Friday, August 6, 2010
Back in the US of A!
We're back! Just landed in Chicago (1 min early)! Customs, Belvedere Oasis, & straight to Madison! ETA: 6pm! We'll keep u updated!
Leaving Europe in 6 minutes...
We're officially coming home! We're feeling very excited to see family & loved ones after nearly 3 weeks apart, but also a little bitter sweet about leaving Europe for good. Our team saw flights to Bucharest in both Budapest & London airports, each time I heard a chorus of cries to sneak on that plane (we miss you our Craiova Romaniacs!). Still, we are looking so much forward to the hugs when we arrive in Madison and our own beds too (it will be 1am Budapest time when we arrive in town, we got up at 5am this morn after a few hours of sleep - needless to say, we're tired, in more ways than one).
Ok, about to pull back from the terminal... better post and turn off the phone.
We love you guys. Should be in Chicago on time at 2:15pm, and in Madison between 5:30-6:30pm!
See you then!
Goodbye Europe, goodbye Romania! We'll be back!
-Lief & the team
Ok, about to pull back from the terminal... better post and turn off the phone.
We love you guys. Should be in Chicago on time at 2:15pm, and in Madison between 5:30-6:30pm!
See you then!
Goodbye Europe, goodbye Romania! We'll be back!
-Lief & the team
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Almost Home
Zack here, and its almost time to leave for home! John, Kevin and I are the last ones up, about to take a little snooze before we have to jump on a bus at 530 to get to the airport. fun stuff! See you all soon!! Oh, by the way, today was a great day, filled with debrief, sight seeing, some shopping, and just having fun with eachother, enjoying the final day of the trip. This blog took super long to type... the keyboard at this hostel is crazy! All of the symbols are mixed up, the z and the y key are opposites, and there is a random í button instead of the left shift key. woah.
anyways, goodnight all! see you soon!
anyways, goodnight all! see you soon!
Last day in Budapest
Hey everyone! Jenna and Hailey here writing this post from the Baroque hostel in Budapest. We arrived yesterday around 10 am on the overnight train, and it's our second and final day here in Budapest for debriefing. Yesterday the team debriefed in a large park near a castle, and later we toured a basilica and climbed a citadel for some more good discussions and spectacular views. On the top of the citadel we had a really great talk, took a bajillion pictures, and sang a pretty good chorus of "lean on me" and "amazing grace". We've been doing a lot of walking and sightseeing around this beautiful city, as well as talking through some really incredible experiences from camp. Unfortunately Paul had to leave early this morning for a wedding back home--we're already missing him! Last night we had an amazing dinner on a boat on the river and ate some traditional Hungarian goulash (our favorite), and this morning breakfast was great at the hostel too (we are all loving the Mr. Choco chocolate spread.) We have some big plans for today as well: first a tour of a castle, later some serious debriefing, and then a much-needed trip to the hot springs.
Debrief has been awesome. Pray that we would further process everything that has been happening and enjoy our last day in the beautiful city together.
Shout Outs:
From Paul:
Lief - not enought pillow talk on this trip
Kev-you have good mustic taste even though I only liked 1/5 of your top five.
Zack-glad I could share your first public pee in Budapest w/ you...that sounds weird, sorry. Oh, and practice chess.
John- my roommate taped shark week, come over.
Hunter- I will be patiently waiting until you have a beard, so I can pull on it every 5 minutes like you did to me.
Eric-please don't publish that one pic with the capris. Much appreciated.
Larry- sorry I called you old so many times-I think of you as a fine wine, better w/ age.
Pat-Thanks for being my mom away from mom. Might want to bring more vitamin c next year...
Jenna- sorry, my shoulder is so boney, maybe try Liefs next time, he has a bit more padding.
Megan-thanks again for always calling me Pablo.
Sheri-I want a WDOH bottle. Hope you get the house!
Hailey-Whens the engagement party?
Cassidy- Sorry if I asked "are you getting some good shots?" too many times.
Kati- Kati BOO
Taylor- I can't believe it took you so long to figure out how weird I am. You should really give Tommy Boy [or Tom Boy] another try.
April- it was cool to see you love on those girls that your mom loves so much.
Malachi- good being small group buddies w/ you. I agree w/ Oana, you should move to Craiova. PS you are sleep talking right now, creepy.
Tess-nice job MCing at camp. Feel free to use the duck joke next year. You know you loved it.
Elli- You have an awesome voice, keep rockin it, girl.
Nikki-thanks for taking care of everybody. Sorry that I was frantically yelling for you that one time when you had [unbeknownst to me] already started caring for the victim.
