Headed back to the Sunshine State!

This will be my last post from Alaska since I fly home tomorrow. It has been a little difficult packing since I'm bringing a lot more home with me. I called US Airways today though and found out that I'm allowed two checked bags, so I'm planning to check the bag that I brought as a carry on and then it should all work out.

I've had an such an amazing summer here, but I'm looking forward to spending a few weeks at home with my family and friends before I head back to college.

I've finished up all of my articles and wrapped everything else at the office up these past few days. The sign in the picture above is posted outside of the Alaska Baptist Convention office, warning the people who walk their dogs about the black bears spotted nearby. A mother black bear and her two cubs have been seen frequently right behind the office! I went 'bear hunting' with Mr. Procter the other day. We didn't see any bears, but we saw where they had been and where they had torn the top of a dumpster!

Today they had a nice little going away pizza lunch for me at the Alaska Baptist Convention office, where I've worked this summer. I loved working with the people there...they were so welcoming as they included me in their parties and prayer times. Mrs. Betsy organizes and publishes the Messenger for them, so I had the opportunity to work in a little cubicle office next to hers this summer.

After that I had one last interview and it was so interesting to hear this woman's story. I don't have time to tell you all of the details, but she first came to Alaska in 1946, before it was even a state! Her and her husband were one of the first five Baptist missionaries to work in Alaska...how amazing!

Keep me in your prayers as I travel home...I'll leave Anchorage around 4:45 p.m. tomorrow and have a short layover in Las Vegas and then I'll arrive in Tampa around 7:30 a.m. on Saturday.

I only have 5 more days left in Alaska!! I've just been hanging out...trying to finish all of my articles and possibly even make one more interview.

The Native funeral was very interesting and it was really neat to hear them sing in Yupik (Eskimo language). When we arrived, we went right down to the kitchen to help prepare the food for after the memorial service. No one was assigned to bring food or get things ready for afterwards, but it all worked out in the end. Native people live day to day and don't really think about the future. They fish when the salmon run and hunt when the caribou migrate. Mrs. Nancy has told me SO much about the Native people, but most recently she told me about the month that she cared for an Eskimo baby. It's hard to believe, but the mothers chew up the food for the baby and then feed it to them, so that is exactly what Mrs. Nancy did while she cared for the baby. Native people are gradually adjusting to the American lifestyle, but many of the changes are very difficult for them. We did a lot of painting and yard work on Friday...last time to use the electric push mower! The steps are up on the deck, so now they're just finishing up the hand rails. On Saturday I took Mr. Dave to the airport and he flew to Juneau for the weekend to preach. Then on Sunday we went to Immanuel Baptist Church and that was neat! There were tons of kids running all over the church and the worship was unique too. There was a man who played the harmonica, the pastor played the drums, and a couple played the guitar and ukulele! Last night we went to First Baptist Anchorage and saw the Continentals in concert. They presented the musical, Joseph, which was great! I'm working in the office today, finishing up my articles.

Did you Know that Alaskans eat more ice cream per capita than any other state in the United States?

I was kind of surprised to hear that...who would want to eat ice cream when it's 20 below! Well, that's a fact and I'm also contributing a lot to their ice cream consumption, just this summer.

On Monday, Mrs. Nancy and I drove to LaVerne Griffin Camp in Wasilla to help register all of the youth coming in for Native Youth Camp. We spent 8 hours there, collecting money and handing out t-shirts and bags. It is amazing to me that these kids are traveling so far to come to camp. The focus for the camp is on purity and their verse is Romans 12:1-2. We registered 55 students and 22 counselors. The majority of those attending had to make 2 different flights, just to get to Anchorage!! They played the game, "Have you ever..." with the kids as they arrived and it was very interesting to see what all they had done. One was, "Have you ever shot a moose?" and more than half of the students had!! Another was, "Have you ever been shot at?" and again, a good portion of the kids had been! Village life is SO different from anything most Americans are accustomed to. This was some of the kids first time to drive on a paved road and fly in a plane! It is wonderful to see Native people stepping up to lead other Natives in their walk with the Lord. This is SO important because they can relate well and they know the best ways to reach them. That night was the first night of their camp and many students came forward to accept Christ as their personal Lord and Savior!! It was amazing to see the Native people broken before the Lord. Please pray that the rest of their week goes well and that the youth are able to take what they've learned back to their villages.

On Tuesday I stayed at the Baldwins and worked on articles and such. That night I helped outside with the deck and used an electric sander for the first time...pretty neat!!!

Yesterday I worked in the office for most of the day and then we went to one of the parks in the downtown Mountain View area where Grandview Baptist Church is doing ministry. They have a ministry called GraceWorks that I interviewed them about. It was refreshing to see so much church involvement in the inner city area. Last night we had my mom's salmon for dinner and I made two batches of strawberry cookies :)

The ladies at the office seemed to really enjoy them today. I have a lot of writing to do still and not much time left here, so I've got to get busy. Tonight we are going to a Native funeral and tomorrow the office is closed, so I'll probably be working/relaxing around the house.

I'll be home in 9 days!

Fairbanks. North Pole. Delta Junction.

I'm going back to July 19th to update you on my adventures in the Fairbanks area. On Saturday Mr. Dave picked me up from Ms. Sylvia's, where I stayed the night on Friday. When he went to start the van that morning, for some reason it wouldn't start, so I steered it back, while they pushed...and we left it parked in the alley behind her house. Then we drove Ms. Sylvia's truck to the Baldwins and I followed Mr. Dave back, driving their stick shift Subaru. I was very thankful that God gave us all green lights and that I didn't have to worry about stopping at all! Ms. Sylvia lives in downtown Anchorage, so there are quite a few lights to go thru. So, we ended up driving the Subaru to Fairbanks and Mr. Dave didn't get to pick up their 4-wheeler(since we couldn't pull the trailer on the car) from Fairbanks, like he planned, but we had a very good trip on Saturday. We stopped at Wal-Mike's and saw a reindeer they had tied up and then we also stopped in at the hotel on the hill outside Healy. Later, we stopped in Nenana. It was a neat little place where we saw a fishwheel and where the Nenana Ice Classic is held. After a long trip, we finally arrived in Fairbanks around 4:30 p.m. and went to their Fred Meyer to meet Ms. Nancy and their family. We took their little 3 yr. old grandson, David Howard, to the pipeline and that was pretty interesting! That night we went to Wendy's and the movies with their two older grandson's and their parents. The Dark Knight was an awful movie though...the Joker was really creepy and the movie was too dark for me.

