Have you ever thought about approaching homeless people to offer a free sack lunch? If you think it might be intimidating, you would be right; that’s how most of us felt as our teams hit the streets of Seattle last week. But, after sitting down and talking with the people who live on the streets, our nervousness abated and our attitudes. We learned that, just like each of us, these people have their own stories, including unique histories and their own hopes for the future. Most importantly, we saw that we share a universal need for a relationship with Jesus Christ.

The majority of those we visited with, right there on the Seattle streets, were friendly, and they were grateful for what we had to offer, including conversation interspersed with laughter. One of our team leaders got a reaction when he joked with some men sleeping in the park. He asked if they were hungry, “Because,” he announced, “I’m about to serve you breakfast in bed!”

After talking with these individuals and establishing a comfort level, we realized the blessing of being able to minister to them. In addition to passing out lunches through our “hit the street!” ministry, the two teams (one from Oregon and one all the way from North Carolina) split up to participate in different work projects each day. We were excited to work with some food banks, including two Union Gospel Mission shelters as well as Catholic Chore Services. And one day, we broke into groups of three to go into the apartments of some elderly folks living in the area. We helped with cleaning and enjoyed visiting with them, sharing God’s love and truth as we did. We also got involved with the Hunger Intervention Program (HIP) at the church where we stayed, helping them bag lunches and organize their pantry.

So, at the end of the experience, we can look back and see how addressing the physical needs of others allowed us to lose a little of ourselves, while gaining so much at the same time!

-Emily T.

May 24 through May 28, 2008, Miracle Camp in Lawton, Michigan opened its doors to interns from all over the Midwest, Washington, California and Canada to engage in their training with Experience Mission. Interns will be serving this summer with Experience Mission in sites and communities all over the United States, Mexico, Jamaica, and Costa Rica.
 
This week Team Tecate/Seattle finally met in person. The first two days were spent learning first aid, CPR, and wilderness medicine skills so we can ensure that all trip participants are kept safe.  We learned that Yonathan is scared of blood so the girls will handle any emergency.  We also spent time discussing the various responsibilities that interns have, and we divided these up amongst ourselves according to our prior experiences, skills, and passion for the area. 

Experience Mission’s founder and director Chris Clum also spent an afternoon going over the philosophy and values of Experience Mission, and we took time as a team to discuss how these would be reflected in the work and relationships that we will be building in Tecate and Seattle. While there was a lot of business to be taken care of at training, we also found time for some team bonding through creative activities such as video projects, scavenger hunts, and boat building. 

One afternoon, we had a scavenger hunt that lasted five hours and took us all over nearby Kalamazoo and Portage, Michigan. The last step of this scavenger hunt was to build a boat with at least four different supplies, on a limited budget, and the boat had to hold all three of us and be able to paddle around a quarter mile course on the lake.  We built a very successful boat, and our team placed second. This activity was a lot of fun, and helped us to learn how to work together during situations that require efficient problem solving skills in a short period of time.

This summer will be an adventure, but we are ready to handle any curveballs that come our way and are looking forward to meeting the communities in Tecate and Seattle as well as working with the participants on our trips!

- Yonathan Moya, Sarah Lacy and Allison Butelo
Team Tecate/Seattle