Debrief has been awesome. Pray that we would further process everything that has been happening and enjoy our last day in the beautiful city together.
Shout Outs:
From Paul:
Lief - not enought pillow talk on this trip
Kev-you have good mustic taste even though I only liked 1/5 of your top five.
Zack-glad I could share your first public pee in Budapest w/ you...that sounds weird, sorry. Oh, and practice chess.
John- my roommate taped shark week, come over.
Hunter- I will be patiently waiting until you have a beard, so I can pull on it every 5 minutes like you did to me.
Eric-please don't publish that one pic with the capris. Much appreciated.
Larry- sorry I called you old so many times-I think of you as a fine wine, better w/ age.
Pat-Thanks for being my mom away from mom. Might want to bring more vitamin c next year...
Jenna- sorry, my shoulder is so boney, maybe try Liefs next time, he has a bit more padding.
Megan-thanks again for always calling me Pablo.
Sheri-I want a WDOH bottle. Hope you get the house!
Hailey-Whens the engagement party?
Cassidy- Sorry if I asked "are you getting some good shots?" too many times.
Kati- Kati BOO
Taylor- I can't believe it took you so long to figure out how weird I am. You should really give Tommy Boy [or Tom Boy] another try.
April- it was cool to see you love on those girls that your mom loves so much.
Malachi- good being small group buddies w/ you. I agree w/ Oana, you should move to Craiova. PS you are sleep talking right now, creepy.
Tess-nice job MCing at camp. Feel free to use the duck joke next year. You know you loved it.
Elli- You have an awesome voice, keep rockin it, girl.
Nikki-thanks for taking care of everybody. Sorry that I was frantically yelling for you that one time when you had [unbeknownst to me] already started caring for the victim.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Saying Goodbye
Here's the blog from yesterday:
Hello from somewhere in the Romanian countryside! Tess and Kevin here reporting live from the train to Bucharest among pre-industrial farms and an army of corn marching through the field. Since our last blog, so much has happened. Camp ended on a very high note. The last night was so impactful for everyone. Lief and Daniel talked about the sacrifice of the cross and how that was the ultimate example of grace. Then we had the chance to experience a group performance demonstrating the power of Christ to set us free. It was a drama along with the song “Set Me Free” by Casting Crowns. Malachi, Hunter, and Elli and the rest of the team did an amazing job, and it was evident that all of the campers were very moved. The reality of God’s love was really driven home for the Romanians when Daniel read a “letter from God,” detailing a fuller picture of his love for all of us. It was all in Romanian, which was even more poignant. There was not a dry eye in the room. After that, we split up into our small groups and did something we have never done in Romania before: foot washing. All of the leaders washed the students’ feet and the whole small group prayed for the individual. Then the leader’s feet were washed by the students. This was such a great example of what we had been talking about all week, and everyone really was impacted. We then had our last night of small groups, and the discussions were amazing. Everyone opened up and was very vulnerable. A few students even accepted Christ into their hearts that night. It was amazing. We finished up the night with a huge bonfire and a few of us even stayed up all night. It was a great night, as it always is, filled with community and God’s love. The next day, it was time to say goodbye to camp. We packed up the buses and headed to a monastery in the next town f or a little sightseeing. At the monastery, they had a very strict dress code, where no pants above the knees or shirts without sleeves were allowed. Quite a few of the campers, both boys and girls, had to wear the skirts the monastery provided to people wearing shorts. After the monastery, we parted our ways with the campers. It wasn’t a sad goodbye though, because we knew we would be seeing most of the campers in a few days back in Craiova.
The American team and the Romanian leadership team then headed to the city of Bran for camp stories & evaluation. It did take longer than we anticipated though, and we arrived around midnight. The next day we became tourists for a couple of hours and headed to the famous “Dracula’s Castle”. After a short tour, we headed back to the hotel to debrief for a couple of hours before lunch. We talked about ways we had seen God work throughout the week and things that were good and bad about the camp. We then crammed all 36 people into two vans and made our way back to Craiova. We all slept very well that night and were excited for the next day.