Then on Sunday we went to University church and then just relaxed at their son's house all afternoon on Sunday. They were watching motorcycle races and I dozed off on their couch a few times...haha!

On Monday morning we left early and drove to North Pole for the very last World Changers event of the summer. It's neat that I was able to attend every single World Changers in Alaska! We made it for their breakfast and sendoff at 7 a.m. that morning and I was also able to interview Pastor McCoy. He was in a serious hunting incident in which he was mauled by a bear. He has used his experience as a platform to share the Gospel. I couldn't even tell by his appearance that he had been attacked, which was amazing to me! After we finished up at First Baptist North Pole, we headed to Santa Claus house where I got to see the reindeer :) I was in the Christmas spirit all day long after visiting there. They had all kinds of ornaments and everything Christmas-y there! Mr. Dave took me by the North Pole post office and to the McDonald's in North Pole while we were there. Everything in the whole town is decorated for Christmas and their is a 'North Pole' that is striped and has been dropped at the geographical North Pole! I really loved seeing the town of North Pole, but we had to head back to Fairbanks for lunch. We went to Food Factory with James and Zach for lunch and then played around at their house that afternoon. I played with little David and then helped mow their lawn. That night I interviewed Mr. Howard and Mrs. Judy Zach, who are their in-laws. They lead the Chinese Church that the Baldwins worked with while they were missionaries in Fairbanks at University Church. It was wonderful hearing about how God is working through their ministry. They told me one particular story about how their were only 5 students at their meeting one Sunday, so they began praying that God would send more Chinese students their way. Before they were done with that meeting, two new Chinese students had arrived! God is using the Zach's as they serve in Fairbanks and has recently sent them about 25 new Chinese students. They teach ESL(English as a Second Language) along with many other courses and then have a service every Friday night for them.

On Tuesday I was really cold! They told me that Fairbanks would be warm, but it was even cooler than Anchorage. That morning it was 47 and I had to have some hot chocolate to warm me up! Their grand kids (wearing shorts) laughed at me when I told them I was cold, but they have never lived anywhere but Alaska. We made the trip to Delta Junction on Tuesday, which is about 3 hrs, one way. This normally wouldn't seem too long, but when you're traveling with a three year old, it does! When we arrived in Delta Junction we were getting hungry, so we stopped at the Buffalo Center Diner where I tried buffalo for the first time!! I had a burger and it was very tasty! Then we went to Camp Baldwin, which is named after Dave and Nancy Baldwin, who I've stayed with the entire summer. I enjoyed seeing the camp and meeting the summer missionaries who have served as staff their all summer. I also met Hugh Long, who's from Plant City, and is serving as an interim pastor in Tok, Alaska! What a small world! The camp was very simple, but a great place for students to get away and enjoy the outdoors. I interviewed two of the men who pastor local churches and help run Camp Baldwin. On the drive back I sat by David Howard, their 3 yr. old grandson. He fell asleep and his head was flopping down out of his car seat, so I held his head up with my hand for most of the drive. We watched 'Cheaper By the Dozen' on the drive back and then stopped at the 'Knotty Shop'. The trees here have huge knots on them and this place used the knotted wood to make all kinds of animals, such as mosquitoes and moose. I had some delicious ice cream here and then we drove the rest of the way back to Fairbanks. On our way back we stopped at Northern Power Sports, where their son, Davey Baldwin works. He sells four-wheelers, Arctic Cats and all kinds of toys for the men up here. He has had an awesome season at Tanacross, racing his motorcycle and may come out as the number one driver this season! That night I made cheesy potatoes for dinner and then we went back to the Zach's home, where we stayed the whole time while we were in Fairbanks.

On Wednesday Mr. Dave and I drove back to Anchorage and I washed my clothes and packed for Ms. Sylvia's. He took me to IHOP and dropped me off with Ms. Sylvia and her mom and then we went back to their place. Then on Thursday I drove to the office in the rain, in the stick shift Subaru. I was extremely proud of myself and very excited that I hadn't stalled out once! I've gotten used to driving manual and it isn't a problem at all for me anymore. I might even consider purchasing a manual vehicle one day...we'll see! Well, I worked in the office all day from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursday and that night we went to Village Inn for dinner. Mrs. Rylander, Sylvia's mom, is 91 years old and they go out for dinner every single night. She is a very nice lady and pretty sharp for her age. They have their downstairs apartment for missionaries to stay in and allowed me to stay there for 3 nights. On Friday the Alaska Baptist Convention office is closed, so Ms. Sylvia took me around town! That morning we went to Ms. Judy's (just retired from the ABC office) and dug up some of her raspberry bushes, to plant in their yard. I shoveled dirt and helped plant them. Then we had lunch and headed to the University of Alaska Anchorage bookstore. I enjoyed looking around and picked up a copy of their newspaper. After that we went to the Alaska Zoo, which is located right down the road from the office! I enjoyed seeing the grizzly bears, polar bears, reindeer, caribou, dall sheep and the other native Alaskan animals. After our day around town, we went to IHOP for dinner, where we saw Mr. Dave again. He just couldn't get away from me, even on his day off, haha, well I did get to get the package my parents had sent from him. That evening, Ms. Sylvia and I 'plundered' through some old Alaska Baptist historical documents. It was so neat to see documents and newsletters from the 1950's and 1960's, when Alaska had just become a state! Ms. Sylvia and her mother have the best stories about Alaska and Anchorage since they lived through the earthquake and were here even before Alaska was a state!

On Saturday I washed my sheets and towels and packed up my things. Ms. Nancy flew back in from Fairbanks, so I moved back into my room at the Baldwins that afternoon. I ended up just relaxing all afternoon. I ran across the 'Love's Enduring Promise' movie series on the Hallmark channel and watched them ALL day! I love those movies by Janette Oke SO much! I did help make a peach cobbler and we had veggies for dinner.

Today we drove to Palmer for church. We had a nice drive and ate at 'The Noisy Goose' for lunch. It's one of the many, neat little 'Alaskana' places Mr. Dave has treated me to this summer! We didn't get back from church until around 3 p.m., but had a good afternoon. We toured the Palmer Visitor Center and even saw a moose on the drive home. Tonight I mowed the lawn and it really needed it...the grass was almost a foot tall and I'm not exaggerating!! It took me a very long time to mow it with the push, electric cord mower, and the men in the neighborhood were all laughing at me because I went in circles and wrapped the cord all the way around their tree and ended up having to turn off the mower and unwrap it all! Haha...I love just giving some amusement and entertainment for the community. I also couldn't believe that Hannah, the young neighbor girl, was outside in her two-piece swim suit while it was 60 degrees! I was freezing and they also got a kick out of it when I told them that just looking at her in her swimsuit made me cold :) After I finished the lawn, I did some painting, so now my pant legs are green and I have blue paint streaks all over my white shirt! I think it's time for me to clean up, pack and get some sleep!

