Before I go into the mission trip overview, I’d like you to ‘meet’ the people who went!
Carol Hallead Linda(single student) Robyn Stuart, Bobby Averliz, David Evans, and Walt DeMoss(Mr. D)
Rebekah (Bekka) Schuerman(14)
Kara Schuerman(16)
Victoria Weardon(13)
Lydia Weardon(14) she’s adopted from a black country.
Bethany Weardon(16)
Maxine Stuart(13)
Wade Stuart(14)
Natalie Hallead(13)
Zachary (Zak) Hallead(15)
Marissa (elder Thai twin by 3mins)
Melanie (Mel) younger Thai twin.
Sarah S(13)
Kendra Inglis(13)
Charlotte Paulsson(13)
Myrrh (Thai, grandmother Chinese) (15)
Amelia Hampton(14)
Chris (curly permed hair) (15)
Bevan Potter(15)
Christina Evans(me! 14 and a half)
This is a survey of the Youth missions trip I went on from the 29th of June, till the 8th of July. Altogether 25 people went and it was a total success!! This is most likely going to be very long, so if you’re online then get off and read it on the page, or copy it to Word or something.
Dad ended up coming on the trip with me, so he got some good photo’s! So many other people had instant (or 2nd best) camera’s so there are tons of shots!! This Saturday is a get together to show all the photo’s and an opportunity for the Youth to share their experiences.
We traveled up at 8.30am, on Saturday, the 29th of June. There were five vehicles with people, luggage equipment in. They were mostly borrowed vehicles from people in the US for the summer or people at various churches. I went in a silver Carry Boy car with 8 other people Mrs. Hallead (driving), Bethany (front passenger), Victoria (middle section), Amelia (middle section), Lydia (back), Natalie (back) Myrrh (back) and Sarah (back). Lydia ended up changing into the journey. The 1st place we stopped was just 15mins into our journey at a petrol station. Bobby (the organizer from Balize with a Thai wife and 3yr old son called CJ) said that the truck he was driving was rattling, so they stopped to check it out. Checking it out took over half an hour!! Then they took it for a ‘test drive’ and were gone for a VERY long time!! Everyone just sat around talking making jokes. Everyone also went into the shop bought snacks etc.
After moving a few heavy bags to another truck, we eventually got on the road again. (On the road, on the road, I can’t wait to be on the rod again!!) American Candy was shared around by Amelia and various other people shared stuff like Pringles. I had brought 3 packets of Chips, 4 packets of skittles (2 sour, 2 normal) 2 packets of mentos (1 mind, 1 colors) and 1 red Fanta soft drink. We listened to music some Adventures in Odyssey tapes. The trip is hard to exactly remember but we stopped a few more times. Once just past a guard post there was a great view tribes people were selling very colorful and very pretty bags, purses, hats, jewelry etc.
Another stop was at a lookout place not officially but it had a sign a great view!! Lots of people gave their camera’s to this western guy there to take a group photo. When we arrived at the Daycare (Near the actual village Namgat), 5 and a half hours later, we all were feeling lethargic and in need to stretch our legs!! We unpacked all our stuff and then dumped it in the big daycare room where the girls were going to sleep. The guys had a smaller room off to the left with a door that could lock! (pretty essential!!) The 3 lady chaperons slept in our area the 3 men slept in the guys area. We all had various chores like unloading the kitchen stuff ( and the food!) , unpacking etc.
The guys had separate mosquito nets but the girls were given a VERY large, white one. We hung it up from the rafters and organized our beds underneath. The girls on the right side of the room had separate nets though, because the big net didn’t’ reach that far!!
Sarah Myrrh were on my left, Amelia, Lydia, Bekka Victoria were on my right and Natalie was opposite me. Had sandwiches for dinner with Coke, Pepsi or Sprite. (Pop was served every night!!) Every night we tried to talk during the day there was barely any spare moments, as you’ll find out!! J
On Sunday (the 9th) people acted out Noah’s Ark Wade (auzzie home schooled) was Noah, Bethany was his wife, Sarah, Me, and others were animals. About 15 village kids turned up for the skit, a few games, a story some snacks. Then at 10am we went to church it was about 4k’s and we went in the back of a Ute! I’d say 30 people were there, not including out team! Wade Kara had to give a testimony or at least talk. Wade went up and practically bashed his head on the ‘low post!! (he’s taller than dad) He spoke about his Walk with God. Kara then got up and talked about God’s faithfulness, and about how she’d been moving countries ever since she was 6mhs!! All our talking and singing (2 songs) had to be translated 2 times - once to Thai, (Bobby’s wife, Namata) and twice to Shuan (Namata’s sister Melaa, who lives with her family in the village). Afterwards we had a delightful lunch Rice with stir fried veggie’s and ham (cooked like in Pea Ham soup) and bottles of water.