This was the first year we were able to go back to Craiova after camp, and it was probably one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. In our extra day in Craiova, we had the chance to visit the Gypsy market, do more debrief, and the most important part: the reunion. Every year after camp, all of the campers from Craiova and the church get together one night just to reminisce about camp and to be together one last time. It was such a privilege to be a part of this event that we usually miss by leaving straight from camp to go home. We went to the park for a few hours to play games and socialize. Then we all went back to the church. It was really great getting to show the campers where the church is, and encouraging them to go there on Sundays and for Saturday night youth group. There, we played games, watched a slideshow of pictures from camp, and sang some songs that were camp favorites during the week. Then came the most important part of the evening: Daniel invited the campers up to share about how camp impacted their lives and what they got out of it. It was so encouraging to see all of the campers get up and be so honest and open about how much camp changed their lives. Daniel later said that he was shocked by the amount of campers who decided to share. It became certain that this camp had had a profound, meaningful impact on many of their lives. It was a great time, and went very late into the night. Then we spent our last night in Craiova at our host families’, and woke up early this morning to spend a final few hours at the church before we headed to the train station. We talked in a group about the pros and cons about camp, and planned a little for future years. Then we packed up and headed to the train station to say goodbye. Every year it is so hard to say goodbye to the people you have been with 24/7 for the past couple of weeks and this year was no exception. After lots of tears and hugs, we boarded the train headed for Bucharest. We will have a layover there for two hours (grabbing dinner and saying goodbye to one of our friends there) and then head out on our overnight train to Budapest for team debrief and preparations for reentry to back home.
We are sad to be leaving so soon, but it’s crazy to know we’ll be home in three days! Thank you for all of your love and support. Until then, la revadere!
Shout Outs:
The Team to our friends in Craiova: It’s been like two hours since we said goodbye, but we miss you already! :( We love you all. Thank you for an amazing experience. We are blessed to be part of your community. (Lief says: if you notice you’re missing a few students – we may have successfully stuffed a few of them in our checked bags. We’ll let you know as soon as we can confirm.)
Megan to Emilia: Write down your address so we can find you in Budapest!
Anne and Audra: Mom says I love you and miss you. We’ve decided to extend our stay for another couple weeks. Or months…
Kevin to Parents: Hi. I love you.
Andi & Leann: Just you wait, l’ve signed you up for next year. Mwahahaha. We’re moving our Life Group to Romania! Da be da!
Tavalodet Mobarak! Man dar Romania zendegi bekonam. Fekr mikonam that I have forgotten every language but Romaneshte. Ci che daca!
Kree, Shg, Meggles & Kate the Great: I miss you guys and can’t wait to share my experiences with you. Now I’m more confused than ever: Scotland or Romania? Fuorte bine!
Taylor to The Fam: I miss you all! I’ve taken over 1000 pics and there’s more to come. What is my favorite dinner?
Nikki to mom and dad: You thought falling asleep listening to the latin beat in Costa Rica was fun, try gypsy music! Can’t wait to see you! ILY! Dad- Have an amazing trip to the Quetico!
Johnny to Thomas: It’s been real out here man, I taught my small group to be young and unashamed, the 1-1-6 is spreading!!! We finna get some grub right when I get back…I need a burrito!!
Mere Cat to my Nutter Butter: Shnuckumms, you are on my mind every second of every minute, my heart bursts with the mere thought of your cute little ears so perfectly and symmetrically placed on that head of yours. Your eyes are like beautiful almonds, but not the roasted kind – the natural kind – the kind that has not ever been tainted by human touch. Your hair, like the rough grasses of the Scottish meadow – a fitting home for gophers and field mice, your smell, a pleasing aroma to my nostrils, particularly after a morning of hoops. Oh how I miss this odor. You know its true love, my Baby Cakes, when I think of your armpits as much as I do – and I really, really do miss your armpits. Love. Love…. love.
Lief to Emi: I’m almost home to you – I miss you. The Romanians are all hoping to meet you soon – and the 7 we saw in Feb asked “where is Emily?!” I am hoping I got this head infection all cleared up by Friday, cause I hear it’s contagious. You are beautiful – see you Friday!
Sheri to Bradley: Only three more days until I can run in your arms at the airport. :) I am excited! Although it is really difficult to leave … the goodbyes to our Romanian friends were so hard. They really want us both to come next year. :) See you soon hunny. Xoxox Love you.
Sheri to her family: Hey everyone! I miss you all so much. I hope you have fun preparing for the Willow! :) Love you!
Zack to Luke and Noah—Three more wake ups guys!!! I miss you guys!
Zack to T-I can’t believe you crushed everyone in the Euchre tournament! I should be practicing eh? Hah
Elli to dad: Thanks for not letting Annie destroy my room. I am glad Pumpkin is getting rid of rodents. Hehe. Too bad Alberto C won the tour I wanted Andy S to win But they are both good riders.
Tess to the fam: Miss you guys! See you in 3 days!
