I am one of those people who actually enjoys flying. I admit I would prefer more room, but I have no fear of flying. Our flight from Fort Myers to Charlotte was uneventful. Our group of 8 was scattered about the plane. This was Camden's first flight, and he was sandwich between the other 2 boys going on the trip. I was in the same row but on the other side of the isle. The flight was smooth and eventful.
When we landed in Charlotte we had to rush a bit to get food and get to our gate, but we all managed to make it to the gate in time to eat and board the plane. Again our group was fairly scattered about the plane. I was seated in the very last row. The flight was not full, in fact of the 6 seats making up the back row only 4 were occupied. The two window seats were filled with friends from Yemen (I couldn't help but think of the Friends episode where Chandler goes to Yemen). An young asian man and myself took up the 2 aisle seats.
I planned on reading during the flights to pass the time, I bought "Velvet Elvis" by Rob Bell. I managed to get a good start on my reading between Fort Myers and Charlotte, however God had different plans for me on our bumpy 5+ hour flight to San Francisco.
Since 9/11 anytime their are people of middle eastern decent on a plane people tend to be a little nervous. I admit as the two friends spoke across the aisle in their native tongue I felt a bit uneasy, but that quickly subsided as we talked about Yemen and our families. He told me he was on his way to San Fran to visit some friends and this was his first time in the states. He spoke about how much he liked his brief time here. When he asked why I was going to San Fran I told him I was part of a mission trip with our church. At that point the conversation slowed. His english was pretty good but with his thick accent it was not easy to carry on a conversation. I went back to reading my book, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity I had. So i asked him about his religion.
He told me about Islam, some of the basics, unfortunately it was not easy to understand him, between the noise of the plane and his accent. Then I paused, took a deep breath and asked him about his view of Americans, Christians and extremists. In a nut shell he is sad that people view Islam as if they are all terrorists and he has no bad feelings about this country or Christianity. After our conversation he asked if he could take my picture, I have no clue why, but in some small way, in spite of the language barrier, we made a connection.
My new friend put on his sleep mask and took a nap, so I returned to my book. After reading a few pages the guy in the aisle seat next to me asked if I like the book. The door had been opened to a whole new conversation.
This time it was with a graduate of NC State. I would guess him to be about 10 years younger than me. We talked about the church and why people of his generation are less likely to attend church. While we didn't solve the problems of the church he did have some good insight. Basically he felt that his generation wants to be active and get things done, and the church is not involved enough in "getting things done". Case in point, he and his wife started a "business" where they will be going overseas to do community planning. They will head to India next month and start this new venture. Basically they will go to under developed communities and help them establish themselves. Obviously there is much more to it than that and his story was fascinating.
When we got off the plane in San Francisco it was about 10:45 local time. Just a few hours into our trip and I was already excited by the conversations I had. God's presence was felt even at 33,000 feet.
The Chill
We were greeted Sunday morning with a chill in the air our Florida blood isn't accustomed to. After a quick breakfast at the hotel we set our sights on Pier 39. Sunday was our day to be tourists in the city. So we took in the sights and sounds around Pier 39. We rode the cable cars and walked through China Town and through the fog we saw Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge.
After a bucket of fresh mini donuts (yes I shared them with the group) it was time to head to our Youthworks site.
Sunday night was a time to get to know the staff, the other adult leaders and youth. The Youthworks staff was comprised of 4 college aged kids. Two other churches shared our space with us, All Saints Lutheran Church from Aurora Colorado and a non-denominational church from Sacramento CA.
The kids were divided into work groups for the week. Cheryl's team "future" consisted of Camden, Teaker, Andrew, and Sierra. Unfortunately they were not mixed in with anyone from the other churches. However it did allow the four of them to become closer over the course of the week. My team, "Free", consisted of Abigale, Kathryn and a group of kids from Aurora plus their adult leader.
The youth were slow to stray from the comforts of their own group but as the evening went on the barriers began to disappear.
Overview of the week
Each team had a certain task around the church each day. Breakfast prep, breakfast cleanup, church clean up, dinner prep and dinner cleanup were rotated among the teams. Essentially the kids ran the show under the guidance of the folks from Youthworks.
Each morning after breakfast and morning chores we had devotional time (referred to as devo time), followed by our Youthworks huddle to make sure we were ready and pumped for the day. After the huddle we were given our instructions for the day.
When we returned from our service work for the day we traveled to our site seeing location and returned to the church for dinner, worship and group time. The group time was a chance for the church groups to meet together and reflect on the day.
