Longhorns for Alaska

Answered Prayers

2010-06-07T07:47:00.000-07:00

After getting back to Texas and presenting at a Bible class, I have had time to think more about our trip. Although I know our group knew many of our prayers were answered, it seems appropriate to aknowledge them publicly. I'll start a list and other can add as they want.

- Safe travel back and forth by plane
- Avoiding moose on the roads (if people in the hill country are afraid of hitting a 100 lb deer, what happens if you hit a 1500 lb moose)
- Finishing our entire work project
- Nobody getting sick (3 hours of sleep and working all day - wow, God answered that prayer in a big way)
- Tempers staying in check and the group staying united (wow, amazing answer here too - what a great team we had)
- Seeing wildlife (the grizzly at the end was emotional for a lot of us - we were 6 miles from leaving Denali and about to leave, and then we see those cars pulled over with binoculars out...)
- Prayers for locals (in some cases we'll have to see how God works in their lives...many of them continue to be in our prayers)
- Prayers over our food (no allergic reactions, etc.)
- No injuries (power saws, etc., it happens of course, but our group still has 110 fingers)
- Rest and relaxation for Pastor Todd, Kim, and kids (they will stay in our prayers)
- Safety for those back home in Texas (especially my family!!!)
- Good news from Emily's mom (that was a good phone call for Emily to get)
- Spiritual growth in all of us (may God not stop this process now that we're back)

Day 11: The Longest Day

2010-06-02T15:10:00.000-07:00

On Monday we drove the only paved road in Denali National Park. We then made the long drive back to Anchorage where we had dinner and made it to the airport around 10pm. Our flight was at 1245 AM and we were back in Austin at about 145 PM.

Moose!

There are some caribou out there... you're going to have to trust me on that one. They were difficult to see even with the binoculars.

We get to see a bear, finally!

Emily eyes the bear from a safe distance:

Houston, Alaska

We passed Mt Ranier as we left Seattle:

I know I speak for everyone when I say that we had an amazing trip. Thanks to everyone for your prayers and support. Thanks to our Alaskan friends for your hospitality and help. We are really impressed with the amazing work that you are doing.

We should have more posts and pictures in the next few weeks!

Day 10: the summit

2010-05-31T10:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday (Sunday) morning we drove from Fairbanks to Denali National Park. We arrived at noon and spent the rest of the day at the park and at the small town outside the park.
Today we will spend a little more time at the park before we head back to Anchorage. Our flight home is just after midnight and we should be back in Austin tomorrow afternoon!

2400 foot climb to get up there!

Liz's log

2010-05-31T03:07:00.000-07:00

We finally finished the playground yesterday and I have to say it's an amazing feeling! The people in the area involved with the project were amazing! It's unbelievable how much the people were willing to chip in. Terry, from Mt Drum Lutheran, got a day permit to cut down trees for mulch and he lent us his tools. Another man from the church, Dana, came by every day when he could and lent us his wood chipper and other tools as well. I can not believe how kind they were to us and how welcoming. I was told that they usually prefer high school groups to come up here because college kids are lazy and high schoolers work harder in their past experience. Well, we proved them wrong. They expected us to maybe finish half of what they asked and we managed to finish everything they wanted: the fence, the swing set, the boat area made of tires, signs for decoration, and many random tasks inside the day care where we helped. We were welcomed into their homes and went on the most beautiful hikes. All in all, I could not have asked for a better experience or a better group of people to help.
It wasn't only helping the people but it was the people that I came with that helped make this experience amazing. While we like to give him a hard time (especially me) Pastor Jim has been amazing to all of us here. He was great at leading on the site and helped us prepare some ridiculously amazing dinners. He had us each tell our story, one a night every night, and then pray over that person for their path so far and their path to come. It was an amazing experience. Just learning about each person here and then getting the chance to pray for them and also having people pray for me and my future. It's something that people just don't do very often and it was a different and yet great experience. There have been some amazing conversations and just an overall amazing time with an amazing group of people. I would honestly love to go on another trip with this group again sometime.
Now that we are finally done and we have some down time we drove to Fairbanks and Denali and are staying at the Princess Lodge there. Having a lot of down time the past two days has been fantastic, just hanging out together and hiking up another mountain. Even though this hike might have caused a few knee issues it was completely worth going through the pain to see the awesome view at the top of the mountain. Each time we hiked a mountain it was always so great to see the view. With a view like that its easy to believe that there is a Creater and someone made all that happen. It was breathtaking and I honestly wish that I could just stay here for the summer. I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to come on this trip and have this experience here helping people and enjoying the beauty.

Editors note: Just like Jewelle, Liz wrote her blog post many hours ago... and I'm just now getting around to picking out pictures and posting it.