Hello from somewhere in the Romanian countryside! Tess and Kevin here reporting live from the train to Bucharest among pre-industrial farms and an army of corn marching through the field. Since our last blog, so much has happened. Camp ended on a very high note. The last night was so impactful for everyone. Lief and Daniel talked about the sacrifice of the cross and how that was the ultimate example of grace. Then we had the chance to experience a group performance demonstrating the power of Christ to set us free. It was a drama along with the song “Set Me Free” by Casting Crowns. Malachi, Hunter, and Elli and the rest of the team did an amazing job, and it was evident that all of the campers were very moved. The reality of God’s love was really driven home for the Romanians when Daniel read a “letter from God,” detailing a fuller picture of his love for all of us. It was all in Romanian, which was even more poignant. There was not a dry eye in the room. After that, we split up into our small groups and did something we have never done in Romania before: foot washing. All of the leaders washed the students’ feet and the whole small group prayed for the individual. Then the leader’s feet were washed by the students. This was such a great example of what we had been talking about all week, and everyone really was impacted. We then had our last night of small groups, and the discussions were amazing. Everyone opened up and was very vulnerable. A few students even accepted Christ into their hearts that night. It was amazing. We finished up the night with a huge bonfire and a few of us even stayed up all night. It was a great night, as it always is, filled with community and God’s love. The next day, it was time to say goodbye to camp. We packed up the buses and headed to a monastery in the next town f or a little sightseeing. At the monastery, they had a very strict dress code, where no pants above the knees or shirts without sleeves were allowed. Quite a few of the campers, both boys and girls, had to wear the skirts the monastery provided to people wearing shorts. After the monastery, we parted our ways with the campers. It wasn’t a sad goodbye though, because we knew we would be seeing most of the campers in a few days back in Craiova.
The American team and the Romanian leadership team then headed to the city of Bran for camp stories & evaluation. It did take longer than we anticipated though, and we arrived around midnight. The next day we became tourists for a couple of hours and headed to the famous “Dracula’s Castle”. After a short tour, we headed back to the hotel to debrief for a couple of hours before lunch. We talked about ways we had seen God work throughout the week and things that were good and bad about the camp. We then crammed all 36 people into two vans and made our way back to Craiova. We all slept very well that night and were excited for the next day.
This was the first year we were able to go back to Craiova after camp, and it was probably one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. In our extra day in Craiova, we had the chance to visit the Gypsy market, do more debrief, and the most important part: the reunion. Every year after camp, all of the campers from Craiova and the church get together one night just to reminisce about camp and to be together one last time. It was such a privilege to be a part of this event that we usually miss by leaving straight from camp to go home. We went to the park for a few hours to play games and socialize. Then we all went back to the church. It was really great getting to show the campers where the church is, and encouraging them to go there on Sundays and for Saturday night youth group. There, we played games, watched a slideshow of pictures from camp, and sang some songs that were camp favorites during the week. Then came the most important part of the evening: Daniel invited the campers up to share about how camp impacted their lives and what they got out of it. It was so encouraging to see all of the campers get up and be so honest and open about how much camp changed their lives. Daniel later said that he was shocked by the amount of campers who decided to share. It became certain that this camp had had a profound, meaningful impact on many of their lives. It was a great time, and went very late into the night. Then we spent our last night in Craiova at our host families’, and woke up early this morning to spend a final few hours at the church before we headed to the train station. We talked in a group about the pros and cons about camp, and planned a little for future years. Then we packed up and headed to the train station to say goodbye. Every year it is so hard to say goodbye to the people you have been with 24/7 for the past couple of weeks and this year was no exception. After lots of tears and hugs, we boarded the train headed for Bucharest. We will have a layover there for two hours (grabbing dinner and saying goodbye to one of our friends there) and then head out on our overnight train to Budapest for team debrief and preparations for reentry to back home.
We are sad to be leaving so soon, but it’s crazy to know we’ll be home in three days! Thank you for all of your love and support. Until then, la revadere!
Shout Outs:
The Team to our friends in Craiova: It’s been like two hours since we said goodbye, but we miss you already! :( We love you all. Thank you for an amazing experience. We are blessed to be part of your community. (Lief says: if you notice you’re missing a few students – we may have successfully stuffed a few of them in our checked bags. We’ll let you know as soon as we can confirm.)
Megan to Emilia: Write down your address so we can find you in Budapest!
Anne and Audra: Mom says I love you and miss you. We’ve decided to extend our stay for another couple weeks. Or months…
Kevin to Parents: Hi. I love you.
Andi & Leann: Just you wait, l’ve signed you up for next year. Mwahahaha. We’re moving our Life Group to Romania! Da be da!
Tavalodet Mobarak! Man dar Romania zendegi bekonam. Fekr mikonam that I have forgotten every language but Romaneshte. Ci che daca!
