The Journey to Florida is Underway!

Hello families,

Getting ready to leave SOTV on Sunday

The bus ride was smooth and uneventful. When we hit Alabama this morning the humidity exploded with the temperature! We've had some time settling in, in the gulf water waves, swimming pool, sand pit volleyball, plus small group time, and singing or first worship songs of many.We still have quite a few experiences yet planned tonight with worship and an evening beach walk and mixer games. 

In Alabama on Monday

The message today is about the good shepherd who seeks the lost ones. Everyone is meant to belong. Good arms of love wrap around us all!

Peace

Randy Brandt

About this mission trip:

FLORIDA BEACH CAMP
GRADES 9-12
JULY 28-AUGUST 3
39 youth and 8 adults will travel by coach bus to a retreat center in Panama City, Florida. Mornings and evenings will be spent in large and small group worship, Bible Study, and personal reflection. In the afternoon participants will enjoy the beach and local attractions. Wherever SOTV travels, participants will look for good in others, affirm and brighten people’s day, learn and listen to others’ stories, and deepen relational faith skills. Participants will intentionally practice the SOTV culture of caring, welcoming, and affirming. 

VIDEO: Green Bay and Ox Lake

YOUTHWORKS: GREEN BAY
GRADES 6-8
JUNE 30-JULY 5
Youth from grades 6-8 served through homeless ministries, elderly centers, children’s programs, and thrift stores in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

VIDEO: Pine Ridge Reservation

YOUTHWORKS BEYOND: PINE RIDGE RESERVATION
JUNE 22-28
Youth from 9th grade and adults traveled to the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. There, they fixed up homes, played with children, and slowed down from everyday life to interact with a community rich in culture and story.

Arrival in Bethphage

On July 6, 2013, a group of 27 senior high youth and 4 adults traveled to the Bethphage Mission in southern Nebraska, near Kearney. They will spend a week there.

I wanted to let you all know that we got to Bethphage safely. We are about to go to worship with the residents. Everyone is looking forward to meeting and getting to know the residents. I unfortunately only have internet access through my phone but I will try to send an update every few days. 

- Erin Swenson-Hatzung, Youth Director

Bethphage (pronounced BETH fuh gee) is a mission home for about 120 people living with a variety of mental and physical disabilities, provides individual services, living options, work choices, spiritual nurture and advocacy to those so often forgotten. At Bethphage, participants will connect with others and stretch their comfort level and boundaries while building transforming relationships with the wonderful people at Bethphage. In addition to accompanying residents and helping with activities, participants will be able to complete maintenance projects. Evenings are spent in worship, devotion, bonfires, team building, and fun in the city and surrounding area. Learn more about the Bethphage Ministries for the Disabled.

VIDEO: Luther Dell

June 16-21, 2013
LUTHER DELL is for 6th-12th graders and is 3½ hours north of Apple Valley on Boy Lake. Participants enjoy unique faith enriching activities and 10th-12th graders have the option to participate in the ROOTS program - an exciting week of deep growth in faith, peer ministry, and leadership development.

Greetings from Pine Ridge - Day One

Hello, Minnesota! I am writing to let you know that we made it, safe and sound, and are enjoying a little bit of free time (and showers) after a full day at our ministry sites. I'm sorry I haven't been able to be in touch before now; my cell phone does not work here (neither the reception for calls/texts nor the data....argh). Anyway, I managed to borrow a laptop from one of the Youthworks staff to send a quick update.

Everyone spent the day getting to know the community here, either by working with children in Kid's Club and a tutoring program, or through painting homes in a nearby neighborhood. The kids are adorable and very hungry for attention. One huge challenge is seeing firsthand how different life is here from at home. Kids learn to be independent and tough at a very young age. Spending time in the neighborhoods highlights the contrast between the experience of living in Pine Ridge vs Dakota County and what most of us have known. We'll be doing a lot of processing these next few days! Being here provides a great opportunity to grow in our understanding of the world and in our faith - really wrestling with what this experience means for us, and how we understand God's work in the world.

Tonight we hope the weather holds, allowing us to have our evening worship in the Badlands. What a beautiful area this is! A blessing to be immersed here for a week with your kids - they are awesome :)

I'm not certain when/if I'll get a hold of a laptop again for sending you additional updates, but you can be confident that no news is good news - and we have access to communications for emergencies! Use the phone number for Colleen that I sent home to you if you need to get in contact with us.

Blessings to you all! We'll have lots of great stories for you when we get home.

-Katie

2013 Summer Immersion Schedule

“He must increase but I must decrease.”

