Today was another awesome day! It started with a field trip to the Lincoln Park Zoo with our kids at Jackson Park. We left around 9:30, some of us with the kids and some in the van. The kids were so cute singing along to the music on the buses! The kids loved it and we overall had a pretty good time there. :)
Afer that was a smoothie shop and the beach!! It was great to get to relax a little and enjoy the beautiful weather we had today. :) We got back to the apartments and changed for a worship night that CSM had for us, including many fun games, a taco buffet style dinner, and a worship that consisted of a few songs and a speaker, Kurt, who helps CSM over on the south side of the city.
Our night ended with a very powerful devotation for all of the St. John's members as it was opened for any and everyone to speak about this week and what they've learned or discovered. Tonight is a very bittersweet night, as we are in some ways both relieved and heartbroken that tomorrow will be our last day volunteering and at Jackson Park. No one is looking forward to saying goodbye to our kids, but we hope to really enjoy our last day at Jackson Park!
Thursday, July 29, 2010
wooo!!! it's thursday :)
heyhey its jordan yepp if you know me. soo its our second to last day and it was sweet. as the norm states i shall start where i started the day.
my air matress broke woe is me and stuff and taylor kershaw's is HUGEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE so there we are sharing and that is where i awoke.
taylor and i were try to not hear everyone telling us to get. we zombie walk ourselves to the showers and such. we do allllllllllllll the morning stuff people who practice good hygeine.
i grabb us some coffee and hop in the van. i assist Hallie the friendship braclet machine in making what? what?........friendship bracelets of course but you really just can't refuse when they are for the ever cute ever funny ever adorable cadets. i crank out a few of those and by this time me and tayloro have decide that the coffee we are sipping on is not up to starbucks normal standards this saddens us deeply but as soon as we walk into the multipurpose room everyone is washed in great waves of admiration from allllllllll the kids. the team"s cat in the hat shirts were quite a hit way to go team creativity ;)
the next part of the day is us at the beach which was wonderful because chicago is soooooooo different :) the good interesting new kind at is. beacause the water was so frigid(the brave just let their limbs go numb) austin,taylor and i go exploring. hurrah!! so what do us puppy owners wander upon but a dog beach yes a dog beach. how great of a time we had petting dogs,squealing at their cuteness and watching bobo ran from his owner.....twice. when we returned to the others, taylor, alexa and i dug a hole of epic proportions. (if you ever happen to find a black hairtie buried on the beach in chicago tell me or taylor) also doing mission work so we talked with others
we also FINALLYYYYYY got to meet some other churches and tallk to new people, play games, eat a taco bar andddddddddddddddd gawk at a guy that looks like heath ledger.....of course. we attended a whorship service as well and i spoke with another child named jordan. that summmmmssss it up other than the best debreif everrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. which just can't be put in words ask someone is my reccomendation i'm sure they'd love to share with you or you know just like come nex year but i'm just throwing that out there :)
P.s. i know i messed this up and didn't talk about my team properly but when i found out that was what i was sSUPPOSED to be doing it was to late to turn back sorryyyyy
soooo as my dad says ciao baby
my air matress broke woe is me and stuff and taylor kershaw's is HUGEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE so there we are sharing and that is where i awoke.
taylor and i were try to not hear everyone telling us to get. we zombie walk ourselves to the showers and such. we do allllllllllllll the morning stuff people who practice good hygeine.
i grabb us some coffee and hop in the van. i assist Hallie the friendship braclet machine in making what? what?........friendship bracelets of course but you really just can't refuse when they are for the ever cute ever funny ever adorable cadets. i crank out a few of those and by this time me and tayloro have decide that the coffee we are sipping on is not up to starbucks normal standards this saddens us deeply but as soon as we walk into the multipurpose room everyone is washed in great waves of admiration from allllllllll the kids. the team"s cat in the hat shirts were quite a hit way to go team creativity ;)
the next part of the day is us at the beach which was wonderful because chicago is soooooooo different :) the good interesting new kind at is. beacause the water was so frigid(the brave just let their limbs go numb) austin,taylor and i go exploring. hurrah!! so what do us puppy owners wander upon but a dog beach yes a dog beach. how great of a time we had petting dogs,squealing at their cuteness and watching bobo ran from his owner.....twice. when we returned to the others, taylor, alexa and i dug a hole of epic proportions. (if you ever happen to find a black hairtie buried on the beach in chicago tell me or taylor) also doing mission work so we talked with others
we also FINALLYYYYYY got to meet some other churches and tallk to new people, play games, eat a taco bar andddddddddddddddd gawk at a guy that looks like heath ledger.....of course. we attended a whorship service as well and i spoke with another child named jordan. that summmmmssss it up other than the best debreif everrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. which just can't be put in words ask someone is my reccomendation i'm sure they'd love to share with you or you know just like come nex year but i'm just throwing that out there :)
P.s. i know i messed this up and didn't talk about my team properly but when i found out that was what i was sSUPPOSED to be doing it was to late to turn back sorryyyyy
soooo as my dad says ciao baby
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Winds Of Change - Wednesday
So, here we are. About halfway through the week. We're a little tired but as ready as ever to hit the streets of Chicago.
