time to go back to Blueprint before we messed anything else up! We did learn some great roofing lessons that day.
Team members embrace Ms. Gomez, the homeowner.
On the third day, Ms. Gomez moved more slowly welcoming us as her ankles were bothering her. Despite her pain, she had breakfast tacos waiting for us. The bacon and egg tacos and the bean and cheese tacos were delicious! It was time to start shingling the roof and wrap up the project. Mitchell taught Taleesa, Mae, Kristie, and me how to shingle and by the end of the day, we were three quarters finished. Sometimes we had to rip out the shingles that we messed up. Mitchell had to replace two boards because we could see the fiber glass in the attic.
On the fourth and last day, Mae and I shingled the rest of the roof with Mitchell. This time when I climbed on the roof, I did not think about it twice. Mitchell and I worked on the ridge caps, which are the pieces on the tops of roofs. I hammered in the last nail! After that, Kristie and Ms. Andrea used the circular saw to cut a plank of wood to replace the washboard. Kristie and I used the screwdriver to keep it in place. Once the project was finished, we had lunch! We told Ms. Gomez that we had to run some errands and that we would be right back. During this little side trip, we purchased plants for Ms. Gomez because she loves houseplants. When we arrived back at her home, Kristie and Mae held the plants as Taleesa gave her the scrapbook we created the night before. Each member of my team made their own pages of the scrapbook. Ms. Gomez cried as she flipped through the pages. Kristie had crafted a flower for Ms. Gomez that we placed in the front page of the scrapbook. After she finished reading the scrapbook, she declared tearfully, “I prayed to God for a miracle for my house and God sent me you!”
During my week in San Antonio, I saw God working through the Blueprint faculty who worked tirelessly throughout the week. I also saw God through Ms. Gomez. It was such a joy to repair her roof and see how much faith that she had in God. No matter how tired or hungry we were, she was always there to lift us up because Ms. Gomez knew that God was always there to lift her up. Blueprint Ministries is such a blessing to San Antonio and for those of us lucky enough to experience this special ministry!
