Friday, By Liza

This morning, for our seed thought(devotions), we drove a little ways to the Natural Arch Rock in Daniel Boone National Forest. The overlook was an amazing sight and was the perfect place to praise God. We talked about what righteousness truly means and wrapped up all the other parts of righteousness from earlier in the week. We were then given 15 minutes to sit in God’s creation and spend time with him.
After our devotions we drove to the Perry’s to finish up our deck. We got there to work and I found out that I was the leader for the day (and was given the Spanish nickname matadora). We got right to work unloading the tools, measuring and cutting boards, and entertaining Pat. We started the day with some of us finishing the stringers for the stairs while the rest of the group worked on the rails. Everyone worked well. Laura and Kacie measured boards that were then handed to Lindsay and Gabe who cut the boards. Those boards were then given to Mom, Ben, Fred, Katie, and Kevin to drill onto the deck. Meanwhile, Brandon, Steve, Christian, and Elisabeth worked on leveling three cinder blocks that the stringers would sit on. Nancy, who suffered from a hairline fracture in her wrist from our hike, did what she could by carrying scrap wood to the old barn. Shelley used her nurse skills and helped multiple people with medicine and other random things. Jenna and many others made their first cuts with the electric saw and some people were even given rides on the Perry’s horse Hank. There were some complications with slanted, 45 degree angles that had to be cut, but by the end of the day, everything was done and looked wonderful. Pat was very thankful for all our work, and before we left we all circled up, held hands, and prayed for the Perry’s. And of course we all had to hug Pat before we left for the last time.
Right now we are in the car, riding back from the Perry’s, drinking our cold drinks that we bought at the nearby BP gas station. We are looking forward to a relaxing afternoon, a yummy dinner, and a wonderful night sleep. It is tradition for CP(Confrontation Point) leaders and campers to sleep outside on the last night, so we are also looking forward to that. We’ll see how it goes!

By Nancy

Well, let’s see if A GIMP with a splint on her wrist can type. Add to that, we are driving to Mc Donalds so Kevin can post this as I type this! We are also making an ice run for Phred’s sore knee (another hiking woe) and my fractured wrist.
It was very satisfying to see the deck come to completion today. It was really hot, but the kids stuck with it and finished up the railing and the stairs. Those were a little more technical than nailing floor boards. Liza was our crew chief today and did a great job. As Liza mentioned, everyone got a chance to use one of the power saws this week. Just seeing Jenna use a miter saw was so cool. She was pretty proud of herself! AS some of you know, finishing tasks is a lot tougher than starting them. We found that out today, but we were determined to finish and to finish well. So everyone pitched in one way or another.

Pat was really thrilled with the results of the project. She explained to the group that she and her husband have never taken charity before and that it was a tough decision for her and her husband to accept our group’s work. This is a family that lives on less than $9000 income a year. It was humbling for us to serve her and Doyle in this manner! Thanks for supporting us this week with your prayers and your financial gifts. It was an investment that will pay dividends for years to come.

Thursday by Becca (CP LEADER ☺)

Today was great, the porch looks awesome so far and Friday I think we will all be very happy with the result of everyone’s hard work. Eastern Avenue kids are the best, I have never seen a deck go up so fast with such enthusiasm. All week we have been singing and telling jokes as we hammer away on our homeowners spiffy new deck.
After we got to a good stopping point on the deck we went on an epic search for a waterfall to swim in…and we found it! Thanks to Daniel (also known as POX...the other CP leader) and his wonderful wilderness skills. Even though the hike was a little rough on the way down everyone was determined to find that waterfall and we had a great time.
Eastern Avenue CRC is my first real group this summer and I couldn’t be happier. The kids are so driven to finish the job they started and they are hilarious as well. After a nine hour trip from Michigan the kids were willing to play a lame name game without whining, I knew the week was going to go well from there. This week has been awesome and I don’t want it to end ☹ . Thank you so much for letting me be a part of Eastern Avenue CRC’s mission trip! You guys ROCK.
Joke of the week: How do you get a toenail out?
With clippers!!
Explanation: When hammering a joist in a deck you use a “toe nail” which is a slanted nail…get it? Awesome.
-B.Rose

