65........Individuals heading to South Dakota next week
63........Banana boxes packed with supplies currently at my house
36........Kids under 18 going to South Dakota
17........Families represented on the trip
5..........Grocery carts of food purchased at Sam's this morning
4..........Months of preparation
3..........Different churches participating--Messiah, Zion, and St. John's Ellisville
1...........Lord and Savior who makes any of this possible
...for everything else, there's Mastercard. Haha, just kidding.
In all seriousness though, this trip would not be possible without a lot of hard work, the loving support of many individuals, and one wonderful Savior. A big thank you to all of the people who have donated to our trip, and our cause---without you, I don't know where we would be. We are hoping to use this blog to tell you about our trip while we are there, and relay messages back to you all.
Right now though, we are just in crazy preparation mode. I have not seen the floor of our dining room in at least 2 weeks, as our house is currently serving as some sort of team supply headquarters. Beanie babies? We have them. Dishware? Got it. 33 boxes of Hamburger Helper? Definitely. Now, our foyer and kitchen are being taken over by banana boxes. Yes. Banana boxes.
Loads of Beanie babies, stuffed animals & the like.
This was the dining room last week. It has since gotten more jam-packed.
The key to packing success.So, keep us in your prayers as we continue to prepare. Please bless us with patience, and kindness, and understanding as we prepare to caravan 14 different vehicles at least 12 hours to Mitchell, South Dakota next Saturday morning with 36 children. The "are-we-there-yet?"s are already beginning to echo in my ears.
Thank you & God's blessings to each and every one of you!
With love,
Katie Herring
Our dining room as well is filled with 30 banana boxes. I just can't figure out how to keep my items IN the banana box since there are large holes at the top and bottom of the banana boxes. Am I missing something here? I am envisioning my banana box filled with beads for a craft project being stacked up high and by the time we get to South dakota my beads will be in the bottom box with the Hamburger Helper :)
ReplyDeleteThe key is the brown thick liner in the box. Use it to line the bottom of the box and then after you fill your box with "the goods" you might need to layer some newspaper over the top if you have smaller items or use some ziplocs to bag up some of your items. I know we have certainly had to get creative! Maybe beads in with our hamburger helper will add a new twist on an old stand by recipe. Only kidding!!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWell AIM/SWAMP-IN South Dakota Family Mission Team #1 is off. They left this morning at 6:30 am central time from Messiah.
ReplyDeleteOur prayers are with all who are traveling may God protect and guide all in this team, keeping them safe and in His care as they travel North to Mitchell SD for the first leg of their journey to the reservation. Please pray for this mission team!
Debbie
Praise God all the members of team 1 have arrived safely at Zion in Mitchell, SD. Have a good night's sleep all and safe travel tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteTeam 1 is now on the reservation. Be safe and have fun.
ReplyDeleteGod is doing amazing and wonderful things with this team. They are connecting and building relationships with the Lakota, staff and long term volunteers on the reservation. There has been a delay with roofing but they are painting inside the church and having a great time connecting with the Lakota working with them. The unity within the team is a great reflection of Christ light shining through each team member.
ReplyDeleteTo the team just know you are in all our prayers as you serve others to serve the Lord!