Martinsburg, West Virginia 4-2-02

Howdy Everyone!
On monday I left Winchester and headed north up to the little town of Bunker Hill, WV. There were 2 churches right across the street from each other – one a Methodist church and the other a Presbyterian. The sign in front of the Methodist Church had the pastors name on it, so I walked down to the convenient store and asked for a phone book. I then called Rev. Colby Knoll, but didn't get an answer so I left a message. While I was at the convenient store, I bought a ham
& cheese sandwich and walked down to a little park with Mill Creek running through it. There were some people fishing there. It was a beautiful day out, with a clear blue sky, bright radiant sun, flowers blooming, trees budding and nice new green grass. I really enjoyed resting in the park, but was also hoping that the pastor would call me back. I figured if it absolutely didn't work out for me to stay in the church, that I could pitch my tent right there in the park. My cell phone did ring, and Pastor Colby said to come on down. He and Jessica live right next door to
the church, and they invited me to stay at their house instead of in the church. I was pretty suprised but gladly accepted. We then had supper together and I really enjoyed getting to meet them. Jessica grew up just a few blocks away from the White House, so we had quite a bit to talk about! Their daughter Sydney is 3 and she's a real cutie. On tuesday Pastor Colby needed to go to Martinsburg (where I was walking to,) so he hauled my cart to Mark & Kym Dressel's house, a couple who attends his church. He called them up, told them my story, and they said
of course I could stay! Pastor Colby drew me out a map on how to get to their house, and I took off walking. It was an absolutely fabulous day out today, and I enjoyed every minute of it. Everything is in bloom and it's all so wonderful to see! I made it to their house, found my cart & stuff, and settled in. I asked them how many times they've invited total strangers into their house and they said not too many times! (Oh well, there's a first time for everything!) I met
their 2 kids Kayleigh, 8 and Garrett, 6. Garrett has a really remarkable story to tell. When
he was 3, they discovered a very large tumor at the base of his brain. Once they finally found a doctor who would even attempt to do the surgery -- Dr Ben Carson at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore -- he was only given a 15% chance of survival. However, 6 days after the surgery, Garrett walked out of the hospital on his own 2 feet, and has been going strong ever since. They removed the one large tumor, but Garrett still has 7 smaller tumors in his brain. However, recent tests have revealed that one of those tumors has disappeared, and another one is shrinking, and he's doing great now! On wednesday I plan on doing a little bit of sight-seeing. I'll make a side trip to Antietam Battle Grounds, where the Civil War was fought near Hagerstown, MD. That should be a lot of fun! Y'all take care and have a great day! KB