This summer, Becca went on her first summer-long missions project. We asked her to write this month’s newsletter. This is a bit longer than usual, but we hope you’re blessed by her letter…
A Long Way From Home
Alaska, the 49th state, “The Last Frontier”. Before I got there this summer I imagined that Alaska would be cold and snowy and have a lot of wilderness. Since I was going on a Cru summer missions project, I thought I would be spending a lot of time going out to tell others about Jesus.
I got to Alaska the last week of May after a LONG day of flying. I left Orlando (the southeast of the “Lower 48”) at 11 a.m. and landed in Juneau at 9:50 p.m. (which was 1:50 a.m. in my body). I felt very overwhelmed, wondering “What have I gotten myself into?” There were a lot of people at the airport to meet me whom I didn’t know. Many of the other students had already arrived on campus of the University of Alaska South East (Juneau is in southeast Alaska). That was where we lived, in campus apartments. I began my 10 weeks in Juneau.
My expectations were so wrong. Juneau was not as cold as I thought it would be. However, it was quite “brisk” for this Florida girl. The temperature never got above 65! And we got a lot of rain. I got great use out of my flannel lined leggings and got a pair of “Xtratuf” boots — the shoes every local wears. Juneau is in a rainforest so everything is GREEN. There was no snow except on top of the mountains. However, there was a lot of wilderness to be seen and explored, and it was all right at my fingertips.
Daily Life At Waffle Co.
Part of being on a Cru summer missions project is getting a day job. There are many businesses in the Juneau area which have previously employed Cru students, and hold jobs open for the new crop of college kids. Before I left Orlando, a new friend, Kailey from Nebraska, and I had secured jobs at one of those business — The Southeast Waffle Company.
- My first day at Waffle Co. Kailey and I were shown how to do all four of the stations in the store: register, drinks, food and dishes.
- Register was taking money and handling customers, an often overlooked part of that position. People get grouchy about their morning coffee!
- Drinks was making coffee, espresso, chai, tea and smoothies. I worked on making pictures in the latte’s foam, but didn’t make it very far.
- Food involved making one of the 8 types of waffles we served: sandwiches, “eggles” (a bagel with egg), meat and cheese, and bagels. This also involved the Soup of the Day, muffins, scones and cookies (the baking was my favorite part).
- Dishes were, well, dishes!
Our day job was our main mission field – ministering to co-workers was a big emphasis on our missions project. We worked Monday – Thursday. It was obvious that the owner of Waffle Co. saw Kailey and me as responsible — I was giving a key to the store my second week on the job, and worked the earliest shift from that point on. Even though I had to walk to work at 5 am much of the summer, the sun was already up, seeing as it rose around 4:30 am. The owner and other workers said that they noticed a difference in our work ethic, attitude and willingness to work, to do things others didn’t want to do.
Spiritual Growth
The heart of our summer project was the spiritual input we got in the evenings. Monday nights we had planning and “Lady Lessons.” This is when we studied an aspect or attribute of Biblical Womanhood, for example: Courageous Trust – Hannah; Relentless Worship – Martha; Faithful friendship – Rahab.
Tuesday night was Kilo Adventures. We would do an activity that applied the lesson we had learned the day before. Tuesdays were honestly difficult. The adventures were often hard-hitting, honest activities that brought to light issues we struggled with in our daily lives.
Wednesday nights were our weekly meetings. This evening we involved the guys who were on the men’s side of the Project. We could also invite friends from one of the local churches, or coworkers or students we had met from the community to fellowship with us. I got to be one of the emcees for these meetings. I got to help lead the meetings, run the games and introduce speakers. One night, Kolby (my co-emcee) and I dressed in our pajamas to lead the group. Me in my footy Shark pajamas, him in his camo pants and cowboy boots.
Thursdays were my favorite day of the week because it involved Bible Study-Action Group. All of the women on project ate together and then we would split into small groups. It was the night with the most personal community. I was in a group with four other girls and we got to talk about what was going on in our lives and support and encourage each other.
Wild Outings
The very first weekend we hiked in three miles to a camping site. We camped in a cabin called Blue Mussel – the beach it was located on was covered in barnacles and blue mussels. We tried to go camping after that but the weather would often get in our way. One time we set up our tents on a beach area only to have to quickly break camp in the middle of the night when the tide came in earlier than we had expected. Some of our other outings included:
- Hiking Perseverance Trail twice — and there was a really good reason they gave it that name
- Hiking halfway up Mt. Roberts to a big wooden cross
- Hiking to the top of Mt Juneau (3500 feet)
- Camping on Eagle Beach
- Hiking another random trail
- Hiking to the Mendenhall Glacier and through the Mendenhall Glacier Ice Cave
- Hiking the East Glacier trail (a trail through the mountain on the East side of the glacier)
- I ran the “Only Fools Run at Midnight” 5K at midnight on the longest day of the year — the sun never fully went down!
The Adventure Continues
During my time in Juneau I certainly learned a lot about myself. At the end of project, the Cru staff asked everyone to think of a theme for our personal summer and mine was “graceful grace”. I went into project hating grace. I held (and sometimes still hold) myself to a standard of perfection; and if I’m meeting that standard, I shouldn’t need grace. The Lord showed me this summer that I have been living in His grace for some time now without realizing it. Living in His grace was and is the only way I was able to grow in my relationship with Him. And, if I want to teach others about Him, then I need to continue living deep in that grace. The easiest way to continue growing and teaching about Him? Quit resisting and gracefully accept His grace.
I definitely feel closer to the Lord after project. I really felt the Lord’s call to ministry this summer and plan to pursue that with my future. I was able to be emcee for Cru over the summer, giving me experience to continue as one of two emcees at Cru UCF this school year. This summer gave me a glimpse of the grandeur of nature outside of the places I’ve seen before. I definitely feel a call to adventure I’ve never felt before. More than anything, though, after this summer, I feel a strong call to spread the gospel wherever the Lord calls me.
This was a very exhilarating, quite difficult and yet incredibly rich summer experience for Becca. We asked her to share her stories with all of you, along with her photos.
It’s been exciting to see God work so clearly in her life, and we look forward to seeing how God’s Call to ministry comes to fruition in her life. Please join us in praying for God to lead loudly in Becca’s life, helping her grow closer to Him. Thank you again for your prayers and love and financial support that helped Becca participate in this missions project.
The Kelloggs 