The Long-Awaited Update Post

OKAY... SO I WROTE THIS A WHILE AGO AND MUST HAVE PRESSED "SAVE" INSTEAD OF "PUBLISH" SO I'M SORRY IT'S SO EXTREMELY DELAYED! I JUST FOUND IT AND FIGURED, 'BETTER LATE THAN NEVER,' RIGHT?

I know this update is way overdue, seeing as it is now June, and I returned from my trip over two months ago. I apologize for the tardiness; school and all the extracurriculars and details of university life took over and I was amidst a crazy whirlwind of millions of details upon my return after the mission trip. An update just didn't end up going out, even though I had been meaning to (writing a trip summary and follow up has been on my to do list literally for months). So here goes...

We spent the week working at the Jamaica Christian School for the Deaf (JCSD) and the Blossom Garden Home for Children playing with children, loving on them, learning their stories, as well as doing some construction work, and even enjoying a bit of the muggy March weather by the pool or on the beach, one of the days. That's the quick summary. A little more in depth, I'll comment on a few specific aspects of the trip:

Mission Discovery team: This team consisted of people from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and 12 others who came from my school, Whitworth. The blend of Believers was amazing: old and young (ages ranged from around 12-80 years), skilled and unskilled, and accents from all over North America. With my fellow Whitworthians, we embarked on a week-long service trip that presented us with the time to meet others from our school with who we normally wouldn't have made contact, get know one another, and also develop existing relationships. We stayed in a nice hotel. Unlike any other mission trip I have ever been on. We felt pampered! It had a with a pool, the service from the staff was great, the food very yummy and filling, and the grounds provided us with many hours of fun times, but also nice areas to escape to for quiet times/devotional and introspective reflections, small groups, and bonding with other members of our team

JCSD: at the School for the Deaf, as far as manual labor goes, we helped lay a concrete foundation for an addition to the new building that is providing better classrooms for the students (and their teachers!). We also painted the new building. As for the children, we had a blast loving on them, playing games, and being creative/inventive with our communicational efforts! They are adorable, and it was awesome to get to know the stories of some of these kids, and the life that they make the best of, in a culture where deaf people are shunned or looked upon as less than human. The JCSD endeavors to educate and equip these students with tools to succeed in life!

Blossom Garden (BG) children's home: this was an experience that tugged on our heartstrings on so many levels. On our visits to what most of privileged North Americans would title an "orphanage," I tried to step away from the stereotypical orphanage visits that I have taken part in so many times before- in Poland, Chile, Costa Rica, Mexico, and most recently, South Africa. Though I did spend plenty of time playing with kids, loving on babies, changing plenty of diapers and helping bathe and feed the children, I also took the opportunity to converse with many of the workers and volunteers at BG. I had many interesting and enlightening conversations with the "mamas" who are there on a daily basis for their shifts of cleaning & feeding children, changing sheets, doing laundry and dishes, among other chores. I was blessed to have a conversation with the assistant administrator, who apprised me on the procedure and goings on when it comes to the foster care and adoption systems in Jamaica.

What I took away with me from Jamaica:
If I had to sum up this week-long service trip with one key thought or lesson, it would be concerning the youth of developing countries/areas in need. I feel like this trip helped me realize I have possibly had my fill of group-organized mission trips (I have tired of the cookie-cutter format for how a mission trip is to be run, advantages and/or disadvantages that there may be in this approach). But it was my encounters with the staff members at Blossom that really got my cogs turning. I began thinking more about what happens to the orphaned children after they are too old to stay at the ever-overflowing orphanage/care providing facilities (which is usually around age 12-14). As I have observed in other countries, and most specifically with the information that I gleaned from visiting orphanages in South Africa this past January, these children typically become abandoned street urchins, which promulgates the perpetual system of crime and violence. This is the reason that developing countries, or even in our own North American cities, we label youth with titles such as "troubled." This cyclical pattern can be deterred though, I believe, if the proper programs are implemented, to care for the otherwise 'abandoned youth.' I would love to see mission groups from the U.S. or other well-to-do countries visit developing areas with the intent to make an impact on the youth. Yes, it is important to continue supporting orphanages (providing funding, supplies, and the occasional visit). I mean, who doesn't love holding babies and playing with adorable little black children (do you have the cliché image in mind)? But there is only so much that can be done by holding a baby (not to mention the detrimental impact that may be left on these children, as they see countless white people come and go, not really understanding the 'why' behind the visits). My idea: why can't wealthy Americans invest their time, monies, and efforts in establishing programs that employ teens, engage them in community service/volunteerism, activism for a cause- which can provide them with a means and purpose for life, and an opportunity to get off the streets. There is better life out there than criminal activity, just trying to survive! Those are my thoughts for now.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
Please check out some of my photos from the trip (below follow links to my public albums on Facebook):
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=162002&id=507112029&l=7f20ef139c
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=161992&id=507112029&l=f7ad4161a6