We got a schedule for the whole trip 4 teams, I was on #3 with Zak (1 guy in each team), Bekka, Kendra Melanie (one of twins) Monday I worked in the fields soy beans NOT rice!!! Teams 1 2 4 taught English respectively. Teams 3 4 are working, team 4 was Natalie, Bethany, Chris, Maxine Myrrh. Natalie didn’t want to work with her brother (Zak on my team) and she got her wish he worked with Bekka, Kendra, me Linda. (single lady chaperon) I wore a long sleeved pink working shirt with pink corduroy pants, black socks boots. When I emerged from getting changed (instead of the bathrooms the girls could use a storage room near their sleeping quarters guys were not allowed in our territory UNLESS we permitted them to be.) (that happened rarely) Wade looked at me (everyone was lining up for breakfast) and said Are you teaching English? And I was like, No, I’m going to work in the fields, does it looks like I’m going to work in the fields? and he was like Yes, you look like you’re going to teach English. And I got annoyed because he was saying I must like pink, and calling me the pink girl and THEN, to add onto my annoyance, BOBBY got in the line overhearing us, he held up his pink dish bag and said: Since you like pink, would you like this? I was so mad!! K
Saturday night the guys were very loud (well we stopped talking so they SOUNDED loud!) talking, joking generally making noise. So they got assigned breakfast dish duty ( that shut us up but not asleep!!) On Sunday morning, all the guys were very noisy again (6am was the wakeup time!!), slamming doors, shouts (of wakey wakey) and shoves.
On Sunday I went to Mae Hong Son (the ‘city’) with Kara, Bethany, Sarah, Victoria Natalie it was quite good!! Dad drove with Mr. DeMoss (single man chaperon) and they talked about Dad’s jobs etc!!
PERSONAL devotions were at 6.30am. BS (Ephesians) was at 7pm 8pm and a few teens each night, did a ‘devotion’ for everyone from 8pm - 9pm. Prayer groups were made the 4 separate groups separated after the BS the devotions to pray for a few minutes. The groups were different from the numbered groups Kara, Lydia, Sarah Mrs. Hallead were in ‘my’ group. Lights out was at 9.45pm but rules were occasionally stretched and no lights didn’t mean we couldn’t TALK!! J Lunch was 12pm and ‘supper’ about 6pm. Breakfast was 7am, we had to assemble for work at 8am on the DOT. That means we worked 4 hour shifts.
I did the group devotions with Bekka Maxine. We choose 3 songs: The Power of your love, Shout to the Lord (My Jesus, My savior) and When the Music Fades. I read 2 scriptures from Proverbs and talked a bit about them. We could have played a game (everyone else did) but we ‘ran out of time’) Everyone I ASKED said I didn’t look nervous but Wade (who I didn’t ask!) said I looked soo nervous!!
Dad went to Mae Hong Son about 4 times!! To ‘get supplies’!! He joked that everyone would wave to him if he goes there again! J
I taught English for the 1st time on Wednesday with Zak, Bekka, Melanie Kendra (Mrs. Stuart led sorter) , Zak kept taking over though.. When he’d taken over for the 1st two classes (grades 7 9) he said we could do the last class, grade 8. So we started and TRIED, but he got up saying I can’t just sit here while you make all these mistakes. !!
The weather was cloudy raining a lot of the time. But it was also sunny hot at some stages! Every afternoon we went down the road to the local school to play sports with the kids. (at 4pm) We played basketball, soccer, volleyball and various kids games. I had a hard time serving the ball in volleyball, but by the end of the trip I think I had it down pat!! (I certainly got enough pointers!) Always (it seemed!) when we were just finishing up sports (at 5pm) it started to rain!! A few times it was just spitting but one time it BUCKETED down!! Wade, Lydia I walked it out, back to the Daycare, then decided to go fetch Bevan, who had stayed back on the veranda with the chaperons left, not wanting to get wet!! It was quite hilarious!!
Rain also happened practically EVERY breakfast and almost every dinner!!! J But it was still so much fun!! Some of the teens went to a waterfall or actually a MUD HOLE and had an awesome mud fight! I wasn’t there but it sounded so cool!! Mud being stuffed down people’s shirts, mud in people’s hair, ewww cool!! Anyway, I wasn’t there I think I was away teaching English, I don’t quite remember!