Oatmeal, oatmeal and MORE OATMEAL
NO that was not the breakfast menu, that was team Free's task for the day. We spent the day at the San Francisco Food Bank bagging oatmeal. We were part of a group of volunteers that day that bagged nearly 6,000 pounds of oatmeal. Needless to say none of us are eager to see oatmeal anytime soon. As tedious as the task was it was a reminder that even menial tasks have a place in the service of God's Kingdom. They estimate that a one pound bag of oatmeal will feed 8-10 people. So our team took part in helping to feed 48,000 people. Not too shabby for a days work.
The other part of our CVLC group spent the day delivering meals and filling soap and shampoo bottles to make hygiene kits.
At the end of our first day of work the city of San Fran should be full of Oatmeal and smell a little better.
Our evening activity Monday night was a trip to the Golden Gate Bridge. While the pictures are beautiful they simply don't do justice to the beauty. 
The Tenderloin
If you're like me when you hear the word tenderloin you think of steak. For most of the country that is probably the case but not in San Francisco. The tenderloin district is a section of the city synonymous with crime, drugs, prostitution and homelessness. While this may not sound like the best place to send a youth group, I will say that never once did I feel unsafe.
Day 2 for team Free was spent at Mercy Housing in the tenderloin district. The signs of poverty as you enter the tenderloin are evident everywhere you look. We saw numerous drug deals in the middle of the sidewalks with no attempt to hide what they were doing. While walking a half block from our van to Mercy Housing the smells of urine and marijuana were obvious.
The Mercy Housing facility where we were stationed for the day was a 9 story apartment building. The building was very multicultural and multigenerational and offers rental assistance for tenants that need it.
On Tuesdays Mercy Housing receives a shipment from the food bank. This weeks shipment DID NOT CONTAIN OATMEAL!!! The tenants who which to get groceries from the food bank are asked to provide a grocery bag to be filled. Our job was to fill the bags with the items from the food bank. This week the tenants received fresh produce (apples, carrots, oranges), rice, beans and a few other items. Once the bags were filled the residents either came to pick up their bags or they were delivered to their door.
Tuesday's trip into the tenderloin, the first for team "Free", was an eye opener for the kids. For team "future" it was their second day in the tenderloin district. You don't see poverty and drug abuse that evident in Naples.
Tuesday night was our trip to Mount Davidson, a huge cross that overlooks the city.
It seemed appropriate after a day spent in the tenderloin our evening was spent at a cross overlooking the city, a not so subtle reminder that the risen Christ died on the cross for the forgiveness of sin.
Quiet Coyote
On Wednesday we were introduced to the quiet coyote at the Tenderloin Boys and Girls Club of America. The quiet coyote is a hand gesture the staff uses get the children to be quiet.
On any given day the Tenderloin Boys and Girls Club hosts 80-100 kids in a space not much larger than many of our living rooms. The club is highly structured and the kids were extremely well behaved. Our task was to play, read and hangout with the kids.
A group of 3 ambassadors (3rd graders) gave us a tour of the facility, including the cafeteria and the teen center (in a different building). The Boys and Girls Club share space with Mercy Housing so the circumstances dictate that sharing must occur. In fact they only have one pool cue to play pool to force the kids to share.
The highlight of my day was reading with a 3rd grader named Estephanie. When she finished her book she began to draw a picture of her favorite part of the book. When I returned to see what she had drawn I was amazed. The drawing was amazing!!! When I asked if she had drawn that picture, she looked at me through her glasses and flashed a little smile, showing her braces, "Yes."
Future team also spent the day working with kids. They stayed at the church and worked the Kids Club camp.
Being from Florida we are no strangers to the beach, but this was our trip to the Pacific Ocean. The wind off the Pacific Ocean was brutal and pelted us with sand, but the view from the Lands End Trail is beautiful.
Running on Empty
By Thursday we were all exhausted. The time change, lack of sleep, and busy days were catching up to us, but we had one service day remaining. Both groups were back working with the kids.
I was so proud of the youth for putting their fatigue aside and working with the kids. Some of the youth were hesitant about working with the kids but by the end of the week they were amazed how much fun they had.
Thursday night was a community cook out, where I found myself manning the grill. It was a nice opportunity for everyone to bond one last time before departing in the morning.
Before the night was over we had a foot washing ceremony where the adult leaders washed the feet of the youth and prayed over them. It's safe to say their was a major need for tissues among our group.
In n Out
Friday morning was a time to pack and say our goodbyes before heading home. Although everyone was tired the group was energized by a great week serving in San Francisco.
Our last stop before hitting the airport was at In N Out Burger, a California institution that was a must.
Over the course of the week our youth worshiped together, prayed together, and played together. The spirit of Christ was moving through each and every one of us, whether it was a spontaneous human chain during evening worship, the filling of bags of oatmeal or shampoo bottles, or a tearful embrace bringing everyone closer together.
We were in n out of San Francisco in 6 days, but the experience will stick with us all.
No comments:
Post a Comment