Thursday by Fred

We made excellent progress on the deck today. The frame is done and the floor is in place. We were challenged to figure out exactly how to make “stringers” for the steps. Most of us who have made steps have allowed Lowes to do the math and measuring. We believe that we were successful. Tomorrow we will know for sure.
After several hot sweaty days, we finally found water. But it was not a simple thing… It involved a mile long hike through some beautiful Kentucky forest and taking a dip in a pool beneath a waterfall. It was beautiful. In the morning we have meditated on righteousness as it relates to our relationship with God’s creation. It was a good opportunity to see it up close and ponder it differently.

By Bob

This morning, Seed Thought for the day was at the pavilion and focused on community. Then we took off for the ropes course. We did several activities altogether like walking on logs while crossing paths and being blindfolded, carrying a bucket of “plutonium” with 20-something strings (each held by one of us), and jumping rope to very specific patterns. These helped us to build community, as well as leadership, teamwork, communication, and encouragement. In the afternoon, we all got in a harness and took the high ropes tower by storm! Many went well beyond their yellow zone, at least into the deep orange, but apparently short of the red zone, cause we all went way further than we thought we could. If we could have gone beyond the top platform, we would have! Parents, you have great kids! They are caring and working and encouraging and leading and following and all growing together.

By Matthew

My legs hurt from the harness!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But I made it to the top.

By Lindsey

Today instead of going to the usually work site we had a fun, rope course filled day. We started with a quite a few games to get us use to working together. The games made us work together and learn how to communicate and understand how as a group we can work to accomplish a goal. Though it could get frustrating we worked past it all. The afternoon consisted of the rope course, the rope swing, and the climbing wall. The wall was so fun, for me anyway and I was first up to the top though Ben would argue saying I started way before him. Everyone who wanted to make it to the top did. The rope swing was super exciting, especially the small drop before you actually started the swinging. We are headed to Fat Man’s for dinner, which is a BBQ restaurant by our campground. Over all today was a great day(not saying the others haven’t).

FOR Ben and Kevin:

You were greatly missed tonight. The Eastern Ave Men's Slow Pitch softball team made a valiant effort without you, and without the 4 other missing players. 15 members on our team and 6 of you all go away the same week?!?!? The same week Rachel is in charge of getting substitutes?!?! Anyway, they did their best but in the last several innings they just couldn't get their bats going and, well, there were some errors in the field too. Yes, frustration was obvious on the faces of a few players, and of course the scorekeeper was doing some yelling. It was a good try, a marvelous home run by Joel (too bad only one person was on base!), but it ended in a loss 9-12. We look forward to the return of Ben and Kevin (and those other guys too)! ...

A true fan who never misses a game,
The Scorekeeper

By Matthew Haverkamp

Today during our reflecting time we observed the river and wacked the wildlife. We ripped down the old deck at the house and Ben did not do it all himself. This morning we found that some animal tore the bottom off of our trash bag and surprisingly did not eat the green beans we had for dinner last night. Wenesday we are going to be going to a ropes course in Tennesee. We are not going white water rafting not because we were chicken but because it was a travel issue thanks Ben. We are all having a great time and we will be home soon
See you soon Matthew

By BEN and Stev.

Today we went to a river to reflect on some stuff. It looked pretty awesome, I threw rocks into the river while reflecting. Then we went to the home to work on the porch. We worked really good. It was hot again. We had tuna for lunch, it tasted swell. Gabe bought everyone some Ale-8-one’s it was really neat. I took apart the old porch by myself. I then nailed stuff. Then I used the hand-saw, I was really good at it. Then we nailed more stuff. Then we drove home and I wrote this blog, on this really cool Mac. Tomorrow we could have gone White Water Rafting, but some people chickened out and now were only gunna go on the ropes-course
Sincerely from BEN and Stev.