Tomorrow I'm going to Alaska Native Camp to help with registration and interview some leaders there. Please pray that this week of camp goes smoothly and that the Native youth who attend will be open to the Gospel. Many of the youth coming to LaVerne Griffin Camp this week have NEVER traveled on paved road or been in a big city. They are traveling a long way from villages across the state. Ms. Nancy tells me that it is pretty routy, so please pray that I'll respond to the youth in a Christlike manner. I am beginning to be a little overwhelmed with all of the writing I have to do before I head home, so also pray that I'll be able to finish everything I need to. I will be on the plane, headed for Tampa in 12 days, so I'm going to strive to make the most of the rest of my time here in Alaska :) I hope you are doing well and look forward to seeing you soon! Sending my love.....God bless!!

Salmon Frenzy on the Kenai

I've been so busy lately, but I'm finally settling back down in Anchorage. So, I'm a little behind on my blogging, but I'll try to catch you up. Going back a little....on Monday, July 14, I worked in the office and was planning on staying with the summer missionaries in Anchorage since Mrs. Nancy had flown to Fairbanks. Instead, I stayed with the Stewart’s that night. I was up really late watching the T3(Training Teens Today) video and just hanging out with their family, so I planned on sleeping a little later the next morning.
To my surprise, I was awakened by a phone call at 8:30 a.m. the next morning from Spring (a USC2-two yr. missionary) asking me to be at Brenda Crim’s house by 9 a.m. It was a good thing that I had all of my things packed because Mr. Dave came over and I was at the house just after 9, but of course, they weren’t ready to go yet. We ran errands most of the day and even got a little lost in Anchorage. We bought tons of food from Costco and then picked up the Salmon Frenzy t-shirts from UPS.
We ended up leaving for the Kenai around 4 p.m. and getting there around 7:30 p.m on Tuesday. There was SO much to do when we got there! The team from Mobberly Baptist in Texas, was with us that night, so that was helpful, but the next day it was just the three of us. Myself, Sara and Spring stayed in the parsonage of the church that night and did a lot of preparation while there. On Tuesday and Wednesday we set up a total of 140 sleeping bags, pillows and air mattresses. Thankfully, the air mattresses self-inflated, but it was still a huge task for 3 ladies. Especially when you consider that the beds were set up in 4 different locations, some of which that were 30 minutes away. We worked on this project and distributing the food to all of the different locations the entirety of these two days. On Wednesday night, all of the teams arrived, some didn’t get there until 2 or 3 a.m. though. I stayed up till about that time to try and help one of the GO-Now missionary gals get here contact solution. Wednesday and Thursday night I stayed at First Baptist Kenai (the same place I stayed with the T3 girls) and had a great time! On Wednesday morning we woke up early and cooked breakfast for everyone at FBC Kenai. I cooked the sausage and did the dishes. While I was there, I spent a good deal of my time playing with Ty, Brenda Crim’s nephew. We played Foosball and tic-tac toe. He was a fun little kid, who told me all about his quail hunting and other stuff. That night everyone from all of the teams (140 people) went out to the beach to prayer-walk for Salmon Frenzy. It was very cold and rainy, but we had a good time and sought refuge under our big circus tent.
After hours and hours of preparation, Salmon Frenzy finally really began on Friday, the day I had to leave. I got to be involved with a lot of it on Friday too. They made 500 hot dogs to give out, along with hot chocolate and water. The main goal of Salmon Frenzy was to minister to those fishing (dip-netting) for salmon on the Kenai. There were throngs of people lined up side by side, with their waders and all their fishing gear on, standing along the shore, waiting for a nice run of fish. It is a cold, long, tiring process, but people want to get their alotted 35 fish, if they can. Each salmon weighs about 15-40 lbs, so this is a lot of fish and major work. They have to haul the fish up shore, clean them, and then go back to fish some more. Around 11 a.m. on Friday, Mr. Dave came in to pick me up and we headed back to Anchorage. We stopped at Sal’s Klondike Diner one last time for lunch. Also on our way back we stopped at a huge chainsaw carving event. There were tons of men and women carving huge wood figures with their chainsaws! It was very neat to see and the intricate detail was amazing! The picture to the left is one of these wood carvings. When we got back to Anchorage I washed all my clothes, helped shovel the last bit of gravel off of the trailer, and packed for Fairbanks. I stayed with Ms. Sylvia on Friday, July 18, and she took me out to a trail behind the airport to walk and shoot pictures, before we headed back to her place. She has such a nice home and is the primary care giver for her mother, who’s in her 90’s. I stayed in her apartment downstairs, which is very nice. It has a full kitchen, washer/dryer, TV and computer…all of the amenities!

Seward and Soldotna Trip

After being in the office for a long, 9 hour day on Wednesday, I was ready for our trip on Thursday!

I woke up at 5:30 a.m. on Thursday to get a shower and finish packing. We met Ms. Debra(secretary in ABC office) and her son Adam at Fred Meyer(the Wal-Mart of Alaska) at 7 a.m. Mrs. Nancy and I rode in Mrs. Debra's Tahoe and Adam rode with Mr. Dave. There was a grizzly bear that had swam over and was running across the mud flats along the way...I was sad that I missed seeing it. We stopped twice on the way to Seward, first for coffee and donuts and then at Moose Pass. After about 3 hours, we made it to the Seward Sea Life Center. I had been here before with my family in 2000 and vividly remembered most of it. I had the best time watching the puffins and sea lions! The puffins swim/fly under water and are so much fun to watch! After we finished at the Sea Life center, we went to Ray's Waterfront restaurant. It was fine dining with a lovely waterfront view. I had halibut to eat and it was lightly battered and delicious! We stopped at Exit Glacier on our drive to Soldotna, which I had also visited on my first trip to Alaska. The glacier has receded quite a bit since the last time I visited, so we had a much longer hike this time. It was about a mile and a half, so not bad. It was a gorgeous day, so we enjoyed it. Then we said our goodbyes to Ms. Debra and Adam and were on our way to T3 in Soldotna. When we arrived they had a nice steak dinner for us and I stayed for the worship service. I stayed with about 25 or 30 girls at First Baptist Kenai that night. We didn't get to the church until midnight and it didn't get the least bit quiet until 2 am! The girls were up all night, as they would be at any youth function. It was great to see the students using their individual talents to lead. Some churches only sent a few students, but these students may ultimately have a major impact on their youth groups!

