My first trip - Thomas Kenemer

 This mission trip was special for me because it was my first. I thought the message we were being taught during worship every evening was very interesting. The message was “YOU ARE HERE”.  It spoke a lot about we are here in the present and we should not get caught up on things that happened in the past and worry about things that will happen in the future.  We need to be focused on things we need to do right now. 

The city of Savannah had so much history.  We learned a lot about it when we went to the First African Baptist Church.  Over 200 years of history in those walls!  We all learned new things from a pastor at the church.  Even though it was very hot and very humid, Savannah grew on me.  Part of the reason was the people.  They were so nice, so grateful and so respectful.  It felt good to help people and work for the community.

The people who work at the thrift store were very thankful and shared personal stories with us.  We loved helping at the thrift store so much, we actually went back and spent one more hour sorting clothes the next day after we were done at our 2^nd service sight.  

Something else I thought was very interesting were the self-devotions.  They handed us these little books at the beginning of the week and every day after breakfast, our group would go upstairs and work on these devotions.  I liked them because they were meant to help make the message of the week more relatable to you.  And I think this was a large part of what made the worship feel so special.

My service sites - Dylan Brown

 Today we had arguably the worst service site.

We painted a house in the hot sun for three and a half hours, with little shade and the humidity higher than your everyday sauna. Our service sites before were amazing though. We worked at a thrift store and a food bank. The thrift store was my over all favorite, we sorted clothes and bagged them. At the same time the group was trying on strange outfits and having an over all great time. At the food bank we washed trays, I liked this one too. I’m not sure why though because usually I dislike washing dishes. But back to the house, the house was being painted yellow and white, really going for that egg look. The house was in horrible condition, rotting wood and paint peeling to the extreme. There were wasp and hornet infestations and tiny bugs that bit but no one knew what they were.  Our first hour or so was ok; we were determined and ready to go. But as soon as we took our first break everything went down from there. We were tired and not because of heat exhaustion or from the work but it seemed like several different factors combined. It was our second to last day, we had easier sites beforehand. Just all of these things together made for a slump in wanting to work or have motivation. But in the end we pushed through and got a large portion of the house done. Now that the house was finished I felt closer and more open with my service group. With this day done we were more excited than ever to be almost finished. With that we headed off to the beach, we arrived at the beach on Tybee Island (thirty minutes from the church) and parked. And let me tell you, this was the hottest, most humid beach I’ve ever stepped foot on. Usually at a beach it’s a lot cooler and has a breeze or such but no, this beach was HOTTER. But over all It was a lot of fun and I and the group had a great time. At the end of the day I realized that I had thought that this trip would be easier being my second. But it had actually been harder, and think it  was this way because God was trying to teach me something. Humility, it’s a problem that I’ve had for quite a while, and I think God was trying to teach me it through this trip.

Mission Trip Day 1,2,3 & 4 - Riley Thorp

Monday- on Monday we went to work and painted a house we named the house Mable  it was really hot but our group powered through it. Later that night we went to down town Savannah it was very nice and memorable.

Tuesday- on Tuesday we continued painting Mable the yellow house it was even more hot on Tuesday but God helped us power through it. Later that night for our evening activity we went to the First African Baptist Church that was built in 1813 and it was still standing 

Wednesday- On Wednesday we went to work  on a garden with Mona Lisa (that’s her name)and Mr. Kenny we cleaned up trash and glass because people vandalized it. After Mona Lisa took us to the man who started the gardens Mr. Charlie he was 87 and when we pulled up he was on a tractor and gave us this huge watermelon. 

Thursday-  on Thursday we went to serve at  a food bank called Second harvest. It was very nice to be in the air conditioned building after 3 days of serving outside In the humidity. Later that night we had are option night which was going to going to Crumble Cookies. It was so good. Then we did the evening church clap which is very fun. 

This mission trip was very fun and I cannot wait for next year!!! Thank you to everyone who served us and a special thanks to Tim, Sara, and June you guys are so fun to be with and always make me laugh😃 Thank you!!!