Since I really can’t remember the exact days and times I did stuff on, you’ll just hear about WHAT stuff I did, not particularly WHEN I did it!! I kept a private journal (diary) but I wrote the events a day later than it actually happened, so it’s very confusing!! My writing is also messy so it doesn’t help at all!! Anyway, I’m not copying from it!! I’m writing what happened, NOT just what I managed to write down!! J
Thursday I woke before 5.45am and got up and wrote in my journal, read some of my bible, and read LYDIA’S book Eden Gate. It was so amazing (not really for me but anyway!!) , I actually FINISHED the whole BIG book by the end of the trip! Bobby always comes in the morning, at 6am on the dot (usually) and opens the door to where we sleep, and calls Wakey, wakey and sometimes Rise and shine. !! He’s black so his ‘accent’ is so funny!! J
Every afternoon 2 certain teams were put on prep for games playing games. Teams 3 4 were on Wednesday. The other teams didn’t NEED to come, they could stay and do laundry or organize their stuff before they came they HAD to have done all their chores! I was on building (with T3) Thursday, it felt really good to see the walls coming up! First it was just a structure, then it turned into a structure with walls, and THEN into a BUILDING! It is going to be used as a kitchen for the daycare the one we used wasn’t very good!!
Wednesday morning people were allowed to choose what chore they would like to do, I chose fields. Partly because there were already more than enough people for building (the best chore!!) and partly because I didn’t have a clean skirt for English! (Mum thought I’d only need ONE!) I ended up working with Wade, Lydia Mrs. Hallead. (Which was fun!!) Bevan, Chris Myrrh worked in another field with Mr. DeMoss. The headman’s wife gave us some hoes and then took us on the ‘treacherous journey to her husbands field/s. We had to walk (in our boots) over a water dam, and jump over some flowing water. Working in the fields produce knowledge of people very easily!! Teaching English you have to TEACH not TALK, building you have to be ATTENTIVE (to make sure a brick isn’t crooked or they’ll knock the whole wall down!) but with FIELDING, you have to pick weeds, and TALK!! Hoeing is harder, that’s why we resorted to on hands knee’s!
There is a village radio that comes on almost every day at 5.30am playing music, talking, news various advertisements! It’s not THAT close to the daycare so we slept pretty peacefully until 6am!!
Lydia Bekka started singing the US national anthem just because it’s the 4th of July!! Then Zak started singing Tie me kangaroo down, sport. A very auzzie song!!!!! The Americans were telling him to stop but the others (inc me) were cheering him on!! Wednesday night Bobby announced Tomorrow, only the Americans will be working!! And Wade Maxine (auzzie), Me, Charlotte (Swedish), Kendra (Canadian), Marissa Melanie (Thai twins) cheered!! Of course that didn’t happen ( a lot of the Americans even had the nerve to suggest only non Americans work = or all auzzie’s!!!)
WORK, WORK, WORK!!!! Hauling bricks, pulling weeds, being the building errand gurl Dad didn’t let me get more than a MOMENTS rest!! Just because I’d finished faster than most people (they were still working) he put me to work with them!! It ended up being fun though, if it was a team effort!! Dad said to Wade, Bekka Marissa, who were cleaning the volleyball court (near the daycare) This working will build your character. And many people made comments to me about what he said various other things!!! They asked me what he usually does at home, Bekka asked: Does he just hang around home, saying, What needs to be fixed?? Give me something to be fixed!! and I was like, No, he’s usually at uni but it’s his holidays right now. Pretty funny!!
Bobby said he’d saved the hardest work till last I don’t think he was far off! Friday we carried more than 160 buckets!! 80 sand (between two lines), 28 rock (gravel) and a few bags of cement (the guys did that!) . We mixed some mortar inside for the floor but then made an assembly line passed full buckets up one line empty ones down the other! The finished result was great _ a dog helped us out by autographing the floor with his feet!!
Zak Bevan did devotions together Zak got some of us to read 1 Timothy 4, and he discussed it. Bevan talked about how he came to be on the trip, and shared some scriptures. I don’t think there was time for a game but they choose some really good songs. (Linda played the guitar for all the songs we choose)
Charlotte killed (or tried to!!) a black yellow snake that was under the bricks we were lifting for the building. The rock wasn’t sharp enough to pierce its skin, so it must have been in agony for a while!!
Last time (Friday) Sports with kids (at school) was awesome!! Basketball 1st up, then Volleyball (I think I’d improved!!). Kid’s played ‘drip drip splash’ (version of duck duck goose) then started water fights!!
Rafting rocked!! (Saturday) We deliberately went on rocks to be half in the air, and our rubber raft didn’t ONCE capsize or anyone fall out1! It was me, Mrs. Hallead, Kendra, the twins Maxine.(3 on each side) Plus 2 Thai ‘drivers’. We were the only boat with no guy from our group in because of the 2 drivers. There were some really cool, big rapids, but a lot of quiet water too. We floated down (with life jackets helmets on) on our backs a few times. My hands (and neck, and back.!) started to really ache about 1hr into the journey!! It was sort of a day trip, we were going to do a 2day trip, but it was cancelled because it would go over the cost. I think ONE day was fun enough!! Our boat had the lightest people in, so we skimmed!
