TBM builders poetry in motion to church_72505

Posted: 7/22/05

TBM builders poetry in motion to church

By Jocelyn Delgado

Comminications Intern

For two weeks, volunteers built a family life center complex with an indoor basketball court and classrooms out of a hollow building, some supplies and a little ingenuity.

Thanks to the Texas Baptist Men Retiree Builders, youth and their families in Poetry–a rural community near Terrell–now have a place to fellowship.

The church provided supplies and a basic structure, and the Texas Baptist Men provided volunteers to help with plumbing, carpeting, electrical work, framing and other internal projects.

John Kent of Gainesville works on a Texas Baptist Men Builders project at Poetry. Kent is a former resident of Terrell, near Poetry.

Texas Baptist Men church builders have worked since 1978 helping construct many sanctuaries, family life centers and fellowship halls. Volunteers learn from professionals to provide churches good service.

“Sometimes people say, 'Well, I work in the office and do some handy work around the house; I'm not sure if I can do something,'” noted Julian Stroud, a Texas Baptist Men volunteer from Dallas. “We say, 'Come on, we'll teach you.'”

For the latest project, volunteers returned to Poetry three years after helping the church build a new sanctuary.

Each project operates on multiple levels. The men help with construction inside the building, and their wives help by reaching out to the community. Women sing at local nursing homes and sew lap robes for residents confined to wheelchairs.

The women add a layer of soft cotton to make the lap robes more comfortable, volunteer Mary Stroud said.

Larry Chambers (left), a member of Faith Temple Baptist Church, and John Klute, a Texas Baptist Men volunteer, work on a building project at Poetry.

They also sew stuffed animals for children in need, participate in Bible studies and prayer time, and help serve workers at refreshment breaks.

The Strouds have worked with Texas Baptist Men since 1985, after learning about the volunteer builders. Both are in their late 70s and know they can't work forever.

“One of these days, it's going to be to the point where we're not able to work,” Mrs. Stroud said. “We're planning on working until the Lord decides it's time for us to quit.”