Jewelle's Journey

2010-05-31T02:46:00.000-07:00

Psalm 18:1-2
"I love you O LORD my strength. The LORD is my rock, my fortess and my deliever, my God is my rock in whom I take refuge."
Psalm 18:1 was the theme verse for this past week at the Mt.Drum Child Development center. I was encouraged while cementing poles for a fence to listen to the children outside, chanting this verse, " I love you O LORD my strength." Like these kids, I made this verse my theme verse for the week. During my time in Alaska, I needed to draw strength from God, whether it was for carrying a 50lb bag of cement or just being able to wake up with less sleep than I would like day after day. I rejoice in the LORD for his beautiful creation. Today we were in Denali national park where the mountains seem to sings hymns of praise. I am grateful for the time I have to spend with my friends in service and in fellowship. I especially rely on God because we have left but I know that the problems and hurt of the people in Copper Center and Glennallen do not end. I can trust that God continues to care for all the children of Alaska and will use our service even after we have left the state.

editors note: Jewelle wrote this hours ago and I'm just now getting around to posting it... I'm a night owl. I picked out these pictures for her.

Day 9: On the road again

2010-05-30T00:05:00.000-07:00

This morning we made the four and a half hour drive from Copper Center to Fairbanks. This afternoon we visited Pioneer Park, worshiped at Zion Lutheran, and ate at the Salmon Bake.

Rebecca's Ramblings

2010-05-29T02:51:00.000-07:00

I know I promised a bunch of ya'll I'd post for a few days now, so here goes!
As a kid I spent every summer traveling around the States with my family. My favorite parts of those trips were meeting different people and imagining how I would grow up if I was from the same community they were. Since I switched my major from Biology to Human Development and Family Sciences (with only three semesters of college left), I've become especially interested in social policy and in the environmental effects of personality development.

Coming to Alaska has been an extreme learning experience. Growing up, I never really thought about Alaska (or Hawaii) as part of the US, but now that I'm here, it seems more to me like the core of rural America like anywhere else. So far we've met nothing but amazing people. The pastor here is absolutely great, and his wife is not only super involved in the church and its ministries, she also runs their music program, runs the Child Development Center as a volunteer and homeschools their four adopted children. Superwoman? I think so. When we got here were were told that a guy named Dana would be helping us out by overseeing our project, and he came every day after he got off of work. The church president also came to check up on us one day and ended up doing a lot of materials runs, got us a permit to cut down trees on the side of the highway to make mulch, left two trailers at the site so we could store materials, and hosted us twice at his house.

We also have had two of the high school youth come help us with construction. Alaska only gained its statehood in 1959, so very few people were actually born here, making it an extremely interesting mix. You're basically either a native, a retiree, or were relocated for a government or energy-based job. We've been told by a lot of the people here that the local economy depends tremendously on the government jobs, and that they are also the only ones that pay enough to get by. In addition, many of the service-based workers are spread thin. Little Man, who is the maintenence/cleaning guy here at Mt. Drum, is also the head of the volunteer fire department (which covers an immense area up here in a region where fires are common in the summer) as well as a former head of the local Boys and Girls Club. Laura, one of the church members, is the only social worker in the Copper Basin area.

She also cooked twice this week, once for youth group and again for the recovery group that meets here on Friday nights, which she also leads. Addiction is a huge problem here. You may have heard about the problems with alcoholism and drug abuse in Native American populations. They're especially prevalent here, and its interesting to ponder the causes of the problems. I'm not an expert so I'm not going to point any fingers, but I think it's important to point out some of the current problems held by the native population. Our government not only took away then destroyed their land, but we also decided that we could somehow give them something back to right their wrongs. Their solution? Reservations where each family gets a room the size of an efficiency. Some of us got the chance to see one of them, and it was basically a single room with a kitchenette and an attached bathroom. For a family of five. I've been to few different reservations in a few different states so I know that this isn't the case everywhere, but it upsets me more here in Alaska, especially when you consider that 15.6% of Alaska's population is either American Indian or Alaskan Native. Compare this with the fact that only 11.5% of Texans are African American, and it becomes apparent that the problems of the natives are the problems of the rest of Alaska.

Day 8: finishing touches

2010-05-29T01:41:00.000-07:00

C-Money Van Gogh.

One day of chipping later:

Liz paints the sail:

Pastor Jim finishing the gate:

Jewelle and our Alaskan friend Eddie paint the flower boxes.

Signage.

Terry and Sally (from Mt Drum Lutheran) invited us over for some dinner and lake time.

Rowing to the mountains.

Sally sacrifices herself for our frisbee.

before (Saturday):

after:

Day 7: Almost there

2010-05-28T01:22:00.000-07:00

We worked a very long day today and we're almost done. The fence is finished except for one hinge on the front gate. Tomorrow we need to paint and create a bunch of wood chips to go under the swing set.