On Friday we headed for the church at 8 a.m. and had a delicious strawberry pancake breakfast. I recited my Romans Road along with the rest of students, in order to get breakfast. I just sat in groups, interviewed students and adults and hung out with the college students from East Texas Baptist University. After Mr. Dave gave a little speech, we headed to lunch with Levi and Sherry, who pastor FBC Soldotna. I had a delicious fajita, which I also had for dinner(leftovers). They were a very nice couple and I interviewed them about various things and the ministries their church offered. After lunch we stopped by the Kenai River and visitor center, where I got my picture, nose to nose, with a bear! We headed back for the evening worship services, that the students put on and then drove back to Anchorage. On the way home we saw a bear. It was dead on the side of the road and some men were loading it in the back of their truck. We finally got back to the Baldwins house at around 11 p.m.

I got to sleep in late on Saturday...it was absolutely wonderful! When I woke up we went to Fred Meyer and Costco for groceries. I made wraps for lunch and then washed their van and car. It was a nice day again and I was comfortable in shorts and barefoot! When I finished with the vehicles, I mowed the lawn and helped paint. The deck is about halfway complete...we only have the steps and side rail to go.

On Sunday, Mr. Dave preached at FBC Anchorage, for the morning and evening services. This was my first time to hear him speak and he did a wonderful job. Their neighbors came to church with us and then came over for lunch. She has a daughter my age, so her and her friend were there. We had a great time and grilled burgers.

Today I'm working in the Convention office. Just catching up on articles and I'll head to the Kenai on Wednesday for Salmon Frenzy, where Alaska residents can dip-net salmon. We aren't allowed to be involved with the fishing, so we'll be giving out free food and helping with the event. I'll also interview those involved and take pictures. There are supposed to be over 150 people there on different mission teams to help, so I'm looking forward to it.

North for the Fourth

7/3
After indulging myself in a delicious lunch at Golden Corral for Ms. Judy Rice’s retirement, I finished my packing and preparation for my trip to Kotzebue. We bought 10 lbs. of frozen hamburger meat and that was placed in my carry on luggage. I also had toiletry supplies(toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, etc.) packed in my bags to give out at the church’s fourth of July event. We left for the airport at 3:45 p.m. on July 3 and I boarded the plane for Kotzebue at 5:20 p.m. While going through security they stopped me and dug through my bag, since they thought all the meat looked suspicious. Later, I also noticed where they had even left a note saying that they had also searched my checked luggage. I had a good flight and landed in Kotzebue around 7:20 p.m. We disembarked from the back of the plane and walked across the tarmac to the tiny little airport. I was thrilled about being 22 miles north of the Arctic Circle and about 220 miles from Russia! As I entered the small airport, I was greeting by John Forrester (pastor at First Baptist Kotzebue) and Paul Moore (pastor of GA team). We waited on my luggage in the tiny little room with the rest of the people who were on my flight. So many people had shipped boxes and coolers of alcohol, since none is sold in Kotzebue and it was a big weekend. It was sad to see that people would go so far just to have alcohol. Pastor John told me that some people would sell it for double and even triple the price they had paid for it. I got my luggage with no problem and then hopped into the van with about 6 other ladies and the pastors. We headed straight out for the Tundra, driving right across the runway I had just flown in on! It was gorgeous on the Tundra, but the mosquitoes ate us up while we were out there. We also saw many wind mills used for power and tons of bush planes. As I walked across the Tundra, I could tell that the ground wasn’t very firm, but rather ‘squishy’. This was because of the permafrost that was still deep below us. After our adventures on the Tundra concluded, we headed back to the church. There was a mission team of about 20 from GA that were also there for the fourth, who were also staying in the basement of the church. I met my distant cousin, Stephanie Deal, and walked with a group along the Arctic Ocean, handing out fliers for the kids events that would be held at the church. As we walked along the Arctic, we saw a group of people butchering a seal on the shore. The woman was using a Ulu knife to cut it, while the children rinsed the meat in the ocean. After that, they hung the seal on a rack to dry it out. I stayed in a small, Sunday school room, on an air mattress for the three nights I was in Kotzebue.

7/4
Four days, four flights, four people sleeping in the room with me, and lots of time on four-wheelers! These are just a few of the fours describing my trip to Kotzebue. We had such a great fourth of July, but it was also a lot of work. I was going non-stop from 7:30 a.m. until 10 p.m. Every thing began with a delicious pancake and sausage breakfast and then we watched the parade. Miss Arctic Circle and the town’s police and firemen were all a part and they threw out a ton of candy. Then the preparation for the 4th began! I rode in the back of the truck, holding on to two bags of balloons, which we put in the storage unit. The church rented two storage units. One was used for the balloons and the ‘Bible in a bucket’ ministry, while the other was used for the free sno-cones. This was a huge community 4th of July celebration, similar to a fair (except no rides or games). During the celebration, I took pictures and talked with many of the Native people in line to get their 5 gallon buckets. This event was very beneficial to the community because no one else at the entire festival was offering anything for free, only the church. The Native people I spoke with told me how they would use their bucket to store seal oil or wild berries. After I finished with my interviewing, I began making sno-cones. I scooped hundreds of sno-cones and the church ended up giving out about 1,000 free sno-cones! I then headed over and helped with the face painting. I had a delicious deep-fried Snickers bar and a PB and J sandwich for lunch. The prices of things at the festival were simply outrageous! They were selling McDonald’s cheeseburgers for $6, a meal was $15! All of which had to be shipped in because there are no fast food restaurants in Kotzebue. That afternoon I spent time with the youth pastor’s children. We fished and collected rocks. They were the sweetest little kids and the little girl had me sit by her at dinner. She had blonde curly hair and blue eyes and I asked her, “What is the most fun thing that you’ve done today?” She responded, “Meeting you was the best thing!” After a delicious dinner, we headed back out to the festival area and watched the snowmobiles race on the water!! It was a very dangerous feat because if they went down, the snowmobile was destroyed. That night we walked to the elementary school for the Eskimo dancing and Eskimo games. The dances told their Native stories, such as fishing and hunting. Their games consisted of the high kick and other unique events. We sat in the gymnasium of the school in utter fascination of the games for about 4 ½ hours! The Eskimo children made me smile and really touched my heart, they were so adorable.

