By the time this blog is published, my husband and I will be living in our new home in Brenham, Texas. We wanted to have some of the rooms painted and some minor modifications made before moving in. We also took care of some repairs that the home inspector had flagged as needing to be done.
It's been challenging. Brenham is two hours away from Austin which has allowed us to make weekly trips in order to check on progress, but is too far for us to drop in daily. Most communication has been by phone or text message which has resulted in misunderstood instructions. Some misunderstandings resulted from the contractor and me using different terminology. Assumptions were made. I thought the contractor understood I how I wanted things done while he assumed I understood his intentions. Sometimes there was poor cell reception or I wasn’t able to reach the contractor at all. There have been cultural issues as well. I like to nail down all the details before things get started, while the contractor’s attitude is more laid back. I wanted things done in a certain order while the contractor wanted to knock out the smaller jobs before tackling the big ones.
Imagine overseeing a construction project across the Atlantic Ocean! In addition to the issues my husband and I encountered, the time difference between Missouri and Liberia impacts when calls can be made. Yet that has not stopped the construction of House of Hope and Dignity. Teams of people in Liberia and the U.S. have worked together on the home's construction. We’ve now ordered windows and doors for the building and have even selected curtain material!
Soon pregnant women in the Todee Junction area will be able to spend their last few days of their maternity in a safe environment with caring, knowledgeable staff. This will have a tremendous impact on the reduction of obstetric fistula in rural Liberia!
Dignity:Liberia’s founder and president, Kathi Gutierrez recently said, “the constant continual theme has been our supporters.” That’s you! If you feel called to make an additional gift or a first-time donation, please click on this link or scan the QR code. Thank you for your support.
It's been challenging. Brenham is two hours away from Austin which has allowed us to make weekly trips in order to check on progress, but is too far for us to drop in daily. Most communication has been by phone or text message which has resulted in misunderstood instructions. Some misunderstandings resulted from the contractor and me using different terminology. Assumptions were made. I thought the contractor understood I how I wanted things done while he assumed I understood his intentions. Sometimes there was poor cell reception or I wasn’t able to reach the contractor at all. There have been cultural issues as well. I like to nail down all the details before things get started, while the contractor’s attitude is more laid back. I wanted things done in a certain order while the contractor wanted to knock out the smaller jobs before tackling the big ones.
Imagine overseeing a construction project across the Atlantic Ocean! In addition to the issues my husband and I encountered, the time difference between Missouri and Liberia impacts when calls can be made. Yet that has not stopped the construction of House of Hope and Dignity. Teams of people in Liberia and the U.S. have worked together on the home's construction. We’ve now ordered windows and doors for the building and have even selected curtain material!
Soon pregnant women in the Todee Junction area will be able to spend their last few days of their maternity in a safe environment with caring, knowledgeable staff. This will have a tremendous impact on the reduction of obstetric fistula in rural Liberia!
Dignity:Liberia’s founder and president, Kathi Gutierrez recently said, “the constant continual theme has been our supporters.” That’s you! If you feel called to make an additional gift or a first-time donation, please click on this link or scan the QR code. Thank you for your support.
Kathy Beth Stavinoha
Kathy Beth recently retired from St. Edward’s University after over 21 years of service. She lives in Brenham, TX with her husband and cat. She graduated from high school in Monrovia, Liberia in 1977.
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