John 10:7
Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep."

James 3:4
"Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go."

Another safety inspection.

Liz guards the raw materials...

... for the wood chips we're making. There is nowhere to buy mulch in the Glennallen area.

Artist in residence C-Money painting our exit sign.

Work site update:

First officer Sally steering the ship.

Day 6: Blame it on the Rain

2010-05-26T23:20:00.000-07:00

Our work day was cut short today by a rain shower. We did get the swing set up as well as some fence pickets. This evening we helped lead the weekly Mt. Drum Lutheran youth group gathering.

Emily teaching us all the fine art of pancake making.

Sara watches Brian as she waits to get her drill back.

Jewelle performing a safety inspection.

Matthew 7:3
"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?"

Clouds loom ominously overhead as the A team tries to get in a few last pickets.

Work site update:

Playing kickball reminds us all of one of our favorite camp songs:
"Drop Kick Me Jesus" by Bobby Bare:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SO5Y1OuQIxo

Day 5: We're going on a bear hunt

2010-05-26T01:59:00.000-07:00

Today (yesterday, Tuesday) was a long day and my photo captioning team has gone to bed. Today we set the rest of the fence posts, got about 75% of the horizontal beams done, got one of the swing set posts set, and buried some giant tires for the kids to play on. After work we had some reindeer sausage and went out on a hike and bear hunt (We did not find any bears).

The work site:

Pastor Jim, AKA "Bear Mace"

C-Money managed to find some snow even though the temperature was in the 60s!

Sara C's (AKA "C-Money") Long Awaited Testimonial

2010-05-26T01:26:00.000-07:00

So, as I wait for Lost to buffer on Hulu, since I missed it Sunday, I have been encouraged to write a little for the blog. These past few days have been intense. Just getting here was an experience. Saw a lot of beautiful things from the window of the plane, including the amazingly blue skies above the clouds, two separate sunsets, the lights of Seattle, and huge snow-covered mountains. I'm glad I was wrong about the weather. I was expecting to be freezing the whole time, and i had accepted that fact, but its been really nice outside lately. It may be kinda cold in the early mornings, but once the sun gets going it feels amazing. I wish i had packed better for this, but its too late now I guess. Anyway, I'm doing my best to make this trip something to be remembered. I've tried new foods and seen new sights. I'm very excited for what the next few days have in store for our little group. We really got into the construction process Sunday, digging post holes and such. It feels good to be productive. I'm glad i have this opportunity to hang out with my ULC friends. This trip is really helping us get to know each other on a deeper level. We've even made loving nicknames for each other. Its also amazing to see Pastor Jim again after all this time. This trip would have been so different without him. He is really making sure we have a great time and also keeping our focus on Christ.

So our construction seems to be going well. We got a lot done, and hopefully the rest will go smoothly. The work is time consuming, but the company is great. I feel like I'm laughing all the time. Everyone here is so much fun to be around. On Sunday i was mostly working inside, cleaning and sanitizing a bunch of plastic food items for a play kitchen set and
testing batteries. Monday was different. Philip and I dominated on the sander, but eventually i moved over to digging post holes with various people. There are some huge rocks here that like to be in the exact place you need a hole. All this got me in some beastly looking pictures. Then it was on to getting the actual posts into the holes. It took a lot of patience and a lot of readjustments but we got a system down.

Today was a whole different kind of intense. My little group was in charge of digging holes to bury tires in that the kids could play on. My hands have a few blisters on them and I know I'm gonna be so sore tomorrow. After a long day's work and an amazingly awesome dinner, of which I was the official grillmaster I might add, we took off to do some hiking/bear hunting. This was by far the best part of my day. We hiked so far up this mountain that we actually found a little snow. We climbed insanely steep areas and even did a little rock climbing. The view from the top was amazing and totally worth all the muscle pain i'm gonna have tomorrow. Getting down was also quite awesome. It went a lot quicker due to the fact that we ran part of it. Probably not the safest way to get down a mountain, but definitely the most exciting. I had a blast and got some really beautiful pictures.

We got back a little while ago. Finished up with a quick devotion and now its time to hit the showers then crash out. Today has been so exhausting and I'm sure I'll be asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow. This was a great day.

status update: Lost is taking forever to buffer. I'll just have to wait to watch it when I get home :(

Day 4: Digging, sanding, and cementing, Oh My!

2010-05-24T22:13:00.000-07:00

Emily following in the footsteps of Jesus... as a carpenter sanding a fence post.

Sara digging while our new Alaskan friend Will supervises.

Occasionally Brian puts down the camera and does some work.