Kree, Shg, Meggles & Kate the Great: I miss you guys and can’t wait to share my experiences with you. Now I’m more confused than ever: Scotland or Romania? Fuorte bine!
Taylor to The Fam: I miss you all! I’ve taken over 1000 pics and there’s more to come. What is my favorite dinner?
Nikki to mom and dad: You thought falling asleep listening to the latin beat in Costa Rica was fun, try gypsy music! Can’t wait to see you! ILY! Dad- Have an amazing trip to the Quetico!
Johnny to Thomas: It’s been real out here man, I taught my small group to be young and unashamed, the 1-1-6 is spreading!!! We finna get some grub right when I get back…I need a burrito!!
Mere Cat to my Nutter Butter: Shnuckumms, you are on my mind every second of every minute, my heart bursts with the mere thought of your cute little ears so perfectly and symmetrically placed on that head of yours. Your eyes are like beautiful almonds, but not the roasted kind – the natural kind – the kind that has not ever been tainted by human touch. Your hair, like the rough grasses of the Scottish meadow – a fitting home for gophers and field mice, your smell, a pleasing aroma to my nostrils, particularly after a morning of hoops. Oh how I miss this odor. You know its true love, my Baby Cakes, when I think of your armpits as much as I do – and I really, really do miss your armpits. Love. Love…. love.
Lief to Emi: I’m almost home to you – I miss you. The Romanians are all hoping to meet you soon – and the 7 we saw in Feb asked “where is Emily?!” I am hoping I got this head infection all cleared up by Friday, cause I hear it’s contagious. You are beautiful – see you Friday!
Sheri to Bradley: Only three more days until I can run in your arms at the airport. :) I am excited! Although it is really difficult to leave … the goodbyes to our Romanian friends were so hard. They really want us both to come next year. :) See you soon hunny. Xoxox Love you.
Sheri to her family: Hey everyone! I miss you all so much. I hope you have fun preparing for the Willow! :) Love you!
Zack to Luke and Noah—Three more wake ups guys!!! I miss you guys!
Zack to T-I can’t believe you crushed everyone in the Euchre tournament! I should be practicing eh? Hah
Elli to dad: Thanks for not letting Annie destroy my room. I am glad Pumpkin is getting rid of rodents. Hehe. Too bad Alberto C won the tour I wanted Andy S to win But they are both good riders.
Tess to the fam: Miss you guys! See you in 3 days!
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Word from the trainfront!!! (Direct from the Carpathian Mtns in Romania!)
It's the team with a short update from the train to Hungary. We actually have a long and well-written post that we've been trying to update the blog with for the past days. It should be up within 12 hrs - when I'm not updating from my iPhone. For now, it's 9:30pm & we've been on our sleeper car celebrating the trip & God's work through a little party on the tracks! The sun is finally set & the Carpathian Mtn's are 10 shades of grey & green as we slowly climb them. Bedtime is coming soon. For many of us, our 1st night of 6+ hrs of sleep in a while... and it will be almost 12 hrs of beautiful "rock me to sleep" train slumber. The last few days have been incredible & at our camp reunion we heard stories of lifechange from campers and leaders. Moving... amazing. God is so good. More on this later. Pray for a well deserved sleep and a productive debrief over the next 2 days. I'm SO Proud of this team. Wow! Words can't describe the ways God has used them this week. I can't wait to share more! For now, noapte buna! We'll miss you Romania! -Lief
A Message From The Home Front
Hey Family, Friends, and Supporters,
Since the team has not been able to blog recently, we thought that we would remind you of their schedule.
Their last day of camp was Saturday, July 31. They have now entered the whirwind of debriefing, stories, goodbyes and travel. Since they are no longer at camp their internet access may no longer be as consistent, but we are still able to get in touch with each other for emergency situations. We can't wait to hear their stories when they are able to fully update us!
Lief did let the church staff know that the team is doing well and he is very impressed with the way the students are serving.
Thanks for all your support, prayers and encouragment for the team!
From Angie (High School Admin) and Kristen (Impact Admin)
Since the team has not been able to blog recently, we thought that we would remind you of their schedule.
Their last day of camp was Saturday, July 31. They have now entered the whirwind of debriefing, stories, goodbyes and travel. Since they are no longer at camp their internet access may no longer be as consistent, but we are still able to get in touch with each other for emergency situations. We can't wait to hear their stories when they are able to fully update us!
Lief did let the church staff know that the team is doing well and he is very impressed with the way the students are serving.
Thanks for all your support, prayers and encouragment for the team!
From Angie (High School Admin) and Kristen (Impact Admin)
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