Sojourner Memory 1.2

The week after Reata Springs, we went to a church in Hermatige, OR. The difference this week was that we would be joined by the team of Laura and Hannah (Hannah is the one picking her nose). We were so excited to be doing VBS again for a different church (but it was still the same theme-Rickshaw Ralley).


We got to meet the new youth director (who had only been there for like two weeks and he and his wife had moved from TEXAS). They were so much fun. Lupe was pregnant, about 2 months, and Jeff was just loving being in Oregon. They are both teachers, and they both love working with youth and children. It was their job to get VBS rolling and they were the ones who assigned the jobs.

And then there was Troubador. He was probably one of the wildest kids that you will ever meet. A true handful he was. He fell in love with Hannah and so they were hard to break up when it was time for us to leave.

Fun time all week on the Far Out, Far East, Rickshaw Ralley Racing to the Son.

Sojourner Memory 1.1

After our first week of orientations and odd jobs here and there, it was time for our group of eight to split into our teams of two. Erin and I were teammates and our first assignment...Reata Springs Baptist Church. This was one of my favorite weeks of the whole summer.

Each new church we went to meant a new host family for Erin and Me. At Reata Springs, we had our favorites, Mark and Tammy. They were amazing. Both of them grew up in Mississippi. One went to the University of Southern Mississippi (USM) and the other went to Mississippi State University (MSU). Both of them work at the Wal-Mart distribution plant right outside of the Tri-Cities (which is how they got to Washington in the frist place). They are a couple of great people.

Mark was like our stay at home dad all week. We did VBS every morning and handed out flyers for the block-party in the afternoons, but nights were full of fun. MArk and Tammy would take us to get ice-cream, mark stayed up and watched a "chick-flick" with us (which turned to be a straight sports movie with like a guy and girl talking a total of three times in the whole thing, which to Mark constituted a "chick-flick"). Mark even took us to the distribution plant one afternoon and we got to go into the freezer.

Mark and Tammy were great and I will always remember them. I wonder what they are doing right now?

Coming soon Sojourner memory 1.2 and look for Olympia Memories.

Character Goes a Long Way...All the Way to Home

The top of the second inning, Western Oregon senior Sara Tucholsky comes up to bat with two runners on. She swings the bat and the ball sails over the left field fence. The first homerun of her career (well the first of her lifetime) Sara is so excited that she misses first base. As she turned to go back she fell to the ground and crawled back to first. She had just torn her ACL and couldn't finish her trot. If anyone on her team was to tend to her, she would be called out. If a pinch runner were entered (as the umpires said on that day) it would be ruled a two run single.

That is when the greatest act of sportsmanship began to unravel. Mallory Holtman, a Central Washington Senior playing in her last home game, asked if here and a teammate could carry Sara around the bases to award her the homerun that she had earned. And that they did, stopping at each base to allow her to touch it with her good foot. The three run homerun wound up being the game winner, but the character of the girls from Central Washington will be what is remembered by the crowd of almost 100.

I have always heard that you only have one chance to make a first immpression. Your character is what people will remember.

When we just forget about ourselves and start thinking about others, that is when our character will begin to take shape. All Mallory had to do was stay quiet and the outcome of that came might have turned to her favor. But she didn't! She said that she did what she would have wanted someone else to do for her. Sara will never forget Mallory and Mallory will never forget Sara. This first impression was priceless.

So our lesson today is to build good character, it lasts a lifetime.

To see the ESPN clip click here.

Sojourner Memory 1.0

My first summer mission trip took me all the way to the tri-cities of Washington state. along with eight other missionaries, I was stationed in the Columbia Basin Baptist Association. We were split into teams of two and went to different chruches each week to help them run their VBS, we were counselors at youth camp and my partner and I got to go to Jericho 2004.

These eight girls made my summer. Although during the week we were separated, the reunions ath the white house were the best weekends ever. I hope you enjoy as a take your through memory lane this week in the CBBA.

Front: Sarah, Amy. Jenna

Middle: Hannah "Bessie", Kelly, me

Back: Laura, Erin, Amanda

An Idea I Had

With this being the beginning of summer (and with me having not posted in like three months) I thought that I would add a new section to my blog. I have been on a summer mission trip every summer since I graduated high school and this will be my first one at home (well at school rather).

I will go through memories from the previous four summers and try and take you on an exciting journey from Kennewick and Jericho to Olymipia and World Changers to Greece and Porto Astro. I hope that you will enjoy my memories, but also learn something that helps you a little more.

Coming Soon: Sojourner Memory 1.0