What you will find in this page
1. Kudos to those who contributed a great deal to this trip
2. An article from the Fresno Bee about churches and their service projectects including ours.
3. An article including pros and cons by pastor Robert
4. Testimonials
5. Cost Breakdown
6. Link to pictures of the trip
Thank You! Thank You!
For Providing Materials & Expertise
Valley Iron metal at a more than reasonable rate and for your helpful staff
3114 S Cherry Ave
Fresno, CA 93706
(559) 485-3900
United Rentals special staff who went out of their way for us, quality equipment and for saving us money
Lowes for providing our cardboard (temporary housing)
Belmont Nursery high quality plants and flowers
7730 E Belmont Ave
Fresno, CA 93727
(559) 255-6860
CJS Plumbing (Carl Beard was most helpful in lending his tools and getting heavy equipment to and from the site.)
9290 Prototype Dr
Reno, NV 89521
(775) 826-7548
For Providing Meals & Services
CCC College (Joe and the Kitchen crew)-
Rocc Church-
Cornerstone Church (Youth Pastor _____)-
Valley Christian Center-
La Promesa Church-
New Hope Community Church-
For Providing Financially
For going brilliantly beyond the call of duty
Bill Eccles
Lyndsie Eccles
Robert Puente
Ceclil Sperlock
Fresno Bee Article
Church youth find their mission field in the Valley.Friday, Apr. 10, 2009
By Ron Orozco / The Fresno Bee
Out of school this week for spring break, students representing their church youth groups again helped people in need -- just a little closer to home.
In past years, many central San Joaquin Valley churches have sent groups with junior high, high school and college students to do work in Mexico during Christian Holy Week.
But about 50 Valley churches this year nixed those plans -- concerned about their youth's safety -- after the U.S. State Department issued a Feb. 20 warning about increasing violence from Mexican drug cartels.
"If parents perceive it's a danger, it's worth addressing," says Robert Hutchinson, youth pastor at New Hope Community Church in Clovis.
Many churches came up with Plan B: To revisit Fresno County poverty areas where they're involved in existing ministries.
One plan, dubbed "Break Away," included work at Lanare Community Center in Riverdale, Orange Cove Christian Center, Fresno Interdenominational Refugee Ministries, and 11 school sites.
"You don't have to travel to Mexico to see a neighbor's needs," says Artie Padilla, development director of Every Neighborhood Partnership, a Fresno-based organization that enlists schools and faith-based groups to work together to address the needs of at-risk neighborhoods. "Serving your own community is just as important."
More than 550 Valley youth signed up for Break Away, mainly from Peoples Church, New Covenant Community Church, Hope Lutheran Church, Valley Christian Center and Northeast Assembly of God. And the total nearly doubled to 1,100 when one of the Sacramento area's largest churches, Bayside Church of Granite Bay, and Christ Community Church in Carmichael, added 540 more students.
Base camp was set up at Peoples Church and Fresno Christian Schools, where nearly 70 tents served as the students' living quarters. The students left for their work sites at 9 a.m. daily -- and returned between 5-6 p.m. The camp breaks today, in time for students to return home for Easter.
New Covenant Community Church members remodeled the bathroom and offered the vacation Bible school program at a bilingual congregation in southwest Fresno, Centro Cristiano Restauracion -- and for good reason. Centro Cristiano's co-pastor, Refugio Pantoja, has helped New Covenant establish contacts for its Mexico mission projects.
Jaime Smith, 23, a graduate student in Fresno State's deaf education program, coordinated the vacation Bible school program at Centro Cristiano, but couldn't immediately put aside Mexico, where the church has worked 14 previous spring breaks.
"It's kind of tough because going to Mexico this time of year is on our minds," she says. "We decided God wanted to protect us, and we can do ministry anywhere."
Pantoja says it meant a lot that New Covenant was helping Centro Cristiano, which, on a good day, has 50 congregants, but lacks the resources to do some projects.
"For us, it's a lot of relief from stress," he says. "They offer us spiritual and financial help."
About 15 Bayside students were busy landscaping Restoration Christian Outreach Center's administration offices at Olive Avenue and Mariposa Street. When their digging revealed a huge tree stump, some saw a Bible study in the making.
"It was really deep, so we called for a tow truck," says Kim Jacobson, Bayside's global outreach director. "We prayed God would help move it. The roots seemed to represent the deep sin in our lives."
Scott Shaull, 16, a student at Granite Bay High School, organized games and sports with the children at Jefferson Elementary School. But he says he enjoyed being part of a skit about how God created the world.
"I just want to make an impact and help kids out," he says. "I want to show kids who God is and how great he is."
Some Valley church youth groups came up with projects on their own.
New Hope Community Church and La Promisa, a Spanish-speaking congregation, decided to work together on a beautification project at California Christian College in southeast Fresno. Previously, New Hope went on Mexico mission trips with La Promisa members working mainly as translators.
This week, about 70 combined to install a wrought-iron fence, sprinklers and plant shrubbery at the college. While their counterparts slept in tents at Peoples Church, the New Hope and La Promisa workers slept in the college's dorms.
