"Yeah, I like the way it's set up," Olivia said, stopping to look around.
Ethan wiggled a little in her arms, and she set him down, his footed pajama bottoms making a soft swishing sound on the floor.
"The boys won't hurt anything. In fact, if we have people coming, there'll be lots of little kids running around hopefully, so they can play if they want."
"All right. Thanks for letting me know."
"I'll be back in a minute. I want to double-check the size on those tires and give Tom a call."
"All right. Thanks," Olivia said, although from the set of her shoulders and the way she pulled her lip in between her teeth, he suspected she wasn't very comfortable.
Hopefully, he could come back in and put her at ease.
Chapter 10
Olivia looked around the activity room. There was a corner with tables and chairs set up, where she assumed people were welcome to sit and eat. Boxes of paper plates and plastic silverware sat underneath the table. Sleeping bags were stacked in one corner, and there were several cases of bottled water along one wall.
As she investigated further, she saw totes full of snacks, and more totes full of toys that ranged from toddler age to board games that entire families could enjoy.
There were blankets that smelled like they'd been freshly washed, and she also saw several tents and camp chairs stacked against the far wall.
She couldn't imagine anyone needing anything else, although on a hunch, she walked into the kitchen and opened up the refrigerator.
As she had suspected, there were gallons of milk, along with bags full of vegetables and fruit.
It seemed like Pastor Mark had thought of everything.
When had he had time to do all of this in addition to all the other things he was doing?
He certainly was taking his job of pastoring his flock seriously.
Okay, Lord, I thought that getting a flat tire was the absolute worst thing that could ever happen to me, but I have to admit coming in here and seeing how prepared Pastor Mark is for the people who might need a place to stay during the storm has been eye-opening. Obviously the man is dedicated to his job, and truly cares about the people. I'm also really impressed at his foresight, and the thoughtful things that he stocked in order to make being away from their home as pleasant an experience as possible.
On a hunch, she walked to the restroom and saw that it too was well stocked with extra bathroom tissue, as well as paper towels and soap.
She smiled a little when she noticed that there were no extra feminine products. Pastor Mark probably hadn't thought of such a thing, but she supposed that she might be able to raid her own bathroom closet and cover that deficiency without mentioning anything to Pastor Mark.
As she walked out of the restroom, she saw Mark coming in the door, his eyes sweeping over the room, lingering for a moment on her boys, who were playing with a couple of the toys from the totes, until they continued on until he found her over against the far wall.
"I'm here," she said, thinking that he was acting a little bit like he was afraid that she was going to skip town after he had left her alone for three minutes.
No, that wasn't fair. He just wanted to make sure that she was okay. Obviously, the man had a spiritual gift of helping. Or he just truly was concerned about people. She couldn't fault him for that. Especially when his job almost demanded it.
"What do you think?" he asked as he started across the large room.
She started walking to meet him, and they stood in the middle of the room, side by side, naturally turning to where her boys played in the corner.
"I'm impressed. I have to admit it."
"Really?"
"Truly. I think you've thought of everything."
"I had a little bit of help. I called Mrs. Tucker and asked what Pastor Johnson had done when they used the church several years ago for an emergency shelter."
"I bet her insights were invaluable."
"They were. They had just put the generator in, according to her, because that winter was the worst on record, and the first snowstorm put power out for three days, and the church wasn't able to help out much, since there was no power here either."
