We hit the road to evangelize in January 2003. When we came home for Christmas 12 months later in December, 2003, we parked our fifth wheel in a campground. Sometime over the next year or so, my brother Steve invited us to park in their driveway when home. We did that through Christmas 2007.
Once we purchased the bus in March of 2008, we realized it was to big to park in my brother's driveway. They had blessed us abundantly by allowing us to park there, but it was time to move on.
Bro. Rex Lloyd was Pastor of Dodds then and he invited us to put a 50 amp plug on the fellowship hall and park there when we were home. From then through Christmas of 2013, we parked at Dodds.
It was a tremendous blessing to have a place to park, but the cold winter weather was about to get the best of me and the bus. If it was cold, most of my time and energy were spent trying to keep the bus from freezing or repairing what had frozen. My time at home for Christmas was miserable.
I decided the BoggsMobile had made its last trip north in the winter. We would park somewhere south and drive the car or fly home for a few days at Christmas. I was done fighting the cold and snow.
In August, 2014, the property we later purchased became available. This was not just any property. It had an old pole barn and was right next door to where we parked. I had contacted the owner about selling with absolutely no interest on their part.
We looked at the property with longing every time we were home.
My Dad and I were standing at the crumbling fence dreaming about what could be done with the property next to Dodds Church.
The bus parked at Dodds, about 10' from the property and about 200' from the barn on July 4, 2014. You can see the barn over KJo's head.
A full view of the property in August 2014. It was not yet available when I took this picture.
The barn was rented to a man for several years. In late August, my Dad heard the renter was vacating the property. We were driving home from Vermont, when I got the call. I immediately called the owner and left a message.
When I arrived at Dodds, I walked over to the barn, introduced myself to the renter and asked if he had any interest in buying the property. When he said no, I told him that I did have an interest in it.
I also talked to the church and the great neighbors on the other side to see if either of them had any interest in buying the property. I would have been disappointed to miss the opportunity, but I did not want to step in front of them.
Long story short, the owner called in late September and we closed on the property in November 2014. This post has pictures of the first day we pulled into the barn in mid December. What a momentous occasion that was.
Yes, friends, that day literally changed my life. I knew I wanted to park the bus inside, but I did not realize how much of a blessing it was to get out of the wind.
Present Day
The whole bus would have been frozen the last several days if it was parked outside. There is no way to overcome the combination of below zero temperatures and high wind. We are so thankful for this old barn. It is an amazing blessing.
I intend to eventually insulate the whole barn so I can heat it a little in the winter, but these last nine winters have definitely been better than the winters before. Hallelujah!
Praise God for the blessing in the barn.
Davy
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