Day 3 By: Elisabeth Keen

Today, on our way to the site we stopped at the campground boat launch for seed thought. It was beautiful. The water was really calm and we had quiet time for 20 minutes while sitting on rocks looking out over the lake and forest on the other side. I wish we had places so pretty and peaceful in Grand Rapids that I could go to. When we were done we went to the site. Patty (Mrs. Perry) is very nice. I sat and talked to her about her kids, family, and where she has lived her life. Lindsey was the leader today and she did very well in giving everyone directions. I got really good at using a hammer today, it was pretty awesome. Tomorrow, we are going to the ROPES COURSE! I hope its fun.

Postholders and Levelers

After driving some winding, twisting backroads of Kentucky, we arrived at Pat and Doyle Perry’s house. Pat greeted us warmly, apologizing that she hadn’t made us cookies. Also warmly greeting us were about four dogs; some of us were happier with that greeting than others. We elected Christian our jefe (bossman). That turned out to be a very wise decision. He was an impressive leader, working hard and delegating responsibility throughout the day.

We were anticipating building a deck and putting on some vinyl siding; however, Doyle decided he wanted to work on the siding himself, so our primary job is to build the deck. Today, we worked on digging postholes, making sure the posts were placed correctly and were level, pouring concrete, and setting the postholes. While that looks simple once it’s written, the process, we found, was not so simple. Digging the holes wasn’t so bad, but the leveling and placement of the posts took a while. It was extremely hot and humid, so we took turns holding posts and leveling them. Liza was an expert postholder; Steve and Ben were master level boys/men, and Katie did an astounding job of holding the string to make sure the posts were in a straight line.

Meanwhile, Laura made sure everyone was drinking enough water. Since the work was lighter than we anticipated, we took turns talking to Pat. She’s an interesting, sociable woman who has had more than her fair share of hardship—from a daughter’s tragic death to her own diagnosis of breast cancer a few years ago to a series of back surgeries. Our day was cut short by a thunderstorm, so we left a little early and are now at the campground snacking and trying to stay cool.

Departure time: 6:30 AM - Arrival time: 4:40 PM

Eight hours and ten minutes in two church vans with eighteen church members. Arriving in ninety-seven degree weather on a sticky Sunday evening. Eastern Avenue’s youth group was met by our two Confrontation Point leaders Becca Rose and Daniel Alexander, who quickly encouraged “getting to know you” games; some were more excited than others. We campers were instructed to construct tents for sleeping, and really only for sleeping. With the hot weather, the idea of staying in the tent for more than ten minutes was strictly out of the question. Once the night began to cool down, slightly, campers settled into their tents. A cold shower right before bed has never felt so good. Heat lightning lit up the sky as a natural night-light.

The sunrise of a Monday morning gently woke us up. Breakfast was ready; a plethora of cereals and bagels were on a camp picnic table. Daniel and Becca laid down the law on breakfast, the campground rules, and what is to be expected at the work site. They informed us that we are working for Patricia and Doyle Perry and building them a new deck with stairs. Apparently the Perrys own a horse. Hopefully no one tries to test his or her luck with a test horse. At this moment we are headed off to meet the Perry family and anticipating the weather and the work that is planned for us. Drinking enough water to keep us all hydrated and attempting to keep up a positive attitude could end up being a challenge, but as a youth group we are here to encourage each other and ourselves.

Laura Sterenberg

Time to Go

The 2010 Eastern Lights Mission Trip is taking place in Burnside Kentucky. The 13 youth and their 5 brave leaders are leaving early sunday morning, June 13. This trip is being organized through Confrontation Point Ministries. They will be building a porch and putting up vinyl siding for a couple who live in the area. The trip will focus on building relationships with each other, and with those whom they are serving. As they prepare to leave today, we are praying for safety, good weather, and an enjoyable time for each one of them.