Another great day...

A lot of work got done yesterday! It was hot outside while working, but smiles were not in short supply. The fence painters painted, the garden tenders gardened, the floor layers finished the flooring, and the people putting the siding on the gym made some excellent headway. The gym group has been working really hard to knock a dent, so to speak, in the siding project, and they have definitely set the next gym group up for success in their siding endeavors.

The ice cream social was delicious and nutritious; and it was a nice time to mingle and relax.

Another successful night of team-game night commenced with tons of laughs and entertainment. We played jeopardy. It was a nail biter. Side note: Happy Birthday Lexi!

Today, everyone worked so hard into the afternoon in order to get as much finished on the projects as possible. There was a lot of teamwork being utilized on the fence painting and definitely the gym siding. It was all exciting to see, and a great way to finish off the week! The entire trip has been successful, exciting, special and certainly memorable.

P.S. The loose plan for today is… to get cleaned up, get packed up, eat dinner, and then load up on the bus and head for Oklahoma. That’s all for now!

Wednesday = funday

Went to Kentucky Splash today! The wave pool was a huge hit, the lazy river was very refreshing, and the water slides were quite a rush. From youth to sponsors, everyone found fun at the water park.

After the water park, we ate Kentucky, Mexican food at El Dorado. Can you say fajitas and queso? Delicious!

And our super, amazing, fun, team games tonight consisted of two highly creative competitions. The first was a sort-of charades game, which was fun and funny as well. The other was a game where the teams had to sing bible verses in various music genres. Genres consisted of country, hip hop, techno, Gregorian chant, lady gaga, 80’s hair band and everything in between. Everyone got creative, gave it their all, and the end result was an absolutely hilarious evening.

More work to be done tomorrow; there might be some shifting around on job sites as some crews get finished and others need more help. All of our members have been working where asked and giving their all on all tasks. Stay tuned for more updates form Credo in Kentucky!

All systems are go!

Today was a blast! There is definitely some hard work being done. The crew working on the outside of the gym says that it’s pretty hot outside, but the work is looking fantastic. Apparently we have a couple folks who are afraid of heights, but that hasn’t stopped them from climbing those ladders and getting that siding put up on the gym. The paint crews have been coming home from the work sites with paint up to their elbows and ears. And, plank by plank, under Ron’s supervision, the floor layers are becoming experts in the field of foe-wood floor supplies.

The local bluegrass band came up to the settlement and gave us a very talented rendition of the classic, old-time, bluegrass, country songs (which I’m sure all of you know). Titles consisted of “Georgia Peaches”, “Highway 40 Blues”, “Back at Home” and many more.

Katie prepared for us some amazing water balloon games! By the end of the night everyone was completely soaked from head to toe. Pictures will be posted soon. Currently board games and card and creative-thinking games are underway, and bedtime is soon to follow. Rest will surely be hard to come by tonight due to the excitement leading up to our Kentucky Splash water park trip tomorrow! That’s all for now, stay tuned for more info on Credo in Kentucky!

Photo ops!

We found the weapons of mass construction!

So we have several groups made up of our church people and the other volunteers here. There is a group working on flooring, painting houses, people working on the gym, and people working on various other jobs. Tomorrow morning our group is in charge of worship before breakfast. We are very excited about that! We just finished playing team jeopardy, which tested our knowledge on various highly important, influential, worldly topics. I’m pretty sure blue team came in fourth out of four teams and orange team is in the lead right now, but the games have only just begun.

The scenery in Frakes and the surrounding areas is very beautiful I must say. There are trees here, which is a nice change from Oklahoma, and there are actually a lot of rolling hills and mountain areas. It’s hot here; but there is no complaining to be heard, just fun stories from the work sites! Everyone is ready for tomorrow, and the fun will surely continue. Since a picture is worth a thousand words I will try to upload some soon! Stay tuned for more breaking news from Credo in Kentucky.

We made it!

A total of over 15 hours of drive time, and we made it to Frakes, Kentucky! Lots of giggly, excited youths on the bus, and some of the sponsors did a very nice karaoke rendition on the way down. Currently, showers are underway, snacks are being consumed, and card games are ruling the bunk-bed playing field.

All 43 of us from Good Shepherd are excited for tomorrow! There are also about eight other churches here with seven to 48 people in their groups. From what we can tell from the evening briefing, it looks like we will all meet in the morning for breakfast and a devotional. Then from there, we are planning on splitting up according to our skills and interests and work on the labor projects of our choice.

Our group played some really fun games tonight. It let us all get to know one another a bit better. Laughter and smiles were spewing from the woodwork. We split up into teams: blue team, green team, orange team and yellow team. All throughout the week will be playing wonderful games in the evenings in order to foster camaraderie and teamwork (also, we’ll be playing them just because they are a blast)!

That’s all to report right now, more to come soon. Stay tuned for the latest and greatest updates on Credo in Kentucky: Weapons of Mass Construction.

Credo means "I believe" in Latin. And the Credo youth from the United Methodist Church of the Good Shepherd believe they can make a difference in Kentucky this summer!

The youth and their fearless sponsors are locked and loaded and have their sights set for the Henderson Settlement in Frakes, Kentucky. The settlement is an outreach ministry settled in the countryside of the town. It's geared toward community care, agricultural, craft and clothig services. Throughout the year Henderson hosts work camps and retreats, and that's where we come in to give our hearts and service. More to come, stay tuned for info and updates...