By JEFFERSON WEAVER
Staff Writer

The Riegelwood neighborhood that saw eight deaths in the Nov. 16 storm became a construction site Monday as members of the N.C. Baptist Men Disaster Relief poured in to begin work.

Armed with faith, hammers, and donated lumber, volunteers went to work in earnest Monday on three new homes along tornado-ravaged Holly Tree Lane.

Gail Joyner works out of the trailer that acts as a construction office at the Riegelwood site. She coordinates volunteers and work orders for the Baptist Men.

“We’ve been approved for three homes right now,” she said, “and there are plans to repair several roofs and other projects.” Utility buildings and masonry pump houses are also under construction at several homes.

Around 100 homes sustained some kind of damage in the storm. As projects are completed, other requests will be considered.

From 75 to 100 workers are on duty daily at 8 a.m. After a brief prayer, job assignments, and a safety briefing, they begin work.

Billy Tarleton, a “Blue Hat” supervisor with the Baptist Men, led Monday’s first morning meeting. He issued some last minute advice about nail guns, told the crews to expect building inspectors sometime in the morning, and made a few changes in jobs.

Tarleton then asked the group to join hands in prayer.

“Let’s not forget why we’re here,” he told the workers, “and ask the Lord to let his grace and spirit work through us.”

The McNair home was a bare, new foundation Monday morning. Workers had sub-flooring in place by Monday evening, some walls framed in by Tuesday, and several rooms had been subdivided by quitting time Wednesday.

“It’s been steady,” Joyner said. “They had to slow down for a while today (Wednesday) because of the rain, but that cleared out and they went back to work twice as hard.”

Carey Taylor and Jim Currin of Wilmington First Baptist Church said they became involved with the effort to help people.

“We have mixed crews of experienced builders and not-so-experienced,” Currin said. “Everybody turns their hand to what’s needed. The experienced guys show us what to do, and we just follow.”

Currin was part of a crew building walls and sections for utility buildings. Nearby, another group rebuilt a porch and stairs damaged by debris and heavy vehicles during the cleanup.

Across the street, James Hankins and Earl Starling of Wilmington watched as two members of their group helped steady a framed-in wall.

The men are part of Youth Build, a Housing and Urban Development funded non-profit group that teaches inner city children about the building trade.

“You want to lend a hand where you can,” Hankins said.

Janika Loftin, 18, and Lashanna Fennell, 22, are members of Youth Build. They are also involved in a project rebuilding a home on Queen Street in Wilmington.

Both young women said they enjoy helping others and learning about building.

“It’s different,” Loftin said. “I might like to go into it. I don’t really know yet.”

Fennell said she saw a flyer in a store window, “thought it might be fun,” and signed up.

“It’s really good when you can do something for someone else,” she said. “I like to help people.”

Volunteers from Judson Baptist Church in Fayetteville know about tornado damage first-hand.

Men from their group described how the 1984 Red Springs tornado destroyed much of their community. Like many of the volunteers at Riegelwood, they also worked in Mississippi last year on several Hurricane Katrina rebuilding projects.

Joyner said Friday and Saturday are expected to be big days at the storm site.

A barbecue will be held for all volunteers at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, and organizers expect 125 or more workers to turn out to put the finishing touches on this week’s projects.

“There’s still a lot to do,” Joyner said, “but God’s with us, and we’ll get it done.”