Said To Troy:

"I've never heard anyone tell someone they're gonna go to hell and have it somehow sound loving."

While We Were Yet Sinners

At the end of the Bill Glass Weekend of Champions event, there was an opportunity to share an experience you had while telling the inmates about the gospel message.

A tall, dark-haired young man walked up to the microphone.

"I went in to Avenal. I was told beforehand that the man who molested and raped me when I was young was going to be in there.  And at one point, I turned around and found that he was right behind me.  I was able to share the gospel with him and we prayed together.  I'm so glad that we will be able to walk together in eternity, now."

This is forgiveness. 

God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.  Romans 5:8

San Quentin: Stardate - October 12, 2010

If you have ever thought that you could never reach anyone with the Gospel unless you package into a nice, easy-to-swallow pill, you may want to read on. 

If you have ever thought that discussions including the topics of repentance and hell could never bring anyone to Jesus, you may want to read on.

If you have ever thought that the Word of God, on its own with no buffer and without explanation, could never be enough to change a man's heart, you may want to read on.

I Hear The Train A-comin'

It's hard to find a picture of Folsom Prison that doesn't have Johnny Cash in it.

I'm a prodigal blogger.  A fair weather blogger.  A part-timer at best and I'd say I was sorry but that would imply that I was going to change.  I'm probably not.  I am a brazenly rebellious blogger who Can't Be Bothered.

(I may just be lazy, who can say).

Things we've done that I never wrote about:

Troy stands in line at the Qwik Stop.

He shares the line with a handful of people.  This handful includes a loud-talking, personal-space- invading, boundary-ignoring dude who makes a beeline for Troy.  The man is crazy drunk in the middle of the day and wants to chat.

At first, Troy can't make out what he is saying.  In addition to the fact that Troy's hearing isn't the greatest, this guy is slurring his words.  In addition to this guy slurring his words, his english isn't the best.  Eventually, he starts to make sense.

Man:  You're a 'wood.  I know you are.
Troy:  No, man.  I'm not a 'wood.
Man:  I know you from prison?
Troy:  Not me.
Man:  No, I do.  I know I do.  You're a 'wood. I'm a Norteno, but it's okay.  Well, I was.  Now I'm just on the streets.  But like really, I'm on the streets.  But I remember you from prison. You're a 'wood.
Troy:  When were you in?
Man:  Quentin.  2000.
Troy:  No, you don't know me from prison.
Man.  You're a 'wood.
Troy:  *laughing*  Nah man!  I ain't a 'wood!

Troy:  Do you hang out at the Mission?  Maybe you've seen me there.
Man:  Man, the last time I was there, that big guy kicked me out.
Troy:  White guy or black guy?
Man:  White.
Troy:  I know him. He's an alright guy.  But look how you are, man! Come on.
Man:  Yeah, I know, I know.  You're right.

Man:  You're not a 'wood.  I can see that, now.  You're too independent and strong. I can tell. I bet that - well maybe not now, but I bet that back in the day you weren't the kind to listen to nobody.
Troy:  Dude, I wasn't taking orders from anybody - white, black or whatever. 
Man:  I can tell that about you.  I knew right away you weren't a 'wood.
Troy:  Where do you hang out?
Man:  Down by the Mission - near the bike paths.
Troy:  I don't know where the bike paths are.  Do you hang out by that coffeeshop near the park and the tracks?
Man:  Yeah, I'm there a lot.
Troy:  I'll come see you.  See what you're doin'.
Man:  Yeah, cool, man.  I'll be there.

Man leaves.  The crowd that had gathered starts to disperse.

Cashier:  I'm glad you were here.  How did you get that guy to settle down?  He's always in here causing a mess. 

(In case this is necessary:  'wood = Peckerwood.  Used in this case to reference white supremacist gang ties in prison)

Haiti Slideshow

Bikers In Haiti - 2010 Rebuilding Efforts from Jeney Pribyl on Vimeo.


Of course, I didn't *mean* to drop off the face of the earth and leave everyone wondering whether or not Troy got back safe.  (He did, by the way).  I just got caught up in the goodness of having him home and then - as is my custom - I left the story at its halfway mark.


Part of the reason for my delay is that I've been working on this slideshow.  I don't really know how to do these, so it took me an age.  Also, it turns out that I am not good at editing for length, so the slideshow is at least twice as long as it probably should be.  Luckily, I will never know if you watch only half of it before throwing up your hands and giving up on me entirely.


I am also sending out a DVD of the slideshow (plus some extra goodies) to each person who donated to our Send Troy To Haiti fund.  Our token of appreciation will most definitely not be able to convey how grateful we truly are for all that was done for us, but we hope you will accept it as our humble "Thank You", just the same.

Post Script

There are 26 other people staying the mission house and working in Haiti.  I am just writing about Troy's part because, you know, I'm married to him.  But I don't mean to sound like Troy is single-handedly rebuilding Haiti while everyone else stands at the sidelines sipping lemonade under an umbrella.