Today is called "Immersion Day", in which we are split up into three groups. Each group is assigned a neighborhood in the city and we must take public transportation to get to our neighborhood. On the way, we must talk with Chicago locals and ask them questions about their experiences with the city, etc. We are given 2 dollars each for lunch and told to get creative with it. And we're off!
My team in particular had a few great experiences. Our destination was the Wicker Park area. On the way there, we met an older man who lived in a nursing home, but was obviously in financial trouble. We talked with him until he got off the bus. After lunch, we still had one dollar left of our $8 and we felt like there was some reason that we had this dollar and that we would find someone who needed it more. We were right. We ended up running into the same old man we met earlier standing on the side of the road collecting change. Without the slightest bit of hesitation, we handed him our dollar.
Next we went to our last day at Holy Angels Boys and Girls Club. They had a field trip today at the skating rink, which was tons of fun and ended with a giant dance party to "The Cupid Shuffle". We then accompanied the kids back to H.A. where we handed out books to each of the kids. After a trip to the ice cream truck and a few games of double dutch, it was time for us to go. It was really hard to leave the kids who we'd grown close with, but after tons of hugs, we climbed back into the bus.
Dinner tonight was awesome! We dined on Lebanise food; hummus, falafel, and sandwiches filled with beef, chicken, or falafel. YUMYUM!
It will be really weird not to spend time with our kids at Holy Angels tomorrow, but we're all looking forward to our next couple of days!
Thanks for reading and God Bless
-Kara, Winds of Change
Today is called "Immersion Day", in which we are split up into three groups. Each group is assigned a neighborhood in the city and we must take public transportation to get to our neighborhood. On the way, we must talk with Chicago locals and ask them questions about their experiences with the city, etc. We are given 2 dollars each for lunch and told to get creative with it. And we're off!
My team in particular had a few great experiences. Our destination was the Wicker Park area. On the way there, we met an older man who lived in a nursing home, but was obviously in financial trouble. We talked with him until he got off the bus. After lunch, we still had one dollar left of our $8 and we felt like there was some reason that we had this dollar and that we would find someone who needed it more. We were right. We ended up running into the same old man we met earlier standing on the side of the road collecting change. Without the slightest bit of hesitation, we handed him our dollar.
Next we went to our last day at Holy Angels Boys and Girls Club. They had a field trip today at the skating rink, which was tons of fun and ended with a giant dance party to "The Cupid Shuffle". We then accompanied the kids back to H.A. where we handed out books to each of the kids. After a trip to the ice cream truck and a few games of double dutch, it was time for us to go. It was really hard to leave the kids who we'd grown close with, but after tons of hugs, we climbed back into the bus.
Dinner tonight was awesome! We dined on Lebanise food; hummus, falafel, and sandwiches filled with beef, chicken, or falafel. YUMYUM!
It will be really weird not to spend time with our kids at Holy Angels tomorrow, but we're all looking forward to our next couple of days!
Thanks for reading and God Bless
-Kara, Winds of Change
Palm Pilots
Hump Day! (hump day is the middle week and thus the hardest day)
Today was absolutely amazing! The morning began with an awfully hot and difficult day at Jackson Park. The groups for the most part were all practicing their dances for the end-of-camp show, and that was accompanied with smiles, fun, laughter, and some frustration. The kids are so great to work with!
This evening was something totally different. Our group was split into groups of four and sent into specific neighborhoods in the city with a bus pass and $2 each for dinner. The challenge was to see how life on the streets was really like. Each of our groups had amazing experiences and got to talk to a lot of homeless and needy people, all who touched our lives as much as we touched them.
The Palm Pilots :)
Today was absolutely amazing! The morning began with an awfully hot and difficult day at Jackson Park. The groups for the most part were all practicing their dances for the end-of-camp show, and that was accompanied with smiles, fun, laughter, and some frustration. The kids are so great to work with!
This evening was something totally different. Our group was split into groups of four and sent into specific neighborhoods in the city with a bus pass and $2 each for dinner. The challenge was to see how life on the streets was really like. Each of our groups had amazing experiences and got to talk to a lot of homeless and needy people, all who touched our lives as much as we touched them.