-John 3:30

John the Baptist’s statement referring to Jesus is a challenge for all of us. Such decrease and increase is not simple math or an easy formula. We are products of a culture where bigger is better and doing more is the desired outcome. However, sometimes the work we do for others does less to make their lives better and more to make us feel good.

This summer we will be challenged to step aside and let Jesus do more while we experience life alongside others in the communities we are sent. We will walk with those we go to serve as co-laborers in God’s kingdom while hearing their transforming stories of faith and life.

Our summer immersion trips give students the opportunity to learn from and serve together with their host community. Several new trips are being offered to help students experience Jesus in the midst of caring and mutual relationships. No matter where we travel we continue to practice SOTV’s strong culture of welcome, care, and transformation in the name of Jesus Christ. This is best achieved when we stop doing for others and focus on being with others.

When it comes to experiencing Jesus, less really is more. When we load vans for our summer trips, we fit everything we need under the seats and in the back. We travel light (some travel lighter than others) and trust the community and God to provide everything else. We will all be challenged to step aside, to decrease, and let Jesus take over and live through us.

Here is the schedule for 2013:

Summer Stretch: select Tuesdays in June and July
Camp Wapo/Luther Dell: June 15-21
Pine Ridge: June 22-28
Green Bay: June 30-July 5
Bethphage: July 6-12
Habitat Milwaukee: July 15-21
Duluth: July 21-26
Beach Camp: July 28-August 3


We look forward to decreasing with you! 
~Pastor Randy, Katie, Erin, Brandon, and Barb

Sights from Rapid City and South Dakota

Our SOTV crew in front of Mount Rushmore. Really, promise, it's back there :)

Safari Girls

There is a basketball court that we're free to use at our shower site! Had a blast, though after a few minutes of fun everyone could have used another shower :)

Freshly showered and silly after a great first day at work sites

Wednesday night we had the opportunity to go to a pow wow at a Lakota Sioux Lutheran Church in Rapid City. Our youth honored our hosts by watching and--best of all--dancing with them when invited! It was a dusty, sweaty blast.

Black Hills Works was one of our work sites for the week. It is a day center where adults with disabilities have opportunities to make art, exercise, do other activities and even work for a paycheck! Those of us at the site had a fabulous experience and made many new friends

Claire helping Shad paint a masterpiece

Amanda and Heather playing battleship with AJ

Community cookout Thursday dinner--we served almost 300 friends from our work sites, Trinity Lutheran (our housing location), and the surrounding neighborhood.

Getting Serious in Rapid City

Devotion Time

Tuesday, August 31

Today we took devotions more seriously. People are stepping out of their comfort zones, meeting new people, doing actions with the songs and singing. You've got to be here to actually understand it. The weather has been hot. 

All of our groups have been helping out with meal prep, clean-up and building chores. Everyone is getting more comfortable with their work sites. But just when we think we've seen most of the city, we discover something new. 

- Alex Gehling

Rapid City: Club for Boys

Monday July 30

The boys from SOTV combined forces with the boys from Calvary Baptist (the other middle-school group serving here) to work at The Club for Boys. They provide a very low-cost environment for local boys to "develop self-esteem and character in a caring, safe, and fun environment."

Monday at the Club for Boys is called "sanity day" for the staff and we were told that when we return on Tuesday we would truly understand why it is called that. The day started with an overview of the club and instruction from Mark, the club director. Mark is very upbeat and passionate about the club and that energy was passed on to the boys as they accepted their mission to first clean the building on Monday in preparation for buddying-up with a boy when the center is open for the remainder of the week. 

Mark led the group in a quick Simon Says (of course, Mark was Simon) to see how many of us were listening; a great way to get everyone engaged. After a tour of the facility, each person scanned in a visitor badge which helps the club track its volunteer hours for possible grants, etc. Then the work began. The club is building a nice-sized outdoor fort and was putting the finishing touches on pouring the footing and moving a bit of earth for the foundation; a few boys moved cement from the mixer truck and put some sweat into the project. The club also maintains a garden so a few boys were off to water that on this off-day. The majority of the day was spent in some "Spring Cleaning" where boys and adults pitched in to vacuum, mop, and wipe down the majority of the building. The capstone project was helping to haul in a 700+ lb slate pool table donated that day to the club. The slate was very hot after being transported from the donor site to the club which added to the challenge of bringing it into and through the building. With many hands making lighter work, the table was set up just as the work shift ended for the day - a very satisfying end to the day's work!

The work day was followed by clean up, showers, and a pizza dinner at a Christian school 20 minutes from the work site, and a visit to Mount Rushmore. Later, when the group assembled back at Trinity Lutheran, our home base in Rapid City, stories were shared of the day's events across all site about God's good work through our youth and adults.

Peace,
Chris Read