You feeling fed UP? No Problem, get up and find someone in your community who really needs help.

Daily we find people who need help and we do what is within our limits of Budget and Old Age (Ours).
The VA and others have limits on what they can do and what they can help with.
We have only the limits of our imagination and bodies.

Lately we have partnered with other non profit groups and been able to build or assist in getting help for others. As such where our By Laws limit us to Vets we find others to assist in making the lives of real people better.

If you are a felon then forget our name for Felons have given up their rights by their actions.
You want to push us? Call us names or other types of intimidation? Not on my watch.
You need real help and want a chance then look us up.
We do not give money we provide a way to live better as long as the person is willing to do their part.

We are the volunteers in your home town and we need more volunteers.

Yes we have our problems and this is no picnic or a job for those weak of heart or no heart for others.

In short many good folks need help and you can find them in your AO.

Drop off the Mass Media circuit and reading the trash from same, get off your duff and find the need in your AO.

HK

 

Any tricks on separating the chaff from the wheat ?

Guy came here with some logs for me to saw, had an employee with him named Darrell. Darrell says I sure could use a small barn on my place. So I asked if he had timber on his place....yeah....so I said I'd come look at it and maybe help him out.

Took a Saturday morning, went over to his place, which turned out to be him and 2 other family members living in new homes on a 20ac piece of property. Getting cows this year, beginning to homestead kinda place. We walked over the place, he/they had some timber that was actually needing to be harvested.....plenty enough for a small barn. I made some suggestions about size, where to locate, etc. I was thinking I'd haul my mill over, along with my tractor, (they have no tractor) spend a few days helping them down and process enough lumber for it, in exchange for some labor/help on my place. I feel certain they would have far gotten the better end of the deal, if nothing else, from my equipment and experience.

Last thing he said was "I'll call you the first of the week".

That was 6 weeks ago. Not a word.

Doesn't really inspire one to go looking to 'help' people that won't help themselves in the least.....and whose word apparently means nothing.

 

I wasn't there so can't say except if he had a new house he could find the money to buy a barn.

 

"Any tricks on separating the chaff from the wheat?"

I'm thinking the "customer" is all of a sudden awake to the need for prepping. Let him get his hooks on your phone number, and he'll never stop calling for "assistance" with one or another project. How to decide to undertake a project with a random contact, well, without recommendations from folks you know, fuggeddaboudit.

 

He wanted you to do it all for him for nothing. When you suggested he work no way! People all seem to want something for nothing now...

 

Yup see that all the time but that is not a need that is a want.
The first level of "walk away" for me.
That type is looking for a sucker to do all the work.

 

In my experience someone in need has usually exhausted all forms of social and or other help to improve their life.

In a recent case we have a Vet some 92 years old living in their home and as self reliant as any one can be at such a age.

The home is small and neat and surly as old as the Vet, it is in a small town, well kept and safe.

The VA funded a metal ramp for the soon to be delivered wheel chair.

The need was for a concrete extension from the ramp to the street and mail box.

We were ask if we had the means to assist this Vet.
Now you would think the VA would understand that the Vet is still in need to access the most basic aspect of daily living, that of checking the mail and getting to a vehicle for transport for Doctor appointments.
Fact is wheel chairs do not operate on grass.

So we provided the installation of a concrete landing pad and wheel chair pad to finish this need.

Need v Want, need wins out every time.

We are a volunteer group that fills in the blanks when help fails for Vets.

 

Ha, Wait until some find out you may or may-not reload?
Nothing but the easy button for them is good enough.
You load it up and don't expect 0 none, nada ,help.

 

I once built a deck for an elderly neighbor. No charge because she told me she had 6 dollars and some cents at the end of every month after expenses. Not to long after she hired a crew to build an extension. They weren't working for free. I'm glad I didn't start mowing her lawn when she complained about that expense. Guess what. She has a lawn service now.

I do things for people because that's what you're supposed to do. But you won't fool me twice.

edit. I just restored a cast iron pot for a family that I know will appreciate it. Backstrap and fresh veggies out of their garden delivered in a coupla days. More than worth the work I did on that pot (And it was a PIA. LOL). The husband was Special Forces and is pretty much disabled. Their daughter married a Marine. I'd go out of my way to help them even in SHTF.

 

What is the organization you're speaking of?

 

Elks

 

My Dad was an enlisted Marine. Went back after college to be an Army officer. He was an Elk.

 

Good thing they is what they is as the Vet has refused help from any units that make money off alcohol sales.
Vet has his own standards and holds to them even if he has to crawl to the mail box.
We understand that and are fine with it.

 

I had a remote friend that ask me to join years ago and I should have but I was knee deep in EMT Volunteer work in another AO.

 

Yeah, I was in Hospice help when Dad was active. He's passed and right now I'm organizing a group. I don't want to define it yet. It'll likely be an offshoot of 12 Step AA and NA. Keeping it small.

I've facilitated meetings in the past.

I can walk to a Veteran housing complex.

 

Not seeing any Elks lodges down here, The Cajun Navy is still running the coastal shoreline looking for body's and debris from the Seacor jack-up that flipped over, They have recovered a few items from the Sea-cor vessel and a 2# package of Coke on Lost island, You won't see that on main stream news.

 

The coke is part of some lives.

I do know if you fly to rigs they often do lock downs on the way out and if you're holding you're screwed.

I did two fly outs and was in on a shake down, didn't matter that I was on a Noise Abatement Team, (design and Installation) you fly you get searched.

I do suggest that the coke was a possible smugglers stash he had to dump. Most types of drugs sent to rigs is already cut many times and packaged for quick pass off to workers.

 

What? There's air drops all the time on the islands, Nothing to do with oilfield other than dodging platforms at night.
You were probably searched by Apache, Biggest A-Holes in the Gulf, Hell I've seen them run a dog across personals baggage at the heliport, One day sooner than later no-one will work for them.

 

This was about 1985 when all the rigs were required to provide noise abatement installation.
Not a clue who Apache is because the searchers were US Coast Guard.

 

Hmm, Really, I've never had them search us until we pulled into Grand Isle on a 50 ft Gulfstar coming in from Isla Mujeres .
The Lt. got real nice when the owner informed him he was the 32nd. Judicial Division A Judge
But to the Judges credit he did offer up me in case the coasties wanted to lock someone up.
You know, Those young guys won't look under a box of Kotex's? To save their lives.
They act like its a live Cobra or something?