Jewelle, AKA "T-Rex", using her dinosaur-like powers to tamp down the loose dirt and rocks.

Rebecca is busy at work sporting her stylish baseball cap from third grade.

Psalm 7:15
He who digs a hole and scoops it out
falls into the pit he has made.

Luke 6:48
"He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built."

2 Thessalonians 3:10 "... If a man will not work, he shall not eat."

Sally's Spiel

2010-05-24T09:35:00.000-07:00

I have just gotten back from a run along with Richard, Phil, and Sara C. When we left this morning it was thirty degrees, but fortunately it was warmed up to 38 by the time we returned. We have managed to befriend some of the neighborhood dogs, especially a little black Cocker Spaniel who is very playful. We have also had some encounters with a not-so-friendly black dog, but have managed to run away in time. We have still not seen any bears, although we are on a constant look-out, after warnings from the natives to not go out without a gun, which we do not have.

Yesterday was our first day of hard labor. I worked with Phil and Will, who is a local high-schooler helping us out. We dug out some huge rocks and started digging some post holes, not an easy task...although I make it look that way. The first hole was the hardest and full of some tough rocks. I had to use my inner strength to get through the work...Brian likes to call it my warrior princess mode.

After a hard day's work we came back to the church to eat and rest. We spent some time at the Copper River that runs right behind where we're staying. We are told the water is about 33 degrees right now, but that didn't stop me from enjoying it. I got in from my head to my toes.
The Copper River is very important to Alaska. It is 287 miles long and is named after the copper deposits in the upper river that were used by the native population and by settlers until the 1930s.
The river is now known for its famous Salmon runs. Salmon fishing generates a large revenue for the state of Alaska in the form of exports as well as tourist attraction for serious fishers and seafood lovers alike. The Copper River is also a favorite place for bears to come out and hunt for food. We are by a native told that every inch of a bear print equals a foot of the length of the bear. Although it's hard to make out, the track in the picture measures about 11 inches with about three-inch long claws and was found right outside the church we are staying at.

Long story short, I am having an amazing time and love being in Alaska!! Our group is making progress in our work and growing closer to one another in the process.

Day 3: the work begins

2010-05-24T00:50:00.000-07:00

Psalm 51:10
"Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me" ... and the carpet in the day care center.

Pastor Jim teaching us what he knows best: manual labor.

Psalm 40:2
"He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand."

Liz in a hole.

Here's Richard putting his computer engineering skills to good use digging a post hole.

Grilled Salmon. Thanks Phil!

Today we also celebrated Pentecost with the congregation at Mt Drum Lutheran Church in Copper Center.

Day 2: Free Hot Dogs!

2010-05-22T23:37:00.000-07:00

This moose challenged us to a game of soccer behind the church in Chugiak. The moose won.

We stopped on the side of the road and left our mark on Alaska.

Jewelle has picked out a bible verse in place of a snarky comment:
Psalm 33:6-7

By the word of the LORD were the heavens made,
their starry host by the breath of his mouth.

He gathers the waters of the sea into jars;
he puts the deep into storehouses.

(That's Matanuska Glacier in the background)

Mark 6:42-44
"They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. The number of the men who had eaten was five thousand."
Well, it wasn't quite five thousand but we managed to feed some hungry Alaskans at the Mt Drum Child Care Center summer celebration.

This is the site that we will turn into a magnificent playground, complete with a fence.

Anchorage and Chugiak 21 May

2010-05-22T00:23:00.000-07:00

Reindeer hot dogs! Rudolph was sure tasty... Is Phil's nose glowing?

Trying to figure out how to fit all of the food in the car. Whoever thought picking up milk at the market could be so awe inspiring.

Chugach State Park coming down the mountain. An hour and 15 minutes up, 45 minutes down... Oh, how nice gravity is.

Before Alaska

2010-05-13T07:51:00.000-07:00

We're now one week away from a long flight to Anchorage. I think we're all excited. I think we all are wondering what it's going to be like. I think we're all nervous. I've challenged everyone to pack one bag - complete with clothes, sleeping bag, pillow, jacket, etc. If our college girls are able to keep the baggage to a minimum, that will be truly amazing!

Why are airlines charging for every checked bag? I know, I know, the economy. But we're going to Alaska for 2 weeks!

Please pray for the next week. My hope is that no emergencies arise during that time so everyones' hearts are in a good place. I also hope that all the logistics will be taken care of simply.

Tomorrow is closing day on our new log cabin home in Kerrville! Moving a family of 6 is always a challenge, but when dad is leaving for Alaska 6 days later....let's just say challenge is not a big enough word. God will be faithful though.

Please check this blog for future pictures, thoughts from students, and an update on where we are in the North Pole and Arctic Circle! - Pastor Jim