Sunday, 1 day before we left, we entertained the kids from 8am 10am. The skit was David Goliath. Wade was the top half of Goliath, Lydia was David, Zak was the bottom half of Goliath the voice(very deep) Bevan was Goliath’s spear bearer the whole Philistine army!! Natalie, Sarah Maxine were David’s elder brothers.
Myrrh (who translated anything for us!!) told the kids the story about the 1 lost sheep, and how the shepherd wouldn’t sleep until he found him. At the end we played another version of ‘duck duck goose’. It’s totally the kids FAVORITE game!! J At 10am we got in the back of a Ute and set up the road 4k’s to a Chinese International church. International means Thai, Laho, Chinese Shuan, or Thai Yii 3 languages needed to be translated Thai, English Chinese. All of them would know plain Thai though. (I think) Everyone tried to shake our hand on the way out snacks afterwards at big long tables. Crumbly bis oops COOKIES, were served alongside Fanta or coke with ice. Went home, lunch was basically left overs. Got longest rest ever from 12pm something until assembling at 1.55pm!!!!
We had to clean the blue chairs, help Namata prepare for the village party (supper) , wash dishes etc!! The party was cool Scones (which when passed around vanished!), peanuts, popcorn (with sugar) and cookies (green icing in between) were served. Unlimited bottles of soft drink(oops, SODA!) and limited ice cubes were also distributed. Teachers Headman sat in the front of the room teens kids on the floor facing them. The main school teacher (who was present while we taught English) presented DAD (for all the chaperons!) with a really ornamental pretty hat, and a letter from the school principal to Grace International School students. !!! Someone picked up that the headman actually called us COLLEGE students as well!! J
Monday we set off home again. In the same car with same people (am I boring?!) . The car wasn’t starting so Zak came over and said it was a dead battery!! So him, Wade Lydia TRIED to push us in Neutral, but it didn’t work! Then we were made to get out and stand around, watching the proceedings with hope. A battery charger was found, Dad drove a car over connected it, Mrs. Hallead started the car, and it WORKED!!
We stopped on the trip for piddly little things Breakfast (no there was no time before we left at 8am) was noodle soup with a red fanta!!! (for me) 20Baht was allowed for breakfast, but then they paid for the drinks as well mine was 10Baht. Lunch was worth 40Baht, I’ve got LOADS of stuff left over, it was all snacky stuff, like chips, candy etc!!!
Last stop (before Raintree’s car park) was a petrol station everyone (who was awake!) deposited their rubbish in the bins stretched their legs. Then when we arrived at Raintree, lots of family’s were there waiting for us. I thought MY family would be too, but I didn’t realize Dad had offered to take back a borrowed truck to Bobby’s!! So I got in Bobby’s white truck with Namata and CJ, and Dad took Wade (who was coming to help carry stuff out) in the borrowed truck to The lighthouse. It is where the youth have their meetings fun events. After we’d unloaded the stuff borrowed from there, Wade hopped in the back of Bobby’s Ute (trying not to step on our stuff) and then hopped off down the road at his place. I was with dad in the other car. We then proceeded to get to Bobby’s place boy it was a total maze!!! We got all the stuff off (except for our own) and then saw inside their GORGEOUS house Bobby then drove us back to our house.
Well that’s all folks, what do you think?!! Please let me know, I think this is sufficient information for some decent questions!!
Chriz_In_Christ P.S. While rafting I felt something on my foot in the water at the bottom of the boat. Looking down I saw a TAIL sliding underneath the seat which leads to Mrs. Halleads feet!! I said: That looked like a snake. And then when IT came out from under the seat (everyone cept for me screamed), I said: It IS a snake! I honestly didn’t scream or be scared Mrs. Hallead said : I’m glad you’re on OUR boat Christina, I would have been over the edge swimming away if I saw that snake! Pretty radical! Also, Mrs. Hallead had a thing for creepies, one night, she was about to get into bed, she screamed, and said There’s something in my bed, ahhh it looks like a snake! And she started thrashing around in the mosquito net getting out! (this was before the rafting trip) And most of the girls got up and looked. Then we saw it a medium salamander crawling up the net!! So of course I tried to chase it and catch it, but 1st it went under Kendra Marissa’s mats!! I pushed up the mats it crawled further further then came out INSIDE their area!! I said to Kendra Grab it! And she said : No way! I’m not touching that thin!! So I kept chasing it into some bags, then FINALLY caught it!! I only had to hold it up to the girls they screamed!! Anyway this is a too long P.S., sorry!! Christi
Don't forget to visit Evans Family on Mission in Thailand web site