My second trip - Jonni Robinson

 This is my second mission trip with this church. My best friend invited me to come last year because she didn’t want to be alone her first time, so I decided to come. Before the trip, I was going to bail the day before. I was just so nervous and worried I had never done anything like it, not to mention it wasn’t my church or my denomination and I knew almost no one. But after that first experience I decided it was so much fun I had learned so much about God and being more on my own and especially going out and experiencing how others live differently compared to me and how I can help them which I love doing. I decided to come again this year, but this time it would be so much different. I would be one of the oldest and not in the shadows of others and ones more experienced and outgoing than me. This time I had to be more of a leader which I struggle with especially when I still feel like there’s an awkward barrier between me and the rest of the group, and that if I say something or do something it won’t be right. Now these past few days I felt closer with the group talking to the members and made good connections even though the barriers are still there the shyness is slowly going away, I have felt more confident and connected to God, I understand new ideas and perspectives with this group and getting this opportunity to travel to a new state for a week every summer doing something so interesting meeting new people is almost like traveling to a different country.

Perseverance- Gavin Gottschalk

This has been a pretty well balanced mission trip to say the least. The heat here is like nothing else and I’ve never felt humidity like this. But the whole flying thing was awesome! The night we got into Orlando we went right to the church we were staying at and went to bed, the next morning we had a fun day at Disney world and got to test out most of the rides and see plenty of attractions, the waiting in line with the heat was the only part of Disney I dreaded, but besides that we had a lot of fun trying out all of the roller coaster and rides. What was also cool for me personally was my family flew out and went Only for the good part of course (Disney). Afterwards we all headed out and got poured on during our drive up to Savannah, Georgia. The Church here has been really nice actually and even has showers on site which is a luxury and saves a ton of time! The group I’m with is from Minnesota and they’ve been really cool and we all get along well. So far we’ve went to a thrift store and sorted clothes, went to a food bank and washed pans, and now we are painting a house for the last two days outside and it is Hot! But it’s been fun so far and out last day is tomorrow so I look forward to being done and getting proper sleep but the experience it’s self has been amazing and I’ve learned a lot form others as well. We’ve also gotten to see a lot of cool places like today we went to the beach and got to swim in the very very warm water and other days we got to walk the city of Savannah and we also got to go to the First African Baptist Church which has so much history associated with it and was so cool to hear about! But like I said it’s been a well balanced trip and I’ve had a great time learning about this place. ~Gavin Gottschalk

Photos from our first few days

Photos are out of order at this point. My apologies.

 Painting at David’s house. 

Crew with found outfits at Blessingdale’s Thrift Store

Working at the food bank 

Our Savannah sunset on the first night!

Our housing site

Had to stop at Daytona on our way…

Sorting and categorizing clothing at the thrift store. This pile was about half the size when we started. 

Exploring on free time

Washing pans at the food bank

The sanctuary for our housing site 

Heading into Disney’s Hollywood Studios

Our Gifts - June Berfanger

Roaches. Big roaches. Baby roaches. 84 bug bites. Benadryl. Itch cream. Countless icebags. Six bottles of sunscreen. Near miss car accident. A life altering event. And God shows up and continues to work and guide us in miraculous ways.

 

This is my third mission trip with the youth. At 53 years of age, I sometimes wonder if my time with the youth is nearing theend. Afterall, what youth wants to hang out with a 53-year-oldwoman? Perhaps, I am not needed anymore I thought to myself. Sara and Tim are so very capable so they do not need me to go as well. During youth group, I tend to go on about stories or thoughts on a certain topic or scripture during bible study time. I sometimes see their eyes glaze over and I think that I am getting too old to connect with them. I am sure the youth sometimes think, “Here comes another June story.” However, when I feel the Spirit call, I speak up and share a story or say something that has touched my heart. Sometimes, when I sense a child may be hurting or sad, I reach out to them. That has been my unofficial roll in youth group. 

 

I believe God gave me the gift of encouragement. God gives us all gifts to use for His kingdom. I am not talking abut your occupation and job or talent. I am talking about the spiritual gift God gave all His children. I came into this trip questioning if I was still needed. I would soon learn it was wrong of me to question that I should stop using my spiritual gift with the youth. Silly me.

 

On this trip, I continued to share stories and comments when I felt led. Little did I know that a few words I said on this tripwould have a huge impact on a youth. My sharing created a turning point and a safe place for them. All because I did what God always wants. I shared my gift. Your spiritual gift should never quit, get tired or think it is not important. You should use and shout your gift from the rooftops. The gift that comes from God, when shared, multiplies, and furthers His kingdom. It also fills you up with joy when you use it. And then you spread the joy of the Lord. I was literally shouting, “I love Jesus” while painting with the youth, dripping sweat. It was wonderful. My heart was bursting with joy. God never ceases to show up when you lean into Him. Go God!

 

Continue to pray for our mission trip. Those prayers sustain us. And pray that the youth and everyone searching find their own spiritual gifts. We are all here to share. 

 

Blessings!

June Berfanger