7/5
There was only one shower for the team to use, so I woke up at 6 a.m. so that I’d be sure to get one. I ate breakfast and we left for the airport around 7:30 a.m. I was very excited, but a little nervous, as we were about to fly in a bush plane to the village of Shungnak. I took my Dramamine, but ended up not needing it. They asked me how much I weighed and then we headed back to board the plane. Mrs. Bonnie(from GA), Pastor John and I were headed to the village! The pilot on the way to Shungnak let me sit in the co-pilot seat and wear the headset. He told me all about his adventures in Alaska and flew us in areas where the National Forestry Association did not permit us to go. It was wonderful, he flew us down about 1,000 ft. above the sand dunes!! We stopped in the village of Ambler on our way both times and then landed in Shungnak. Each landing strip was gravel and at the end there was a big shed. Our transportation was waiting…Aaron and Hannah on the 4-wheeler pulling the buggy behind them. They drove us to the church and we met up with the rest of their team, who were also from GA and there to help with a VBS. Spring, who I had met at the convention office, was there too. She grew up in Kotzebue and is very respected by the Native people. We made towers of Babel out of marshmallows to help the team prepare for their VBS and then we visited the village store. They had quite a variety, but the prices were outrageous, over $8 for a bag of chips! We played with the Native kids all afternoon and they were so much fun…I carried one little girl all the way back from the store. One of the little girls was deaf. It is hard for me to imagine how difficult it would be living in a village and being deaf too. After lunch, Spring, M.A. and myself then went around on the 4-wheeler, visiting some of the elders in the village. One couple we visited fed us sheefish, which he had caught that morning and wild berries they had picked. The berries were small and tart and very different from blueberries, but I enjoyed trying them. The man told us the funniest story. He said “I kept receiving calls from this man who wanted me to buy bulbs, so I finally told him, I am Eskimo man…I don’t need light bulbs…they will burn my house down!” He was joking that he lived in an igloo, so that the man would quit calling, and he did! Aaron gave Mrs. Bonnie and I the tour of Shungnak. It was not a big place, only about 200 live there, but it was so gorgeous. He even took us across the river to the sand bar on the 4 wheeler. This was when I was riding on the front of the 4-wheeler, so that was really neat! We spent most of the day there on the 4-wheeler and used the radio a lot. That is the main form of communication for the village. They announce birthdays, fish for sale, and even when our flight was coming in. That afternoon we flew back to Kotzebue, but had a different pilot who flew very high up. The ride was kind of rough and one Native woman in the back got sick on the flight. We landed back in Kotzebue around 5:30 p.m. and I bought flat bread (with icing) from a woman who was selling it in the airport. She was also selling huge jars of pickled beluga whale for $50. Mrs. Terri, John’s wife, picked us up from the airport and took us back to the church. Emily, the youth pastor’s daughter, was waiting on me when I got back. I read her Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Clifford’s first Christmas and then we had dinner. After dinner, I braved up the courage to take the Polar Bear Plunge. There were5 or 6 others who also got in the Arctic Ocean with me. The stipulations for receiving a ‘Polar Bear Plunge’ certificate are that you have to get your head wet too! I did and it wasn’t too bad, a little bit cooler than spring water. I went inside, played Uno for awhile and then showered. That night I talked with Pastor John a lot about his ministry in Kotzebue. He really shared his heart and a lot about how God is working in the lives of the Native people there. It amazed me to hear about the winters there and how no one would come to take the position of pastor in Kotzebue for two and a half years. John said, “If I don’t tell the Eskimo people about Christ, who will?” and accepted the call. John and Terri are doing whatever it takes to reach the people of Kotzebue and the other surrounding villages. Things are extremely expensive there, but they know God will provide. I watched the sunset around midnight there on Saturday, which was so gorgeous!

On Sunday, Pastor Paul Moore, from Georgia spoke and the whole church was invited for lunch afterwards. I packed my things up and flew back to Anchorage Sunday afternoon. I sat by a woman from Nome on the way back and she had all kinds of neat stories about the Iditarod. It is hard for me to imagine what it’s like in the winter. They have enormous amounts of snow and some days of 24 hours of darkness.
On Monday I worked in the office from 8 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. and then on Tuesday we made the trip to Healy for the World Changers. We were gone all day yesterday, but I got lots of good information from the pastor of Morning Star Baptist Church and from Bubba. We stopped at the Alaska Veterans Memorial, outside of Denali. It was neat to see how the Eskimo men helped fight and they simply carried a little satchel, while our men carried huge backpacks! The Eskimo people still today live off of the land, many just don’t understand that the Lord created everything that they thrive off of.

Please pray for the people of Kotzebue, for John and Terri, and Matt and Tammy.
Please pray for the villages of Kiana, Ambler, Shungnak, Kobuk and Kivalina.
I will be traveling to Seward and Soldotna on Thursday and Friday, so please pray for continued safety in travel. I'm excited about visiting the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward tomorrow...check it out at http://www.alaskasealife.org/

Day 32 of Alaska

It's so hard to believe how fast my summer is flying by. I have experienced so many new things and have learned so much! I've been on an 8-hr. raft ride, a 5-hr. glacier cruise and I've covered so much of Alaska! I have eaten moose and seen so much wildlife! I've also learned to drive stick shift, which was a big accomplishment for me. At the end of the summer I know I will be astounded when I calculate how many miles I've traveled because Alaska is such a huge state! I've already traveled to Tok, Valdez, and Nikiski. It is also such a different place here. Every day I'm amazed at how late people stay out. The kids in the neighborhood are always outside playing...even at 10 and 11 p.m. This is mainly because it is still light outside, so they are enjoying their time in the sun. Their are two seasons in Alaska...winter and construction. It's very true too. Everyone is busy building during the summer, the Baldwins included. The deck outside is coming along well...not too much to go. I've painted quite a bit this week because Mrs. Nancy has all of it painted before it's put up on the house.

The churches are also unique and not at all like those in the 'Bible Belt'. The majority of the churches run about 100 people or less. The largest Baptist church in the state runs 300. That pales in comparison to the size of Bell Shoals, but I've realized that small churches are also influential. I've been amazed to see how God works in the small churches and their communities. Lighthouse Community Church really reaches out to their community in the neatest ways. Bubba, their cook, prepared breakfast for the local public school kids every day for the past 9 years. He cooks for a lot of community events as well as for three of the World Changer events.