Though, I have to tell you, I believe that -given the opportunity - he could single-handedly rebuild Haiti.  He is that good.

Accomplishments And Heartbreak.

Troy working to secure the second floor

The crew has been hard at work in Port Au Prince.

One of their jobs was to try to brace the second floor of a two-story house.  It was damaged in the earthquake, and it's inhabitants have been living in tents since that day.  It was a dangerous job, as the house was very unstable, but they managed to get the first day's work done successfully.

Unfortunately, when a group went back the next day, the foundation split and the house is unsalvagable.

The occupants are a pastor and his wife.  Another job the crew is working on is to rebuild this pastor's church.  The plan is that he will stay in the church once it is built and then he can focus on getting his home rebuilt so they can get back to a more normal life.

I lift my eyes up to the hills; where does my help come from?

Troy giving his testimony at a Haitian church earlier in the day

Last night, after their work day was over, they went downtown to the tent city.  They were going to pray for people and share the Good News.

Troy called me today to fill me in on the days events.  I'm going to record the events as best I can, but I couldn't speak with Troy for very long and I couldn't ask him to clarify the time line, I am not confident that I'm able record it perfectly.  I am confident I have all the important details right, though.

They went to the tent city to meet with and pray for people.  They actually had to stop before they reached their destination because people would not let them leave until they had heard what the guys had to say.

At this point, it is Troy, our friend Sam H., and an interpreter.  Sam and the Klebert are talking with a group and Troy is with another, flying solo. They are close to each other, however.

This big guy walks right up to Troy.  He was not part of the crowd that had gathered.  He came up from ... somewhere else and he is visibly angry.  Apparently, with Troy.  He gets right in Troy's space, looks at him and says (in perfect english), "I hate you".  Troy is like, Um...not sure what to do because he can tell that this person is not okay and also, this dude is HUGE.  I heard that he made Troy look small.

The guy starts to circle around Troy, very menacing.  He stops in front of him and says, "Give me $50 or I'll kill you". Again - in english.  As Troy begins to tell the man that he doesn't have any money on him, the guy turns up with a knife in his hand and stabbed Troy.  Stabbed him!

Service! With a smile.

Troy and Jay getting the beams cut and ready for a project

Jay brought a volleyball set for the kids to play with.  They had never seen or even heard of volleyball!  This is unheard of for this California girl.  

Two kids in particular took a shine to Troy and Jay.  They said (in sketchy english) that they weren't "like old people".  I don't really know what this means.  But when Troy and Jay would sit down for a little bit, these boys would come over and grab their hands and haul them back to the game.  Or to just wherever they were going.  When choosing teams, they'd make sure the guys were on their team.  I know Troy is missing his kids, so I bet this was the best thing ever.

It is nice to hear that in between hard work, they get these little breaks.  Because the little breaks help them to press on in the harder things.  

Wet Jeans Contest: Haiti

Squeezing in a little playtime with some neighborhood kids

I heard from Troy yesterday.  We couldn't talk for long, but I was able to get a bit of an update out of him.

He said that the people who live there are all excited to have such a rare, cool day.  Troy is not so excited as their idea of "cool" is clearly relative.   After walking up two flights of stairs, he said his pants were literally able to be wrung out.  He said that you can actually see yourself walking through the air.  As in, the humidity is so thick, you can see the air as you walk through it.

He said that - with regards to the destruction - what you see on TV doesn't come close to preparing you for what you will see there.  I know he had done  his best to prepare himself for the worst, so the fact that it's worse than he thought means it's really, really bad.

Port Au Prince Or Bust.

Today, the kids and I rode on a shuttle bus with Troy.  Destination:  SFO.

Troy is at the airport right now.  He called when he landed in JFK.  We talked as he walked and walked and walked and walked to their next terminal. Or, towards the next terminal, as they weren't sure if they were going to get a hotel for the next 6 or so hours or if they were going to just lay down roots at the airport.

I think he is hoping they lay down roots.  There's a reason he packed a one-man tent for his stay in Haiti, you know what I mean?

So now I'm sitting up on my bed with my laptop, half-watching an episode of 16 and Pregnant and thinking about how my husband is on the other side of America and what's getting to me is not that he isn't here, it's that he is going to have all these intense moments and experiences over the next 12 days and I am not going to be experiencing them with him.

I don't mean to say that I am upset that I can't go to Haiti, too.  What I mean is that I won't be able to fully understand what he will have seen and done.  Maybe he will come home and tell me all about his trip but will be left with the frustration I feel when I see really funny stand-up, and then try to tell someone who wasn't there about it.  They can't really get why it was so hysterical.  It's like that, only with a lot of tragedy, hard work and humidity.