The Palm Pilots :)
Monday, July 26, 2010
Palm Pilots
Hi! We are team number 2, known as the Palm Pilots. :) Our team members include Pastor Sheryl, Dustin Gholson, Pam Kaltmeyer, Connie Gordon, Ryon Daggett, Gabby Blanton, Katherine McCullough, Katelyn Denby, Jenna Germer, Jessie Howell, Alexa Stephenson, Helen Babb, and our wonderful host Julie.
Our trip here in Chicago really began with our meal at a West African restuarant, where we ate chicken and coconut rice, and a prayer tour through the south side of Chicago. On the tour Julie gave us history and statistics, and it really touched every one of us and emphasized our need here and our purpose, and how even we can make a difference and to be God in someone's life with the little time we will be here.
Our "anchor site" this week, where we will go each morning while we are here, is Jackson Park, a camp ran by Chicago Parks District. Our group is split between the different groups of kid. Helen and Alexa are with the 6 and 7 year old boys and girls , Connie, Ryon, and Katelyn are with 7 and 8 yr old boys, Jessie and Pam are with the 7, 8, and 9 yr old girls, Pastor Sheryl and Jenna are with the 9 and 10 yr old boys, Gabby and Katherine are with the 10, 11, and 12 yr old girls, and Dustin is with the 11 and 12 yr old boys. We interact and play with these groups, watching dance practice for a show next week, gave "underdogs" (pushing kids on the swing and running underneath), playing with them (some with a parachute!!), ran with them, and even had to break up a few fights. We will work with these groups every morning all week! While every group has many challenges, we already know we will miss them when we have to leave on Friday. :'( So many of these kids are so amazing and sweet and it has been such a blessing already to interact with them! While some of the groups can be frustrating or a handful at times, we are looking forward to not only touching some of their lives, but to them touching our lives as well.
Our afternoon/ evening ministry was helping out at CCO, Cornerstone Christian Outreach. This soup kitchen serves 3 free meals a day to transitional housing guests, as well as a free dinner open to the public about 3 nights a week. This is what we served tonight. Our grouped was involved in serving the food, washing the dishes, and socializing with the guests. We worked very hard, Jessie in her trash bag dress, and some of us were even rewarded by getting to sample the absolutely delicious food (or so I hear). We also swept and mopped. This was an eye opening experience not only in working with the guests, but also through the diversity of the guests and the large number of kids running around. None of us expected this at all, and it truly broke some homeless people stereotypes we had previous to the trip. After we were done cleaning at CCO, we had dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant, where we had pho (pronounced fah). Yum :)
All in all, we had an amazing (and tiring) first day with only a few wrong turns (cough cough... Julie :-P) and are looking forward to the rest of the week!! (except for the leaving part haha) It has been great and we are all excited to find out what else we will be doing during our week here in Chicago.
Much Love,
Palm Pilots :)
Our trip here in Chicago really began with our meal at a West African restuarant, where we ate chicken and coconut rice, and a prayer tour through the south side of Chicago. On the tour Julie gave us history and statistics, and it really touched every one of us and emphasized our need here and our purpose, and how even we can make a difference and to be God in someone's life with the little time we will be here.
Our "anchor site" this week, where we will go each morning while we are here, is Jackson Park, a camp ran by Chicago Parks District. Our group is split between the different groups of kid. Helen and Alexa are with the 6 and 7 year old boys and girls , Connie, Ryon, and Katelyn are with 7 and 8 yr old boys, Jessie and Pam are with the 7, 8, and 9 yr old girls, Pastor Sheryl and Jenna are with the 9 and 10 yr old boys, Gabby and Katherine are with the 10, 11, and 12 yr old girls, and Dustin is with the 11 and 12 yr old boys. We interact and play with these groups, watching dance practice for a show next week, gave "underdogs" (pushing kids on the swing and running underneath), playing with them (some with a parachute!!), ran with them, and even had to break up a few fights. We will work with these groups every morning all week! While every group has many challenges, we already know we will miss them when we have to leave on Friday. :'( So many of these kids are so amazing and sweet and it has been such a blessing already to interact with them! While some of the groups can be frustrating or a handful at times, we are looking forward to not only touching some of their lives, but to them touching our lives as well.
Our afternoon/ evening ministry was helping out at CCO, Cornerstone Christian Outreach. This soup kitchen serves 3 free meals a day to transitional housing guests, as well as a free dinner open to the public about 3 nights a week. This is what we served tonight. Our grouped was involved in serving the food, washing the dishes, and socializing with the guests. We worked very hard, Jessie in her trash bag dress, and some of us were even rewarded by getting to sample the absolutely delicious food (or so I hear). We also swept and mopped. This was an eye opening experience not only in working with the guests, but also through the diversity of the guests and the large number of kids running around. None of us expected this at all, and it truly broke some homeless people stereotypes we had previous to the trip. After we were done cleaning at CCO, we had dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant, where we had pho (pronounced fah). Yum :)
All in all, we had an amazing (and tiring) first day with only a few wrong turns (cough cough... Julie :-P) and are looking forward to the rest of the week!! (except for the leaving part haha) It has been great and we are all excited to find out what else we will be doing during our week here in Chicago.