We attended Grandview Baptist Church on Sunday and saw the same couple from Auburndale, FL, for the 3rd time. First they were at First Baptist Tok, First Baptist Valdez and then Grandview. It was kind of neat...who knows, we may see them again! Then on Sunday night we attended First Native Baptist Church. Mrs. Nancy and I were the only ones other than the pastor in the worship center and it was already 6 p.m.(the time it started). The pastor asked me if I could sing or play the piano. I told him I could play the piano a little, and he replied, "Well, you may be leading worship tonight." Their weren't many in attendance, probably 10 or so, and it was simply an informal share/worship time. So, I shared my testimony and a few verses, along with some others who shared. Then we sang hymns for the rest of the time. Individuals simply called out the number of their favorite hymns and the lady leading would turn there and we would sing! It is interesting to see how the Native people worship and live. I'm learning so much about their culture and will experience even more of it this weekend.
I leave for Kotzebue, a Native village of about 3,000, on Thursday night. I'm flying solo this trip, but am really looking forward to it. The next two days I'll be packing and preparing, as I'll have to bring everything I need for three nights with me on the plane (sleeping bag, pillow, food, etc.) I will be on a Alaska Airlines Boeing 737, so no worries about me being on a tiny little plane. I will be helping with their 4th of July 'Bible in a Bucket' giveaway along with interviewing the pastors there.

We had a lot of their family over for a cookout last night, which was fun! I've been playing with their 3 yr. old grandson, David, most of the day. David and his mom(their daughter-in-law) are here for the next few nights, so I'm camping out in their library in the basement for awhile. It's quite exciting, actually. I'm surrounded by thousands of books(covering all four walls around me!)...and mainly all Christian literature. One entire bookshelf of just different versions of Bibles! And I also see both of the "Then Sings My Soul" books that I got Granny and Mom for Mother's Day this year. I wish I could read all of the books in their library, but that would take years. Right now I'm reading Leota's Garden, by Francine Rivers, and it is really a page turner. I got it on Sunday and I'm already 300 pgs. into it...it's a great read!

Isaiah 40 is a great chapter that has been particulary encouraging to me lately.

Verses 3-5
"A voice of one calling: 'In the desert prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it."

Verses 29-31
"Even youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

The illustration of the mountains being made low is hard for me to fathom, but still amazes me. And the eagles here are so gorgeous as they fly and it is great to know that God will renew our strength and allow us to soar!

World Changers

Lately, I’ve been very involved with reporting on the churches hosting the World Changers events. It is similar to Habitat for Humanity, but is a ministry of the North American Mission Board. I meant to include this in the last blog because we attended the first Alaska World Changers in Wasilla on Thursday, June 12. It was held at LaVerne Griffin Camp. We went around to the different work sites where teams from all around the U.S. were in to help rebuild/repair homes. I interviewed students and church staff, along with a few of the homeowners. Mrs. Nancy and I stayed for dinner and part of the worship. It was neat to see many of the homeowners attend the worship night they had.

Last Tuesday was a great day! I was invited by the front desk secretary to come to a women’s lunch to help her with her hand bells. Sylvia is her name and she is a very talented solo hand bell player. It was a very nice lunch and the speaker was good. We also got to see a professional cake decorator, decorate a 3 tier wedding cake. It was gorgeous. But most of all I enjoyed watching Sylvia play the hand bells. She has traveled all over the world to play them and has an accompany pianist.
On Tuesday night, we had a delicious moose dinner with Sarah and Luke. After dinner I interviewed them. They are a young couple who are headed to pastor First Baptist Kobuk. I loved holding their baby, Desarose, who is four months old. She was so precious! It was crazy to hear how much planning was involved in their move to Kobuk. They had to weigh themselves, their Husky dogs, and all of their things because they were allowed 2,400 lbs. cargo on the plane. They had to pack all of their things plus groceries because things are very expensive there. Since it is a remote Native village, gas there is $5.80/gallon and milk is $9/gallon and you have to fly to get there.

Last week I interviewed the ladies at the Alaska Baptist Family Services office about their quilt ministry. My huge project last week was a mail out for the office. They were sending 1000 letters out to some of their financial supporters. I stuck all the labels on the envelopes, used the 3-fold machine to fold the papers, sealed and stuffed the envelopes, and was very glad when I was done! It was a huge project! When I finished I went in Mr. Dave’s office and pressed the ‘Easy Button’. It’s this huge red button and when you hit it, it says, “That was easy!” Haha! I am so thankful that my summer supervisor has a good sense of humor!

We also had a group from Lafayette, Louisiana, at the office all last week painting the office. There were 3 or 4 college aged summer missionaries working, so I got to know some of them and helped paint a little. Last Thursday was one of my longest days since I was at the office from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. But that night was a lot of fun since the Louisiana group did a big Cajun cookout for the office. The food was delicious and I was so excited to finally get some sweet tea! I also played horseshoes with Ms. Debra and hung out with some of the other summer missionaries. We saw two moose right outside the office as we were about to leave and that was pretty exciting too!

On Friday and Saturday we worked on the house project. Shoveling tons of gravel and building their deck. Saturday afternoon I attended my first African American funeral. It was interesting because they had a lot of music during the funeral and it lasted about three hours! It was a nice funeral though and they had an invitation time too. We went to Village Inn for dinner afterwards and then I helped Mrs. Nancy assemble her brand new fountain that night.

On Sunday we attended Cross Country Church in Wasilla. It meets in a movie theater and averages about 75 people, which is a lot for a church here. We went out for lunch after and then drove back to Anchorage. Monday we were in the office and I helped finish up some paperwork there and wrote my article on Cross Country.

Our second World Changers was yesterday in Nikiski, which is on the Kenai Peninsula. It was a beautiful drive and we saw four dall sheep very close up along the way. The water was so blue from the glacier runoff and there were hundreds of fishermen lining the banks, fishing for salmon. Mr. Dave and I left the house in the van at about 7 a.m., but one of the bearings was coming loose on the van, so we drove all the way back to Anchorage, got the Subaru and then headed to Nikiski. We finally made it to Nikiski at about 2 p.m. We ate at Sal’s Klondike Diner in Soldotna for lunch. All the little Alaskan diners have the best service and food! They are neat little dinners with fun barstools, booths and witty signs all over the walls. Some also have stuffed goose, moose, caribou and other wildlife mounted on the walls. When we got to Lighthouse Community Church, I interviewed their pastor and all of their staff. It is a small church, in my opinion, but they are doing so much amazing stuff! I interviewed Bubba, the cook for all of the World Changers this summer. He is cooking for over 200 people at some of the events and his normal day is 20 hours long and begins with fixing breakfast at 3 a.m. in the morning! I was really amazed at how much one church could impact the community. Check out their website at http://www.lccak.com/ for more information about the church. We ate dinner there and then drove back. I drove the Subaru and practiced my stick shift driving on the drive home. It was a really long day though, we didn’t get home until 10 p.m. and then we talked with the neighbors for awhile. It’s unbelievable how late people stay up during the summer and how light it is at that time. The longest day is June 21. We are now finally beginning to gain a few more minutes of darkness each night…but I haven’t been able to really tell yet.

