Photo Update!
Finally an Update!!!
A lot has gone on since I last filled everyone in on what I’ve been doing and how Safe Haven’s been. The organization as a whole is doing great! More kids than ever are attending SHAC and it’s so encouraging to see them all enjoying what we’ve put into making this program what it is today. This next week will be spring break for the kids, and also a much-needed break for the staff as well!
This weekend, all of us at the church house (Asa, Dilly, and myself) are going to be cleaning up a bit to prepare for two new housemates! They’ll be moving in on April 1st, and the house definitely needs some good ol’ spring cleaning.
About a month ago, a team of around 40 students from Christopher Newport University (in Newport News, VA) came up to spend their spring break serving others in Newark! I was a bit skeptical at first, thinking that having that many people here would make our program chaotic and, as a result, do more against us than for us. My skepticism was almost immediately put to rest, as I began to meet all the college students and experience how willing they were to serve and do whatever it took to help. All of us here at Safe Haven decided it would be a great idea if we planned a “spirit week” of sorts for the CNU team to take control of, and take control they did! That week ended up being my and the ministry’s best week since I’ve been here. The team was fantastic, and the kids all adored them! It was a great week, and the group left a lasting impact on all of us, staff and kids alike. Some professional photos can be found here: http://www.theinspireddesignblog.com/2010/03/05/newark-2/
Well, unfortunately, that’s all I’ve got for now. Hopefully during this next week I’ll get a chance to write a bit more about everything else that has gone on up here! Be on the lookout!
New Video!
Video!
It’s Been a While…
Let me start off this overdue blog post by saying that things have gotten quite busy up here in Newark! SHAC (Safe Haven After Class) is off to a great start, and I’m learning a lot being a leader for a group of 3rd and 4th graders. The kids are awesome, and we couldn’t ask for a better staff. It’s getting COLD up here, but I love it! I’ll try to keep a consistent once-a-week schedule with my blog, but I can’t make any promises.
First Week of SHAC!
I know it’s been a while since my last entry, but I’ve been rather busy! SHAC started yesterday, and it was a lot of fun! It was great to get to work with lots of kids from the community (Kindergarten-5th Grade), and my group (2nd Grade) were really cooperative and seemed to really enjoy the program. Yesterday, Danny and I talked over how to update the Safe Haven website and how to set up blogs for all the SHAC kids. The main issue here is: everything is done on Mac, and I have a PC. It’s proving to be a challenge to translate from Mac to PC, but so far so good. I’ll try to update more often!
Over a Week In Newark!
So it’s my second Sunday in Newark, and the pace is starting to pick up! We interns start training tomorrow for a week, and then the SHAC program starts the following Monday, October 5. The weather’s getting colder, and we’ve had cloudy skies for the past couple of days. Hopefully I’ll have an opportunity to take some more pictures and post them soon!
Almost A Week!
So it’s been almost a week since I arrived here in Newark, and I have to admit, I’m not nearly as homesick as I thought I would be. I mean, sure I miss everyone back home and everything, but I guess I’ve finally realized that I need to do my own thing and be independent. It’s great up here, and I love my roommates (or housemates, whichever you prefer), and everything seems to be running smoothly! We (my fellow interns and I) started training high school students today. They will be working for us at SHAC (Safe Haven After Class, I believe it stands for), and today we discussed rules and regulations and how to reward and punish the kids (K-5) that will be attending SHAC starting October 5. The internet’s still really slow (one of my roommates is re-activating his internet, so our house will have it’s own network hopefully before the week’s over), but I’ll continue to blog every so often!
First Sunday Away…
It’s finally my first Sunday away from home and everything, and it’s so weird not being with all my friends and family! Being independent has its pro’s and con’s, mainly being that you get to do what you think is the right thing to do at the cost of not being with or around friends and people you love. But I’m sure that this forthcoming year is going to be full of great life experiences that I wouldn’t get anywhere else but in Newark!
First Day in the Brick City
So I arrived in Newark yesterday mid-afternoon, and immediately all my original thoughts of what Newark would be like melted away. The people (that I’ve met) in the house where I live are awesome, and the church is beautiful! Today I believe I’m going to start work and also put some finishing touches on my room!
