It has been a busy and eventful week in Lorain. We are on the bus on the way home. The students are delighted to have their cell phones back. As we approach Madison, here are some thoughts from some of the students.

This week has been so fabulishous and everybody in Ohio was so amazing and such a blessing to be around!!! Oh my llamas, all of the people on the team are so great!!! Thanks for all of your prayers and love and support!!!

I am so glad I got to be a part of this trip and that I was able to help someone in need even when it was hard. It was an amazing experience and I grew so much in all the ways (I’m ripped now). But in all honesty it was genuinely one of the best weeks of my life. Also I came up with a really good rhyme. It goes “yee yee skee skee this week was really good for me”. I just want to say thank you to God and everyone else who took part in making this happen. -Maddie A. P.S I miss my dog oh and my family

I just want to thank all of my family who got me to this point. The love and the support they provided was amazing! Although I am sad to leave the beautiful Lorain, I am extremely excited to feel the cold AC again, and of course to see my parents. Thank you for the amazing past week! This experience has given me many amazing tools/ skills that I will be able to use in the future oh and I also gained biceps 🙂 thanks and see you soon, Mom, Dad, Kylie, Heath grandma smith, grandpa smith, aunt Becky, uncle John, grandma Christy, and grandpa Ross! <3 Key

So happy God stretched me with the opportunity to be one of the leaders on this team and serve with this awesome team of students and leaders. Parents-you have many reasons to be proud of your kids. They did amazing this week sweating for the love of Jesus! And making the best of the HEAT and hard work. I highly recommend you seek out a chance to serve alongside your child. Terry

They said write anything I am thinking about. So I’m going to be honest. I am thinking about fast food that I want. I want a large dr pepper, ten piece nugget, and an Oreo mcflurry. – Emily d

Honestly, this was one of the best weeks of my life! I had so much fun connecting with the people on my crew and spending time with everyone on the team. I laughed so much, learned a ton, and formed relationships that will last a lifetime. God’s love for us was so, so visible in the actions and words of others, and I will miss the uplifting environment of this trip. Although the work was hard, it was definitely worth it, and the conversations we had with our homeowner were so encouraging and genuine. It will be hard to leave the people, but I can’t wait to get home for a nice shower, cool AC, and my clean bed:) -Gabi D.

Emily was a hoot the whole time -Lydia k

I learned so much about the community of Lorain, Ohio. I had such a fun time getting to know people around the town. Every day was a new adventure with new projects to be done. I truly enjoyed every moment 🙂 – Brooke W.

Throughout this week, I have grown so much. My relationships with the other people on the trip have grown so much and my relationship with God has become so much stronger. I am beyond blessed to have this opportunity to serve others as God’s hands and feet. In the community of Lorain I could see God’s love everywhere. Even through the hot and sweaty work, everyone was always there for each other and God gave every one of us the strength to push through and be his “pockets of heaven” spreading through the world. Such a great week serving! – Halle F

This has honestly been the best week of my life. I have met so many amazing humans with kind servant hearts. The community of Lorain was so amazing to experience. I have grown so many amazing relationships with people on the trip and with God. Knowing that we could all be God’s hands and feet this week was still rewarding and life changing. Getting to help some people in the community that necessarily couldn’t do the tasks necessary to fix up their homes really touched my heart and seeing the finished product of the work we did really just made me feel so lucky to have had the opportunity to help people in that community. I honestly wouldn’t trade this week for anything. I will never forget this experience. – Makae C

This experience taught me so much and I’m so thankful for the opportunity to serve on God’s mission. Thanks for the support everyone! Syd

And that’s a wrap.  30+ students and their faithful leaders have successfully completed  our mission trip to Ohio.  What was our mission?  That depends on the person.  For some, it was escape for a week from all the pressures of home.  For others, it was a chance to be with friends for a week.  For yet others it was a chance to serve and grow spiritually.  Whatever the reason, I am confident that 100% of us on the trip grew in some new way.  I encourage you to ask us questions about the trip, listen to our stories, and maybe give us a little space to catch up on rest in an air conditioned room.  Thank you for faithfully reading our blog this past week.  To hear more, please join us at our trip show and tell on Sunday, July 28 at 11:00 am at the Brader Way site.  Tom