My article on Eagle River’s sports camp will be published in the July edition of the Messenger, which you can view online at http://www.alaskabaptistconvention.com/. I’m also working on other articles that they are looking at publishing in the future editions.

Preview: I’ve told some of you already, but I’ll be flying solo to Kotzebue on July 3rd. It is a village located north of the Arctic Circle. I will be staying in the church there for three nights and I’ve been told that when I board the jet, it will be from the tarmac since half of the front half of the plane will hold cargo. I’m so excited about having this opportunity!

Please pray for my safety in travel, for the secretaries in the office, and that I’ll have an impact on those I come in contact with. It seems my time is flying by this summer and I hope to continue to see God at work, even in the little situations I’m faced with.

I hope that as you’re reading this that everything is going well for you! Have a great week and God bless!

Trip to Valdez/ Lu Lu Belle

So, I guess I’ll update you all on this past week and the great trip we went on this weekend!

On Monday we did laundry, cleaned and worked in the yard some. In Alaska everyone has to do any home repairs they have during the summer since the winters are so rough. That leaves people very busy with projects each summer. The Baldwins are replacing their deck, which is on stilts. The wood is rotting, so we tore a good bit of it down and will continue working on it.

Then on Tuesday Mr. Dave and Mrs. Nancy took me, my dad and brother to Gwinnie’s for breakfast, which was delicious! They have all of Anchorage’s history on the walls and many moose head. After breakfast I hopped in the Dodge Charger rental car with Michael and Dad and we headed to Eagle River. We made it just in time for the Bell Shoals group’s morning devotional and then drove to the local school, where we helped with the Sports Camp the church was putting on. I walked around to different stations (baseball, basketball and soccer) and took pictures and interviewed the music minister some. I also got to throw the baseball around with some little kids, including one cute little girl named Callie! (made me think of you, Ms. Graham!) It was really good to have a little break to be with my family and members from my church. They fed us chili for lunch at First Baptist Eagle River and then we headed to Wasilla for the rafting trip! I wasn’t so sure about this trip to begin with because we were told that it was about 4 hours long. We even had to cross a small stream just to get to where we were putting the rafts in then we geared up. They went over all the safety precautions and then prayed for us. Our pastor, Gary Payne and Adam Welch fell in the river within the first 15 minutes of the trip because they were in a very small two-person raft that was difficult to control. I felt so helpless watching them from our big raft as they floated down the current and finally were able to grab onto a tree branch and get out of the river. At that time, it was about 3 p.m. and we did not return back to Anchorage until after midnight!! The rafting trip was a beautiful disaster though. We were on the freezing cold river for at least 7 hours. I was dressed warm enough and even wearing these huge waders that did not fit me at all, but when you’re wet and the water is in the 40 degrees, you do whatever you can to stay warm. We didn’t have anything to complain about compared to how wet our pastor and Adam were. There were about 14 of us total on the rafting trip, all men, except for me, Mrs. Wright and her daughter, Gracie. I knew something was 'fishy' when we first started off. The man who guided us, John, was a nice, Christian man, but had no concept of time or when to stop talking. He was also very ill prepared. But, we did have all the equipment we needed, he simply had not been to or rafted the Willow River since last summer, which we found out later. There were two huge blocks in the river that took us hours to cross. Gigantic logs had fallen and barricaded the river, where no rafts could get thru. The beavers had also caused a lot of river damage and we jokingly blamed them for our trouble. So, in the end, the men carried the huge rafts over the rocky terrain and Mrs. Wright and I backpacked all the stuff that was inside the rafts. It was definitely by God’s grace that we made it out of the river because at multiple times I thought we would end up calling someone in to rescue us or end up stuck out there for the night. It was a major blessing to know that it wouldn’t get dark. We finally made it to where our vehicles were at 10:30 p.m. Unfortunately, that was just the beginning of a very long adventure for me, my dad and brother! They had a rental car to turn in by midnight and a flight to make at 1 am and we were still 2 hours or more away from the airport. I was a little worried, but I knew that if God could get us out of the river, that he would allow Michael and Dad to make their flight. Dad booked it to the airport and we stopped to get gas and directions. We turned the rental car in around 12:45 a.m. and they made their flight!! I was so exhausted and cold when Mrs. Nancy picked me up from the airport, but I got to see the moon and the sun still up and out at the same time on the way home and that was a really neat blessing!

On Wednesday I went into the office at 8 and was still very tired, as you can imagine. I always dress casually when I go into the office and I figured there would be no reason to do any differently today, but they had to take my picture for their paper. It was a long day...I'm starting to get used to the 8-6 hour days. We had moose and Brussels sprouts for dinner and I watched ‘The Boys Next Door’ before I headed to bed. It’s a pretty funny movie, if you haven’t seen it!

On Friday we cleaned and mowed and got ready for Sarah and Luke who stayed in my room while we were gone this weekend. They are headed to North Alaska (Kobuk) to work with a village there. I will interview them tonight or tomorrow when we get back to Anchorage. We went to Sam’s, Costco and Fred Meyer to stock up on groceries for this week. It was such a beautiful day, the sun was out and it was about 80 degrees. Mrs. Nancy said for me to put my ‘skimpies’ on, so I did and we sat outside on the deck and soaked up the sun and drank lemonade. It was wonderful!

We left the house at 5:00 am on Saturday to make the 304 mile journey to Valdez for the weekend. At 2 p.m. we attended a pastor’s retirement picnic and I had the opportunity to meet so many people. At every event we attend, they announce, “We have Mrs. Nancy Baldwin with us today and Jennifer, who is a summer missionary.” I’m starting to get used to it now, but was caught off guard by it at first. After the picnic, we went back to the church to help the ladies prepare for Sunday’s ceremony. I washed more dishes than I have in my entire life and stemmed over 200 strawberries.

On Sunday we went on the Lu Lu Belle for their Chapel at Sea service. It is a free boat trip and worship service sponsored by First Baptist Valdez. We saw otters and had a nice time of music and message while on the boat. As we were exiting, I spoke with Captain Fred, simply asking him a little bit about the boat and how long they had been having the Sunday service and he invited me back as his guest for the 5 hr. boat tour! I saved a lot of money and had a wonderful time on the tour that left at 2 p.m. We saw doll porpoise, puffin, otters, sea lions and even humpback whales!! I had the best time and sat up in the top of the boat in the captain’s cabin for a good deal of the trip.