That stupid song from the Lion King is offering me some inspiration for better thoughts.  Something about being under the same moon.  We are under the same moon, but also, we're under the same God.  I know I can't always be with him to walk the same walk and then force him to talk endlessly with me about it afterward, but I take comfort in the fact that no matter where we are on any given day, God is our constant overseer and common denominator.

(Or, maybe the song was from Aladdin)

(I really miss Troy)

I just got this picture in my email.  Looks like Troy chose the airport.

I'll be honest: I want your money.

Troy has an opportunity to go to Haiti to help with the relief efforts, but we need your help to make it happen.

As many of you know, my family, my friends and my church are very involved with a missionary family who have lived in Haiti for more than two decades.  For those interested, more can be read about Roger and Margaret Clark here.

A couple years ago, a friend of ours asked Troy if he would come with them on their next trip to Haiti to assist with some projects that required a level of burliness which Troy has most certainly achieved.  We started to save whatever money we could so that when the trip was finally announced, we'd be as ready as we could be, financially speaking.

As it happened, the funds weren't there in time for the next trip and we had to settle for hearing the stories told when our friends returned. 


In the wake of this horrible tragedy, the Clark's have asked our friends Sam & Karen Knapp to bring a crew down who would be willing to help with repairs and to build a bigger orphanage to accommodate all the recently orphaned children.  The structure will also serve as a school.

Sam is energetic, compassionate, inspiring and... in his 70's.  He is looking for young, strong men who are willing to give their skill, muscle and two weeks of their time to the people of Haiti.

Enter:   Troy.


The cost for this trip will be monumental.  At least, the amount seems monumental to our family.  I have never done any sort of fund-raising, but I just can't give up before I try.  It is so important to me that Troy be able to go - I really can't explain it.  As hard as it will be to single parent to our 5 kids and as much as I will miss him, it is worth it to us to make these small sacrifices in light of the bigger picture.

The estimated cost for this two-week trip is $3000.  Which - wow.  That's a lot of money.  It's a daunting number to me.

If you can give, I hope you do.  It would mean a lot to me. 

One wrinkle in our plan is that the possibility exists that we will collect some money, but not enough money to be able to go.  If that were to happen, we would of course refund the money to the people who gave.  We aren't trying to get rich over here - just get Troy to Haiti.

I'm also trying to think of some ideas for other methods of fundraising.  Any ideas you may have would be greatly appreciated!  Only, I just want the good ideas, not the stinky ones.


If you can give,  please make your checks payable to Northbay Christian Faith Center and designate the funds to go towards Troy Pribyl:  Haiti.    This will provide you with a tax deduction.

Checks can be sent to:

Northbay Christian Faith Center
ATTN:  Troy or Jeney Pribyl
920 Link Lane
Santa Rosa, CA  95401

I will acknowledge each gift privately in order to confirm receipt.

Thank you for considering us!  If you have any questions - leave it in the comments or email me at wastelandministries@gmail.com

-Jeney

Some of my friends have asked to send the money through Paypal.  Of course, this is fine.  I just didn't add it as an option because there is no tax write off when done that way and also because it feels a little sketchy.  I don't want people who don't know me to wonder if I'm going to pocket the money.

But, if you would rather this way, here is a link to Paypal.  The email address I use for Paypal is jeneyp@yahoo.com.  I know, embarrassing.  Jeney P.  Jeney Pee. It's like grade school all over again. 

Haiti: How You Can Help

I've written many times about Sam and Karen Knapp and all the ways they help others.  One of the ways has been to go to Haiti and help out their friends and missionaries, Roger and Margaret Clark and their daughter Rachel. 

Though I've never spoken with them, I have a memory from long ago of them coming to our church.  I can actually still remember the way Roger (or maybe it was his brother, Andy?) said, "Haiti", and when Sam says it, he says it the same way.

I notice this stuff.  Completely useless skill.

So, though they've missed almost every Sunday at our church here in California, they sort of feel like they're part of us, since so many of us support them and the children in their school.  You look at a picture of someone or write someone a check often enough and you start feeling like you know them.

Mostly what I want to say is that this is a family who has first served the Lord and then served Haiti.  And they've served in Haiti for over 20 years.  They're people I trust enough to believe that they will use my donations wisely and they're people I believe to have enough love and dedication to help the whole island, but could probably use a little cash to make it all happen.

Please, as you consider where you will send your donations - and please, please send a donation somewhere - consider sending your donation to this family of missionaries.

Not only would it mean a lot to them, but it would mean a lot to my friends.  And because of both of these things, it would mean so, so much to me. 

New Life Haiti

Instructions for giving are on their blog.

(Ah!  Wrapping up a selflessly charitable post with a line that brings it all back to ME.  Questionable form, Pribyl!)

Corralled

I have decided to herd all of the personal posts from this blog and move them to another, where they can be free to roam and feed off of the local flora.

Care Instructions