Finally, I got a Plumbing Job!

That's right folks, I just accepted my new job at the plumbing shop! I recieved a call yesterday afternoon, and the manager at a very reputable plumbing contractor has offered me a job starting on Monday. This is too good of an opportunity for me to pass up, so I said yes!

I am not going to be officially quitting my job at the shelter, as Sr. Lucinda will be keeping me on the payroll in some capacity as a Crisis Intervention Worker. Hopefully, I can cover some weekend graveyard shifts taht no one else will take, or help in some other way.

The job pays quite well, is Monday to Friday, and they work on new houses and condos, which is what I wanted to get into in the first place! I start working in the warehouse for the first month, and then they will be signing me up as an apprentice after that. All I have to do to ensure an apprenticeship is show up for work on time, and put in a hard day's work.

I want to especially thank all our family and friends who have been helping us look for work and keeping us in prayer. Even though I have been working hard at putting my resume through to everywhere I could, and have been beating the pavement for months now, it still feels like this job dropped out of the sky. And with Lurana Shelter being so darn good about me abruptly changing my role from full time to relief worker, I could not have asked for a better opportunity.

It has been a while since I was wearing steel-toes to a job, and I am really looking forward to being in a labour-type job again; I will let everyone know how it all goes after my first week!

Peace,

Will

Some More Pictures!

Isaac enjoying some green milk on St. Patrick's Day...I certainly did not like the green diapers that resulted from this for the next three days.

Isaac and Mom before bedtime

Here's Isaac giving a good try at "Blue Steel"

Isaac trying to look cute after doing something mischievous

Here's the Pictures!

Here is Jeanne and Isaac at Easter, right after Sunday Mass

Here I am with Isaac and his cousin Christopher, both are trouble!

(Jeanne says all three of us are)

"Grammy" Rowan showing Isaac some pictures. That is Isaac's name for Grandma Rowan.

I can't remember what he was eating, but whatever it was, he was using it as hair styling product as well.

Isaac February 07

May Update

Hey everyone, this is just a quick post to update you all on what is happening with Jeanne, Isaac and myself.

Well, for starters, work is going absolutely insane at the shelter. Our nnual fundraising campaign is under way. The Gala dinner event went off without too many hitches at the end of April, and now we are selling raffle tickets for the most spectacular children's playhouses you have ever seen. Picture buying a ticket for a million dollar show home, and then scale that down to kid-size. Some of these playhouses were built for over $10K, and it really shows; if you want to see some pictures of them, check out www.atonementhome.com , I think there are pictures up by now.

In Isaac news, he is still cute, and still more trouble than Jeanne and I put together. We have some great Easter pictures to put up, and some even more recent ones as well. Isaac is now 20 months old!!!

Jeanne is still working her butt off as Administrative Assistant at the shelter, and then trying to keep Isaac and myself in clean clothes from day to day. I really need to be doing more at home to take some of the load off of Jeanne! (And I promise, I will be doing the laundry tonight AND putting Isaac to bed!!!)

This weekend we had the enormous pleasure of attending the ordination Mass of Fr. Greg Elder, who some might remember was my best man at the wedding. He was ordained at the cathedral in Prince Albert, SK. I cannot believe that he has actually made it through! For those of you who do not know how the process works, Greg has spent many years studying and preparing at the seminary, all leading up to this last Friday when he was ordained a priest. Bishop Moran is probably the coolest bishop I have ever met, he held both a commanding presence and a down-to-earth pastoral vibe all at the same time, if you can believe me!

Two points from that Mass really stood out for me; one was that Bishop Moran spent the majority of his homily addressing the community as a whole...he very appropriatly pointed out that a celebration such as this is time for all of us to reassess and discern how we are living out our own vocational call from God. He pointed out that through baptism, the whole Church is called to live out Christ's ministry in the world, and we cannot succeed unless everyone steps up to the challenge, not just those who are ordained to the priesthood.

The other point that really jumped out at me was that Bishop Moran was the first person to recieve a blessing from the newly ordained priests, and he got down on his knees on the sanctuary to recieve the blesing. I think that action spoke volumes about how we are all equal in baptism, and how the priests in PA are valued. Bravo to a fantastic liturgy!

The other great news is that we made some headway in finding employment in Saskatchewan. I feel like a used car salesman sometimes with the outlandish sales pitch that I throw to everone in our family when we come to visit, but we are really trying every possible avenue to find employment in Saskatoon or North Battleford. We got some more phone numbers this weekend, so we'll keep trying! The best thing that any of you can do for us is pray, pray pray! And if you happen to know of a tradesperson that is looking for an apprentice, or someone that is looking for a bright, energetic, MDiv graduate with administration experience, give us a call!!!

Well, that is all for now, there will be pictures up this week!

Peace be with all of you,

Will

...Actually, a Bad Interview

Well, as it turns out, I didn't get the job. One of the other candidates had a year's plumbing experience under his belt, and there is no way I could compete with that. So, I continue to look for the next great opportunity. With the Shelter's annual fundraiser and gala coming in the next few months, I feel that it would be bad form for me to change jobs in the middle of preparation. I think I will stick around for a while longer, at least until the gala is over with. That being said, I still really want to learn plumbing, so hopefully everything will work out well.

