Ready, Set, Go

Note: These blog posts will be several days behind actual events. We’re currently in Wauchula, FL helping with hurricane recovery efforts, which we’ll detail in future blogs

RECAPPING THE BUILD:

Since buying the bus back in January, Davis, Josh, and I (Cain) have been slowly transforming the old school bus into something comfortable and functional enough to live in while we travel the country serving others. We also wanted our bus build to be quality and last for years to come. Our long term goal for the LOST Bus is that after our year of service and travel is finished, a new crew will take over and continue the mission. And after that crew another crew and so on until the engine eventually gives out and the bus can’t roll anymore. For this reason we really took our time and didn’t cut  corners during the conversion. Some of our favorite features are:

• The back porch

• HEAVY Solar setup

• Rooftop Deck (With Eno compatibility)

• Job Boxes

• Blackstone Grill

• Table / Couch transition

• Guest Bed

• Sink Shower combo

• The Mural

• Bike Rack

• Wood Burning stove nook

• LARGE and IN CHARGE kitchen

LIFE DURING THE BUILD:

Now that we have finished the build we can step back and feel a sense of pride in what we have accomplished. Not only do we have an amazing new home on wheels, but we picked up a few unexpected skills. We created a non-profit and rebuilt the  website -  methodically crafting each sentence to best portray what The LOST Bus is for us and what it potentially could be for others down the line. The process was profoundly rewarding, and working towards a common goal with friends united us in a unique way and made the build a joyful experience.

Josh and Bill enjoying their lunch break!

There were plenty of challenges and problems to solve along the way but perhaps the biggest challenge we faced throughout the process was time management (especially when a good surf swell rolled through). For the first six months we  all had full-time jobs, so work on the bus was limited to evenings and weekends. All three of us are also very social critters and finding a healthy balance between work and spending time with our community of friends was a constant challenge. For the most part our solution to this problem was sleeping less… I’ll admit not the most sustainable of solutions but that’s where we landed. For the better part of a year we became machines. I forgot what it felt like to not be tired and there was rarely a moment of rest or reflection as we were always focused on the next task or finding a solution to new problems we uncovered. 

Whoops…

THE SEND OFF

This pedal to-the-metal approach to life continued right up until we left, and while we are very aware of the unhealthy consequences from this posture of nonstop living, I can’t deny that it made the final days in Charleston exceptionally sweet. To kick things off, on Sunday October 9th we got to do a bus show-and-tell for the congregation at St. James Church where we attended services during our time in Charleston. Only a handful of folks at St. James had a full grasp of what exactly we were working on with this bus, so having an opportunity to share with them exactly what we are doing and then show them the “finished” bus was an incredible one-two punch combo. We really knocked their socks off with the quality of our work too! I don’t think many of them had profiled the three young bucks sitting in the pews on Sundays as craftsmen, and it’s always fun to surprise folks. They sent us off with prayer, support, a blessing, and lots of hugs.

Speaking with the St. James congregation

That afternoon we hosted an ‘Open Bus” to celebrate the milestone of completing the conversion and the re-launch of Lending Our Services Traveling. We were blown away with how many people showed up. Friends, family, and Lowes employees all came out to celebrate,offering words / letters of encouragement, generous donations, and an abundance of  supplies for victims of hurricane Ian in southwest Florida. Hoffa (Father of Cain) gave a spirited speech and performed a christening ceremony which was the highlight for many in attendance. 

That night we parked the bus on Charleston’s Battery and early the next morning got a chance to show my old coworkers at Richard Marks Restorations the bus they had heard so much about over the past year. We also got the opportunity to share a meal, feeding them breakfast tacos before work. Many of the guys had a major hand in how the bus turned out, from donating scrap supplies and lending tools to giving crucial advice on how to tackle obstacles from the build process. Some friends and family also made it out early in the morning to send us off including a lady named Lynda who brought her shofar and sounded us off with a blessing!

With the blowing of the shofar we are officially on our way. The chapter of preparing the bus for our expedition has come to a close and now, as prepared as we'll ever be,  we turn our attention to the road - ready to Go Forth and Do Good Things!