This entire weekend we stayed at Mrs. Linda’s house and it was so nice. We left there at around 6:30 am this morning to make the long road trip back to Anchorage.

-Please pray for Glenn and Nancy Little (the pastor of First Baptist Valdez who the picnic and ceremony were for this weekend), as they are retiring and moving.

First Big Weekend (Trip to Tok)

For those of you who don’t know, I’m spending 10 weeks, mainly in Anchorage, Alaska, this summer for missions and my Journalism internship. My time in Alaska so far has been wonderful! I’m staying with the wisest couple, who have so much experience with missions and ministry, it is amazing! Mr. Dave is the executive director of the Alaska Baptist Convention Board and Mrs. Nancy is such a sweet lady.

We had guests at the house last Thursday night(6/5) that I had the opportunity to interview, Mrs. Pattie, the pastor’s wife of First Baptist North Pole and her friend. Mrs. Pattie is a kindergarten teacher in North Pole, AK, and I was surprised to find out that they continue to go out for recess in the winter, even until the weather is 20 below. She gave me a book entitled, “Recess at 20 below” that includes pictures of young kids out playing in the snow with ice on their eyelashes. Johnny McCoy, the pastor and her husband, was mauled by a bear while hunting with his buddy, back in 2001, and because of this event, he has been on television multiple times. She told me all about how God has used this tragic experience as a platform for him to share Christ with others. She had great stories and it was so nice to meet her and her friend, Mrs. Bobbie. Later on this week, I watched a reinactment they did of the bear attack. It was on the television show, "This Happened to Me" and was very realistic, but also revealed how this horrible event gave Pastor McCoy an opportunity to share his faith with so many.

On Friday morning (6/6) we left Anchorage around 9:00 am and headed to Tok. It was about a 7-8 hour drive, but we stopped a lot to take pictures and the Baldwins wanted me to experience all the tourist stops along the way. The first stop was a glacier look out point, in which I had my first ‘pit toilet’ experience. It is named aptly because it is a regular toilet at first glance, but it does not flush, there is just a huge drop below that is full of tons of tourist waste! She said they may clean the entire ‘pit’ out weekly. The Baldwins had a very funny story about a previous summer missionary they had with them, that, like me, had never used a ‘pit toilet’ before, but she happened to drop her wallet with all of her things into it, while in a village! So the guys from the village held her upside down by her legs, in the nasty ‘pit’ so that she could retrieve her wallet. I was very careful to hold onto my things after hearing this story! Then, we continued on our journey to Tok. It is in South Eastern Alaska, very close to the Canadian border. Along the long drive, I kept up with the MilePost(The Bible of North Country Travel), which tells me what to expect each mile or so. In red are the alerts and warnings about the road conditions and wildlife. For example, multiple times it read “Watch out for moose”. I got excited about this, but along the drive up, we only saw dall sheep on the tops of the mountains. They looked like little white specks. We began to get a little hungry, so while in Eureka we stopped at a little hometown café(seemed just like the one on Gilmore Girls to me) and had their special of mile high pies, since we were at an elevation of approximately one mile high! I had a chocolate pie, which was delicious and then we continued on to Tok. When we got in, Ms. Nancy and I got settled in our room, Mr. Dave in his, and then went to meet up with a pastor and his family who were leaving soon. We stayed at the West Mark hotel in Tok and went to bed early that night. Then on Saturday, we woke up early, went to breakfast at Fast Eddy’s and then headed to the highlight of the weekend, the Tok motorcycle races! We drove 11 miles out, headed down a very long gravel road, and then arrived at the old WWII airstrip to find that there was a delay in the races. The first delay was due to a plane coming in to land, and then later on the second delay was due to the weather. I interviewed the Baldwins son, Davey Baldwin and a military chaplain, Patrick Genseal at the races. Both had very interesting stories about how they started racing motorcycles and they told me about how they race in Tok five weekends out of the summer. The guys were going SO fast on those motorcycles. We could only see part of the track, but they said it was about 3 ½ miles long, and Davey had his personal best time of 2:36 while we were there! Along the turns they ‘lay the bike down’ and sometimes even rub their knees along the gravel track. One man had a welt on his neck from a piece of gravel that flew up and hit him while driving. All these men have a passion for racing, as many drive over 300 miles and pay a good deal of money to be able to ride on a gravel airstrip in the middle of nowhere! This was the experience of a lifetime and the gorgeous mountains in the back made it all the better!! After a long day at the races, we drove through Tanacross (a native village) and then went to dinner with the Adams(the pastor of First Baptist Tok and his family). It was interesting going to Fast Eddy's again for breakfast and dinner and we saw many of the same people there that night! Great food though and it is the only good-sized restaurant in Tok. After dinner I went to the Adams' parsonage (house by the church) and played with their two little girls. We rode bikes, played dress up, played in the dirt, the whole deal! Tok was a neat little town, but a rough place to live. This family, the Adams were getting packed to leave for Nevada, after serving there in Alaska for five years. The winters were really rough on them. They had a record low of -87 temperatures there this winter and because of the cool weather, they have to plug-in their vehicles during the winter. It is also very dark there in the winter, some days of 20 hours of darkness. The isolation and darkness really take a toll on some to the point of having Seasonal Affective Disorder(S.A.D.) or Cabin Fever. We went to their church, First Baptist Tok, on Sunday morning to hear Mr. Scott Adams preach and I got to tell his girls goodbye. Then we began the 7 hour trip back to Anchorage again, but this time we got to see a lot more wildlife!! Yay!! I saw a moose in a lake on the side of the road and then we saw a moose and her baby on the road about 100 ft. ahead of us, but a motorcycle coming from the other direction scared them off before I could get a good picture. Oh well, I was just very happy to get to see a baby moose myself!

It will be good to be back in Anchorage this week. I’m planning to meet up with my dad and brother, and the Bell Shoals mission group on Tuesday to get some information on and help out with the sports camp. This week I will also be covering the World Changers in Palmer/Wasilla and writing my articles in the office.

-Please pray for the village of Tetlin and the people of Tok as they transition to having a new pastor in the next month. Also pray for Scott and Mary Beth Adams and their daughters(Sarah and Laura) as they move all the way from Alaska to Nevada. Pray for their safety and peace as they drive to Nevada and that they would have a good transition to their new church.
-Please continue to pray for me, that I would become more comfortable driving stick shift and that I would find rest this week, so that I’ll be prepared for another long trip next weekend(to Valdez).