Fall Update!

Hi You all!

It has been too long since I last updated! We have been plugging along on the tiny bus, home school preschool, and ministry events over the past several months! Please find below some updated pictures of life here on the Reservation.

In September, we were able to have a family vacation on the Olympic Peninsula. We went to Ruby Beach, Hoh Rainforest, and Lake Crescent. A very generous family allowed us to stay in their cabin on Lake Sutherland for several nights. This was such a blessing after a busy, busy, summer of ministry!

We returned mid- September to the fall ministry events. Tollie and Zeke started his K-4 preschool year, also!

Zack has been spending much time in the community this fall. The firewood ministry as well as general mercy ministry has kept him busy. Zack and two local men have been helping two members of the BYGE. They have installed insulation, walls, and a ceiling in the shed where they live. These living conditions are very typical on the Reservation, but they still bring us to a halt mentally and emotionally when we see it. Once you have a relationship with those in inadequate housing, it becomes more than just a statistic or common knowledge.

We have been truly blessed by some skilled volunteers coming along side us to work on the tiny bus project. The space is becoming formed and we are able to envision how this home will help people in need of emergency housing.

We have been celebrating the fall season with Kingdom Kids and Hope Fellowship. Pumpkin carving, Trunk 'N Treat, and water color sessions bring smiles to so many faces!

Yesterday morning was our Thanksgiving celebration at Hope Fellowship Church. Elk and turkey were served side by side by staff and members of the BYGE.

The Discipleship Groups attended a NEWSBOYS United concert last night! Zack had a 90's flashback during several songs! Events like these are few and far between for youth in our community. We are very THANKFUL for this opportunity to take them!

pic cred: Chuck Clevenger

We are thanking the Lord for all the great things HE has done!

Electrical Plan

Roger and I sat down with the floorplan and chose the locations for the switches, electrical outlets and lighting. Please see below. I'm sure a "real" electrician would balk at these plans, but it works for us!

Skoolie Build Days Eighteen-Twenty!

A group from a church here in Washington state came to help with the tiny bus build. We have painted the entire bus, framed up all interior walls, covered the holes in the ceiling with sheet metal, tweaked the floorplan a bit, and removed the cracked rear window. We also bought the refrigerator, twin mattresses for the bunk beds, and bins that we will build around for the closet and kitchen storage.

Driver's side walls are up!

Megan! Our amazing roof painter:)

Paint, paint and more paint! We choose Swiss Coffee for the roof and Sweet Almond for the body. After the first coat, I could see that the color wasn't as dark as I wanted. I took the paint back and had them add the same tint. So, we actually have a custom color on the bus body! Sweet Almond (X2)

The whole crew this week! 

Floorplan revised....

I’ve seen so many people talk about how many revisions there are on the floorplan once construction begins, and we are no exception! Please see below the revised plan.


We bought a tub that was larger than I had initially chosen and drawn on the plan. So, it shifted a few things around. 😉

Skoolie Build Day Fifteen-Seventeen!

A group from Briarwood Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, AL, are here we this week on a short term trip. Their first day at the tiny bus site consisted of learning how to grind off rivet heads and then re-install rivets in the new sheet metal. We then added OSB to all the interior walls. We have affectionally named this place, INSULATION STATION!

Skoolie Build Day Fourteen

On day fourteen, my mom and our friend Christi had gone back to Mississippi. So, that left the Manning family and myself. We removed the windows per the  floorplan and started the rivet removal so that the 18 gauge sheet metal could cover the window openings. A few of us tackled the rivets while the rest measured and installed the bus wall insulation!

Skoolie Build Day Eleven-Thirteen!

This week a family of four from a Tennessee, my mom, and our friend Christi came out to help with the Skoolie build. These days we are calling it the Tiny Bus Project 🎉. We have installed the moisture barrier, 1x4 supports, 3/4” insulation, and plywood subfloor! Much was accomplished this week and we give God all the glory!

Skoolie Floorplan

Below you will see the floorplan and one elevation for the bus! 

I was able to draw these once we had the bus cleared and could get some firm measurements and  check window and door locations. We are pretty excited to be in construction mode now! Our goal is to provide a space that is welcoming for up to six months for four to five people. 

Skoolie Build Days Eight through Ten!

Hi Everyone! A team from the University of California at Berkeley are here this week helping with the Skoolie build. Whew! What a week! We finished installing the ceiling insulation, popped all the rivet backs in the ceiling, and re-installed the metal panels. 

Little man learning how to use a caulk gun with Julia! 

Popping out all those rivet backs!

Installing the ceiling insulation. 

Ceiling panels re-installed and rust stopper applied to the floor! 

This has one hard working group and I am so thankful for their help! Each time we mark off an item on the list we are closer to being able to offer this as a temporary home for those in need!

Praise be to God!

Skoolie Build Day Seven

Today was all about measuring twice and cutting once:) We removed some remnants of the old ceiling insulation, vacuumed again, and the started installing the new ceiling insulation.

The first panel. CONSTRUCTION has officially begun! 

Skoolie Build Day Six!

We removed the STOP sign and cleaned the entire interior today!

Bye, bye stop sign! We will reuse it in the interior in a fun and to-be-decided way!

Skoolie Build Day Five

We have another group of volunteers working with us this week! Five ladies from Jackson, Mississippi, are here to help. Three of them have been here 5+ times with their church youth group, so they are very familiar with the setup! 

Today Mr. Harry showed us how to remove the motor and transmission from our 1974 International Blue Bird Bus. We had to turn the bus around so we could access the front. Since we didn't have any brakes, we were pretty excited to accomplish this without taking out anything or anyone! We also finished drawing the floorplan and placing it in the bus.