Hutchinson says, "I keep telling them that college students go to other parts of Mexico during spring break and make decisions they will regret the rest of their lives. But they can make a decision to do something that they will always remember and never regret making."
Testimonials
*From the President of CCC*
Thanks for choosing the "curb appeal" project at CCC last week. A lot of planning, hard work and money went into it. We really appreciate it.
The "Extreme Campus Makeover" really caught the eye of students, faculty-staff, guests and even the neighbors. I was working outside yesterday and three of them talked to me about it.
You could not have done anything that would have been more appreciated and made a bigger difference in eye appeal.
Having everyone on campus was a great blessing even apart from the work that was accomplished. A full chapel and cafeteria inspires me to work even harder to fill this place up with students. It will happen, I just don't know how soon.
Again thanks and God bless.
Wendell
Rob's Blog (Youth Mission 09)
This trip was one of the most challenging I have experienced in my seven years as a Youth Pastor. After the initial realization that a trip to Mexico would not be in the student's best interest this year I began my attempt to discern the will of God. What would God have us do instead? Their are many differences from last year's project to this; the economy, majority of the youths are younger, lack of travel, added insecurities, and so on. The decision to work at California Christian College came quickly after looking at a few projects in the valley. It was close, in need, worthy and "do-able". We began to make our plans accordingly. It was (and sill is) obvious that God is working at CCC. They were lacking only the time and resources to do what may have felt frivolous to them.
The first challenge I faced was communicating the change and selling the idea to the congregation. New Hope has been building houses, churches and relationships in Mexico for over a dozen years and it was not easy being the one to break the consistency of that healthy tradition. However the decision was confirmed several times though the "thank yous" of parents, the community around CCC, the students and the mere fact that so many other churches changed their plans as well. In fact I felt very blessed to have made the decision early enough to make our plans and fund raise. There was a heated debate among Youth Pastors at the network meeting a few weeks before Easter week. Some church leaders were upset that the Elders of their church had pulled the plug on their Mexico planning. Now they found themselves scrambling for a Mission project with purpose.
Some of the other challenges included material costs, late deliveries, lost tools, added tree pruning, broken tools, stolen money, motivation, fevers, and minimal skills. The students who attended included some fellows from a group home and Jr. High students who, at this point, I would not allow to attend another High School mission trip without a chaperon (save a few).
By far the biggest challenge was the leadership to student ratio. On most trips we operate on a 1 adult to 5-7 student ratio. Some mission trips have bean closer to 1 to 2. But this trip there were 8 brave leaders who made our best attempt to direct a pack of 65 down a Godly yet sweaty path. It was a bit discouraging though the whole experience trying to get parents, students and leaders alike to understand the need for commitment here. Student and parents found that since the trip was local they could easily break off for theater practice, athletics, Dr. Appointments or Birthdays. In the beginning I said we would not allow this because we were going to treat this no different than any other missions week but soon changed that conviction when the roster refused to grow. I found a lack of enthusiasm on the College age part. This group usually makes up near half the leadership but here attended only one. I suspect that when the adventure of travel disintegrated so did their interest. I was however approached by multiple adults who could invest a single day of leadership but found that unuseful due to the fact it would take at least that long to train them and get them antiquated to the group. I know many are concerned with their job security in our current financial climate and so I wonder if that contributed to an unwillingness to ask for a full week off? But The Lord strengthens those who are available to Him. He Multiplied two loaves and five fish to feed a multitude. I trust he found us eager to serve as well.
As the end of the week neared we bagan to see some of the first fruits sprouting from the generosity of the church and our labor. The project was taking shape and we could see the finish line, The campus was looking better and the community was taking notice, 65 students who were segregated according to class and race were now blended / even hugging, leaders had earned a level of respect by work ethic and diligence that some of the hardened hearts would listen, we were blessed to see some students who worked undaunted by fatiuge, some encouraged, some grew in maturity, I watched in amazement as kids who were shy and downtrotten lifted their heads in pride and began to walk anew down path out of their shells, I was heart healed as churches foreign to us welcomed us into their evening services with open arms and fed us without reservation, and perhaps the most rewarding harvest is the confession of almost every student of their personal need for a savior and a desire to serve Him. Said one one student from the group home lat Monday at regular youth service, "I believe I was saved last week and now I want to live a better life". -Stan This is a student I was ready to ask to go home after his rebellion the first day of the trip. Praise God that His patience is far greater than mine! Praise Him that while I was questioning and doubting He was busy working in these young hearts! And praise God for all of you who in some way contributed to the eternity of these individuals and those who will be blessed by the staff at CCC.
$$$ Rough Mission Costs $$$
Money Received ($12,200)
Pie Auction- $7600
Letters & Tuition- $2000
La Promesa- $650
Added Offerings- $500
Special Donations- ($1000 raised on site for tree service)
Youth Mission Budget- $1800
Return Pending from Valley Iron by Mail $299.68
Money Spent ($12,400)
Tree Trimming- $1200
Landscaping- $2200
Irrigation- $2650
Food $300
Iron Fencing- $3700 (-300 return pending)
Rentals and Fuel- $550
Tools- $500
T-Shirts- $800
Repairs- $500
Difference- $ -200
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