Thank you everyone for your prayers, and I humbly ask that you continue to pray for me (and Jeanne and Isaac), as I continue to look for a fair-minded plumbing contractor.

For those of you who don't know already, mt dad busted up his foot really bad at work last week...he was supervising the crusher crew at a large mine in BC, and he slipped on the ice the other day, and broke his ankle very, very badly. He went into surgery, and they fixed him up pretty good, but he is out of commission for the next 8 weeks or so. Please keep him in your prayers as well, if you can!

- Will

A Good Interview

So, I just had an interview for a plumbing apprenticeship this morning, with a residential plumbing outfit in St. Albert. I really felt good about it; there are two other candidates for the position, and I am supposed to phone the boss tomorrow morning to see if I have a job. He told me that they indenture the apprentices right away, so there is no "trial" period as a general labourer. I really appreciated hearing that, because until you are contracted as an apprentice, there is virtually no guarantee that they actually will give you an apprenticeship.It is a 45 hour work week, with some possibilities for overtime and piecework, but the boss said he doesn't like overworking his crew, so there will only be occasional weekend work.

The employer sounded very positive, and the details on the job were exactly what I wanted to hear.

So I will be sure to let everyone know what is happening tomorrow, until then, please keep me in your prayers!

-Will

Huh? What?...Plumbing? Are you Serious?!?

Well...yeah, actually, I am serious. Over the last few weeks, I have made the decision to search for a plumbing company that would be willing to take me on as a starting apprentice. Now, I admit, this seems like a 180 degree spin from social work and the shelter, but in actuality, this has been something I have been thinking about for quite some time.

I really enjoy my work at the shelter, but I have been craving something different...I really would like a chance to work with my hands again, in a physical environment. My goal is that I begin an apprenticeship, and continue my social work diploma until it is completed. Jeanne and my folks would not let me leave another academic program half-finished. Considering that this would be my...oh...200th career/educational/vocational change since highschool, I imagine that the people who know me quite well would not be suprised.

There are a couple big motivating factors for my decision, first and foremost is how this could help our family. In four years, I could be a journeyman plumber, making serious money. As a social worker, to get a comparable salary, I would need 2 more years for my diploma, 4 years to finish a BSW part time, and 2 years for an MSW. So the educational component would take twice as long.

As an apprentice plumber, the wages will be comparable to what I am making now, plus I would be getting overtime bonuses. And the pay increases substantially each year that I apprentice. So from a financial point of view, trades would be the no-brainer decision for me right now. Especially concidering that I plan on continuing my social work education as I go along with plumbing, at least until I finish my diploma.

One big goal that Jeanne and I have is to buy a house in the near future. As a social worker, in order for me to make enough for that to happen, we would have to move somewhere quite remote, where the wages are more attractive. But plumbers are in high demand everywhere, especially in Edmonton.

Apart from the financial aspects, plumbing is something that I am really interested in. I really like the idea of working with my hands, and being a part of new house construction. I think it would be a great job helping install fancy bathroom and kitchen fixtures, and just seeing the whole process from start to finish.

The knowledge aspect is a big reason for me, too. When I was a kid, I had absolutely no respect for my dad, because he was involved in trades and heavy equipment. I felt embarrassed going to a private school with a bunch of doctor and lawyer's kids. It took a long time for me to realize just how valuable my dad's skills and knowledge really are. I have a real desire to learn how to do something skillful with my own hands...I am at a point now where I am really regretting not helping my dad out every time he fixed up something around the house. I want to tap into that.

So, as I see it, it is a win-win scenario...learn a skilled trade, that I get to keep for the rest of my life, and also work part time on my education...which I am already doing. The best part is that I will be able to fix my own leaky toilet instead of calling out for help :)

I really, really need everyone's prayers with this; I have made contact with a number of contractors, and I am going to continue contacting them and others until someone is willing to take me on as an apprentice. Its a challenge, because most contractors are looking for 2nd year apprentices and up. It feels sort of needle-in-haystack...I know that plumbing company is out there, I just haven't found them yet.

Everything else is really good at home. Isaac just recently turned 18 months old, he is getting so big now it is scary! His hair is really starting to come in; he's going to need a haircut soon. Grandma Rowan came for a visit last week, and gave Jeanne and I a big break. It was so nice...I was able to get some papers written for class, and Jeanne was able to relax a little bit and not have to be chasing Isaac around the whole time while I was doing homework. It was also really nice to just have a visit with Mom. Thanks for coming, Mom!

Jeanne is doing pretty good. I think that with Mom coming for a visit, her body revolted and said, "Hey! You're taking a break! This must be the perfect time to get sick!" Jeanne seems to get sick every time she allows herself a few moments of relaxation. I think she works so hard that she actually wills her body into good health, until it just gives up. So she is a little sick right now. I managed to convince her to stay home and rest today; she sounds much better after getting some sleep in.

Well, that seems like the general idea, as far as updates go. Please pray that Jeanne can get some rest, she works way too hard for her own good. And if you have time, please pray that someone will get ahold of me about this plumbing thing.

Peace to all of you, and hopefully we will hear from you soon :)

-Will