By Carla McCann/Gazette Staff

MILTON-Once again, a group of Seventh Day Baptist Church parishioners are prepared to offer more than lip service to their faith.

Fifteen members of the church will be traveling Tuesday, Jan. 3, to Kiln, Miss., a few miles from the Gulf Coast, to help remove black mold from homes that were in the path of Hurricane Katrina.

"We have a God-ordained decree to help," said Brenda Hamm, who will be leaving her five sons in the care of her husband while she is gutting water-damaged homes in Kiln.

The small Mississippi community of 4,723 people has received national recognition as Brett Favre's hometown.

The Milton parishioners will be working in Kiln for four days before returning home Sunday, Jan. 8.

This is the second time the congregation has reached out to help rebuild lives destroyed by the Aug. 29 hurricane.

The church in September sent a semitrailer truck of supplies to Sandy Creek Baptist Church in Pride, La. The truck was donated by Stoughton Trailer and filled with supplies for displaced families in nearby communities.

About a day before the semi left Milton, the Rev. George Calhoun and four parishioners took their own trip south to offer help.

The devastation waiting at the end of the more than 1,000-mile drive deeply touched Calhoun's heart.

As pastor of the Milton church, he always is searching for a tangible way to show God's love.

In Franklinton, La., he found one.

Standing outside Hill Crest Baptist Church at 7:30 one morning, Calhoun realized he had stepped into a potentially explosive situation.

About 150 distraught people had gathered in the church's parking lot to tell Federal Emergency Management Agency representatives about their pain.

National Guard soldiers carrying M-16 rifles stood in their way, Calhoun said.

The FEMA representative didn't know how to handle the situation and asked Calhoun for help.

"He said there could be trouble and asked if I could go and talk with the people," Calhoun said. "It was the biggest debacle I've ever seen. I said a quick prayer."

Then Calhoun told the angry people that he was from Wisconsin and was there to help.

He also asked the soldiers to put lower their rifles.

"This is America. These people aren't your enemy," Calhoun said. "Then the National Guard began soothing things down."

The soldiers were young men with little experience, Calhoun said.

Many of the trailer homes surrounding Franklinton's were destroyed by Katrina. The people had no food or water. The church had opened its doors to offer them a place to sleep, Calhoun said.

"The church was so gracious. It put its ministry on hold to feed and house these people. If it wasn't for the churches, people would have starved," Calhoun said.

Although the Milton parishioners have no idea what awaits them on January trip south, they will be traveling with God and are prepared to do whatever is needed.

"We don't fully know what we're getting into," Calhoun said. "We need to be adaptive."

They are going prepared, Calhoun said, thanks to Lab Safety Supply in Janesville and Dave Warren, who owns and operates Dave's Milton Ace Hardware. The two businesses donated protective equipment and tools for the mission.

And the driver, Marian vanDalen-Anderson is looking forward to the trip.

"I have the time," the Milton woman said. "I don't have a lot of money. This is something I can do to help. I'm confident this is what God wants me to do."

For the past three years, Anderson has been ill with symptoms of multiple sclerosis. But she isn't going to let that interfere with God's work, she said.

"When I feel good, I'll do stuff. When I don't, I'll sit down," Anderson said.

Debbie Perrino, another church member, views the trip as being another route to spread the Gospel.

"Hopefully, through the Lord we'll create an eternal difference, instead of a temporary one," Perrino said.
_________________________
Jimmy McDonald
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