Blogs from Gliwice, Silesia, Poland, Europe
August 20th 2010
Friday, our last work day, is a bittersweet day: we experienced highs and lows all day long. We sang ‘happy birthday’ to Sue on our bus ride to the worksite; we launched ourselves into getting as many walls plastered and finishing up as much drain tile and landscaping as possible; we enjoyed a Polish “second breakfast” with various delicious pastries; and we cleaned our tools and the surrounding work areas for the last time. We celebrated our incredible accomplishments this week and grilled generous portions of kielbasa to share our BBQ lunch with several Habitat families, and we each received thank-you certificates from Habitat for our efforts, enthusiasm, patience, smiles, laughter and display of construction and survival skills that helped us move the project further along. Building 8 will be dedicated in mid-September and, after more ... read more
August 19th 2010
Thursday dawned cloudy but bright, promising to be another awesome work day. Our team successfully evolved into two subteams: the 'plastered' people diligently plastering wall after wall in a second-story flat and the 'patio' crew constructing 3 double-wide patios and landscaping the surrounding area. Both teams welcome new members as folks switch out the type of work they're doing to rest tired muscles and use new ones. Much laughter is frequently heard, and our production is high. The cultural experience that comes with this kind of trip adds a new level of appreciation for the many blessings we have in our own homes. We continue to be motivated to do the best we can, as quickly as we can, to make our time here more effective. On the bus ride back to our hotel, we took ... read more
August 18th 2010
Monday morning came early and the first item on the agenda was official safety training at the worksite before getting our work assignments. Damian (site foreman) patiently outlined the jobs to be done, and we formed sub-teams to start plastering in Apt. 10 and begin landscaping for three large patios to be shared by 6 families. Our thoughts about the build site and team quotes: "There's a cement mixer! Covered patio area for eating and breaks! Great contrast here. Finished buildings complete with landscaping/garden and building in progress. Anticipation of family for new home. Neat progress on patios. Developing people getting plastered---walls, that is!" "Though we had dry-walled our cottage, our new house at home was plastered in decorative swirls. In working with the plasterers today, I now have a much better idea of how ... read more
August 18th 2010
Wednesday morning's devotions included group singing in the lobby of Hotel Sezam. Watch the video!... read more
August 15th 2010
Sunday evening, our team split into smaller groups for the opportunity to share a meal with current and future Habitat families. Here are some of our team's observations: "Love of family; great needs of family; anxious for their new home." "Gracious hosts; cute 18-month-old; yummy ice cream; unbelievable Post Office (a castle!)." "Nicole, our teenage interpreter, did such a nice job!" "The enormous amount of food they had for the three of us. How many questions they asked about America, and that Asia's brother, Michal, is fun like Asia.... read more
Habitat for Humanity Poland plus Belarus,Russia, Baltics
Published: September 12th 2010Europe » Poland » Silesia » Gliwice
August 12th 2010
I am starting to get organized to finish planning my trip to Poland.One of the first things I had to do was return to Manitoba and get my motorcycle and camper trailer back to Salt Spring. I left West Hawk Lake on August 19th and arrived back on Salt Spring on Monday August 23d. This was a costly journey as I had to replace the alternator on the bike as it failed just out of Winnipeg on the first day.That will be it for the HD-I am planning to get a BMW next year. I have a detailled itinerary but will be winging it a bit in Russia and the Baltics. In any case I am down to the last 2 days before leaving for Europe. lots of last minute stuff and I plan to climb ... read more
August 22nd 2009
Our team consists of quite a few runners who actually enjoy getting up in the pre-dawn hours to run a few kilometers before breakfast! Where do they get the energy? Saturday dawned cloudy and humid with a promise of rain. It was lightly sprinkling when we boarded Miroslaw's bus for our last ride to the jobsite, but the skies cleared somewhat and the temperature was comfortable by the time we arrived. It's a bittersweet day -- a half day of getting as much done as we can and yet take time for an important celebration of incredible accomplishments this week with our new friends at a lunch BBQ. Many of the Habitat partner families worked alongside us each day and interacting with them is a joy! Volunteering in Poland on a 12-unit apartment building for a ... read more
August 21st 2009
We were blessed again with a beautiful day for working on the jobsite. Sunny skies and eager workers! At the end of the day yesterday, we had mixed and poured 8 batches of concrete. So, Damian started the day by ordering more supplies to keep up with our incredible workers. Our cohesive team has worked well together from the beginning and was looking forward to another great day on the job. By mid-morning, reporters from the local television station arrived to ask the same question that the newspaper journalist asked a few days ago: "Why do you come to volunteer in Poland?" To his surprise, Chuck was asked to make a statement for the local TV station to answer that question. His response is always the same: "Our purpose for coming here is to work with ... read more
August 20th 2009
Thursday brought another sunny and awesome work day. Our team has developed into cohesive subgroups that have learned to function more smoothly. Laughter is heard frequently, and our production is among the highest of any of the teams volunteering in Gliwice. Our interaction with the families is energizing as we daily work side by side to help them build their new flats. The cultural experience that comes with this kind of trip adds a new level of appreciation for the many blessings we have in our own homes. We continue to be motivated to do the best we can, as quickly as we can, to make our time here more effective. On the bus ride back to our hotel, we took a detour to visit the Gliwice Radio Tower, site of the initial incident that sparked ... read more
August 19th 2009
It is amazing that we are already half way through the week. In addition to our assignments on the jobsite, we have experienced a lot of the culture of Gliwice. As we bus to the jobsite, we see locals going to work, potential drivers practicing at the local driving school, and students enjoying their last days as summer break comes to a close. We have mixed and hauled, spread and smoothed, laid and leveled, measured and cut, sanded and fitted, and even came up with all kinds of other tasks to get our jobs done today. It's more of the same, but we're enjoying the work! Yesterday afternoon, a reporter from the local newspaper came to interview Anna Czyz, Chuck & Terri and Andrea. Published today, the article is titled, 'Americans prefer working on build site ... read more