Much Love,
Palm Pilots :)
Saint Johns Misson Group Team #3 (The winds of Change)
The following is brought to you by "Mister Twister", or the blogger formerly known as The Blackjack.
Things went well on the trip here. Ran into some construction slowing us down. We were late in getting to the Rendevous point, which is now a three story building which we are staying at. No sign of any other Churches aside from our own Saint Johns. Things went well for day one. We had dinner at a nice African Restaurant, the meal (don't ask me the name, I couldn't possibly tell you), consisted of some spicy chicken along with a rice dish cooked in coconut milk, in order to balance out the chicken.
To conclude the day, team #3 took a prayer run, consisting of driving through more impoverished parts of the city where we could experience the suffering of the poor and oppressed. It is my observation (not shared by the remaining winds) that the concern of the city is only extended to criminals, and not to the impoverished. Therefore, as long as the citizens of the city remain poor, but do nothing aobut it, the city and the governing bodies of the city will not be concered about it, as long as the people of the city, no matter how impoverished, or whatever reason there may be, remain in the bounds of the law, even if they need to exceed it to survive.
The first day of our mission, we went to a nursing home, wehre we played a game known as "frisbee golf" with the seniors there. They seemed to be in high spirits at our arrival, and quite enjoyed our presence. After a few lively rounds of the game, we adjouned into a game or two of bingo.
After a light lunch, we went to our second station which consisted of a school consisting of kids ages 5-14. Allow me to tell you that the younger kids were impossible to manage. I must say that herding cats is easier than managing the smaller children.
Out of time, details later. Have a nice night, good luck to you and yours.
Mister Twister the blogger formerly known as blackjack, signing out.
Things went well on the trip here. Ran into some construction slowing us down. We were late in getting to the Rendevous point, which is now a three story building which we are staying at. No sign of any other Churches aside from our own Saint Johns. Things went well for day one. We had dinner at a nice African Restaurant, the meal (don't ask me the name, I couldn't possibly tell you), consisted of some spicy chicken along with a rice dish cooked in coconut milk, in order to balance out the chicken.
To conclude the day, team #3 took a prayer run, consisting of driving through more impoverished parts of the city where we could experience the suffering of the poor and oppressed. It is my observation (not shared by the remaining winds) that the concern of the city is only extended to criminals, and not to the impoverished. Therefore, as long as the citizens of the city remain poor, but do nothing aobut it, the city and the governing bodies of the city will not be concered about it, as long as the people of the city, no matter how impoverished, or whatever reason there may be, remain in the bounds of the law, even if they need to exceed it to survive.
The first day of our mission, we went to a nursing home, wehre we played a game known as "frisbee golf" with the seniors there. They seemed to be in high spirits at our arrival, and quite enjoyed our presence. After a few lively rounds of the game, we adjouned into a game or two of bingo.
After a light lunch, we went to our second station which consisted of a school consisting of kids ages 5-14. Allow me to tell you that the younger kids were impossible to manage. I must say that herding cats is easier than managing the smaller children.
Out of time, details later. Have a nice night, good luck to you and yours.
Mister Twister the blogger formerly known as blackjack, signing out.
Team # 1
Officially named: "The Who" or "The Whos" which ever you prefer. We have a Dr. Seuss theme, but also really like a certain band.
Today began our adventure at the Roseland-Pullman Boys and Girls Club, where we split into 5 groups to work with varying aged youth. Greg, Lucas,and Kyle made up a story, Chris, Kevin and Katie learned a dance, Jordan learned about NASA, Leah and Michelle led cute 8-9 year olds, and Hallie, Taylor, and Abby had little ones giving them hugs all day long!
After a tiring, but rewarding 5 hours we left for the Chicago Christian Industrial League to be greeters and minglers during meal time. We met some great people and heard some wonderful stories.
Tomorrow we will continue the adventure at Roseland-Pullman and check out another city soup kitchen!
Peace,
Red Fish
Today began our adventure at the Roseland-Pullman Boys and Girls Club, where we split into 5 groups to work with varying aged youth. Greg, Lucas,and Kyle made up a story, Chris, Kevin and Katie learned a dance, Jordan learned about NASA, Leah and Michelle led cute 8-9 year olds, and Hallie, Taylor, and Abby had little ones giving them hugs all day long!
After a tiring, but rewarding 5 hours we left for the Chicago Christian Industrial League to be greeters and minglers during meal time. We met some great people and heard some wonderful stories.
Tomorrow we will continue the adventure at Roseland-Pullman and check out another city soup kitchen!
Peace,
Red Fish
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