All For the Women in the Windows

Yesterday Gary and I traveled to Antwerp to join in the celebration of the completion of the Breaking Chains Ministry Center in the Red Light District.  What a day!  If you have ever transformed a house from utter devastation and ruin to a beautiful, cozy home, you know some of the feelings we had last Saturday as we surveyed the transformation with approximately fifty friends of the ministry. When the apartment was rented just a few months ago, it was, in my opinion, uninhabitable. I can’t begin to tell you the filth and disrepair it contained. We found several dead mice, which explained the stench. There were holes in doors, floors and walls. The bathroom was scary. Every room was pretty disgusting. These pictures don’t do it justice.

Now it is beautiful!  The kitchen was totally gutted and new cabinets were installed along with a second-hand oven that was purchased for 59 Euros. (I couldn’t believe it when we found that at Troc’s in Brussels!) We were feeding 50 people. That’s why the kitchen isn’t clean in this pic.

The dining area is furnished with Troc finds also. The bureau was purchased for 99 Euros!

The office will be the hub of operations.

The living room is so comfortable and inviting now.

It was a great day….Lots of work, yes.  Now it is a safe, comfortable place to invite the women who work in the District who need true love and friendship. And that is SO worth all the blood, sweat and tears!