My sweet uncle Bob who was a retired electrician and was a huge part of Nellie Mae passed away suddenly this morning. We grieve his loss… technically some would say he just wired our house, but he did way more than just wire our house.
Bob gave his summer to get us into gear. He stepped in our lives at a time when a lot of people would have wanted to step out. You all saw Nellie Mae Pre-Renovation. Bob was there from the beginning with us and saw Nellie Mae at its worst. And well, he saw us at our worst. The days we told him about how Tim had lost his job. How we were starting over. How Tim was working, going to HVAC school, and renovating that darn house. How all our things were in storage. How nothing we did have in storage was going to fit into Nellie Mae anyway. Bob would listen. Offer advice. But mostly, he was just there. He just wanted to be there.  And keep us focused on what needed to be done. Day to day. I owe Bob so much. On days I knew Tim wanted to just roll over and not move forward… because it was so hard to move forward… Tim would say, “Bob is going to be at Nellie Mae in 30 minutes! And he is going to want coffee! I have to go!” Bob came over daily the mornings we were in the electrical phase. Without fail. He wanted nothing in return for helping us. Tim figured he could try to pay him in coffee, so every morning Starbucks would have the order ready. We also opened a home depot fuel points card for him hoping he would have eternal rewards with all of our purchases!
Bob had a sweet spirit, a gentle and kind heart, and he just loved people. He was also there during a time of celebration with us. When we finished. When we celebrated at Stoney River. When Tim got the big job. And heard the news when we were ready to do it all over again! He was excited about our current house project and I am only sad that he won’t get to see it finished.
Yes, he did more than wire our house. He was more than an uncle to me. He took us in like we were his very own. I have no question that Bob is sitting with Jesus right now because at a time in our life we needed Jesus the most…. Bob was a very clear reflection of Him to us. We love you Bob.
We also wanted to post pictures of Nellie Mae, Renter style… We had the most perfect sweet renter move in and it looks like a dollhouse. A young girl with a son are living here. Her style is “shabby chic” and it is absolutely adorable. The house looks like it was made for her. With her permission, here are some pics.
Thank you to Bob for not just making Nellie Mae a home and place of hope for us, but now for many that will reside there.
I love that our renter has a sign on the wall that says, “Welcome to Nellie Mae”. Blessings are poured onto this house because it was built with so much love.

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Our sweet renter and son. We found our way here…. and pray that many will too.