Making Lemonade

Due to a bus complication on the way to the airport on Sunday, our Uganda team was unable to make their flight. We are rescheduled to depart on Wednesday, August 15 to arrive in Uganda on Thursday, August 16. While our travel delay is disappointing, we’re choosing to make lemonade as we continue bonding as a team in Holland and preparing our hearts to serve.

We’ve been talking as a team that life as a Christian is a journey, but through all things, we know that God is in control and He is good. Our team remains expectant that God is going to do big and mighty things in and through us, and for that, we are grateful!

We Are Ready!

The Lord has prepared us for this trip in a variety of ways. The past two days of training have been incredibly beneficial for our team. We got our first experience assembling the water filters that we will be giving to members of the community. Seeing how effective and easy they are to set up was very encouraging. We also packed 4 extra bags (we’re not talking small bags) filled with sports equipment that we will be using during the week during the sports clinic days and then leaving for their use throughout the year. In addition to all of this, we have spent a lot of time bonding as a group and getting to know one another. Our group connected instantly and has shared a lot of laughter, as well as some deep conversations. We finished off our training with a dinner between the two teams (Zambia and Uganda), in which we made bracelets that signified what each individual member brings to the group.

Some common themes that we have taken away from this weekend are that this trip can seem overwhelming, and many of us had to confront those anxieties and emotions from the moment we stepped on campus. However, after sharing these fears and questions among the group, we have come to the consensus that God’s got us, and that one of our goals on this trip should be to make God greater and greater and us less and less. We also have come to the realization that although we are leaving our physical homes thousands of miles behind us, we are rooted in the love and comfort of Jesus.

Many international trips are not complete without a few bumps in the road. We were only an hour into our trip when the bus had a mechanical issue and we were forced to pull over. It would be another 2 hours before we got back on the road again, with a totally different bus. Despite this minor inconvenience, spirits remained high! We used that time to continue to grow closer as a group, sharing testimonies and a few more laughs. This experience challenged us as a group and had the potential to derail a lot of the progress we had made as a team over the past 2 days, but God is good. We have become stronger and more flexible as a group, which should be a tremendous asset going forward.

We are all so pumped for this trip! The plane just pulled into the terminal and oh my goodness gracious is it a big one! Pray for us as we embark on our first leg of this very long journey. Pray for patience and perseverance. Pray for continued growth of community and growth of faith. Thank you so much for all of your support. We can’t wait to continue to share our journey with you!

Josh & Morgann

Meet the Zambia Team!

Amanda Diaz – Softball
Addyson Gerig – Women’s Track & Field
Tucker Gibbons – Men’s Track & Field
Josh Izenbart – Men’s Track & Field
Morgann Kanouse – Softball
Brant Kym – Men’s Track & Field
CJ Otteman – Baseball
Alaina Streberger – Women’s Track & Field
Victoria Swift – Women’s Basketball
Paige Wilmer – Women’s Lacrosse
Andrew VandeBunte – Men’s Track & Field
Laura Tjepkema
Mary VandeHoef

Meet the Uganda Team!

Colleen Burns – Women’s Track & Field
Olivia Jackson – Softball
Maddie Nise – Softball
Daniel Settecerri – Men’s Golf
Erica Slenk – Women’s Swimming
Hayden Smith – Baseball
Alison Sobkowski – Women’s Swimming
Noah Weigle – Men’s Golf
Kirk Brumels
Stephanie Brumels
Caroline Dykstra

Watering the Seeds and Planting New Ones

One year ago, we launched a SEED team to Zambia to partner and serve alongside Poetice.  Lives were transformed as Hope College student-athletes held sports clinics, taught leadership lessons, and provided clean water through Sawyer products.

It is with great excitement that we are preparing to return to their ministry base in a few days to connect new student-athletes with our old friends and build into new relationships.

Read reflections from last summer from head softball coach Mary VandeHoef as evidence that sport changes lives.

2017 SEED Zambia Team in Choma, Zambia at the ministry center for Poetice. 

Off to Zambia!

We’re excited to send out a SEED team on Sunday, August 12 to Zambia to serve alongside Poetice.  “They exist to empower the church to fight for justice. Through transformational development, Poetice pursues physical and spiritual restoration for the widowed, the orphaned, the vulnerable, the exploited, the sick and the poor.”

While on the ground, the team will also partner with Sawyer to distribute water filters to local families and communities connected with Poetice.

View the team calendar for a glimpse of how Hope College student-athletes will utilize their passion for sport to share the love of Christ with individuals around the world!

Check back over the next two weeks to read updates from the team to hear more about their experiences on the ground and how God is on the move in Zambia.

Zambia Team Calendar

 

We’re Heading to Uganda!

As the calendar has turned to August, we can’t wait to launch our SEED team to Uganda on Sunday, August 12.

While in Uganda, the group will partner in the on-going work of Sports Outreach and distribute Sawyer water filters.

The mission of Sports Outreach is, “to recruit, train, equip and deploy committed Christian leaders in the effective use of sports ministry for the purposes of sharing the Gospel and alleviating human suffering.”

We recognize that sport provides and opportunity for athletes to have a significant platform from which to influence others and we’re excited to see how God uses the passion and talents of our Hope College student-athletes as we serve with Sports Outreach.

Take a look at the trip calendar to follow along with our team!

Uganda Team Calendar

Day 10: be careful what you wish for

Our last night in Costa Rica was a sleepover. We took our mattresses and made a mega bed to take a glorified nap (of 1 1/2 hours). Wake up call was at 4:30, and we drove straight to the airport. We said a final goodbye to our driver Christian, another tough farewell. We ate breakfast at smashburger (because 6:45 is never too early for a good old fashioned burger, right?) and flew from San Jose to Houston, Texas.

We said we wanted the trip to be longer, and wished we didn’t have to leave Costa Rica. God heard us, but instead of Costa, it was the Houston airport. We waited for hours and hours for what should have been our 2:00 flight. When 6:00 came around, we could finally board the plane, only to wait yet another hour. Our flight finally departed at 7, and landed around 9:15 in Chicago. Then, it was onto the Hope bus we went, for our arrival home.

This trip has been an absolutely amazing experience. We have all become so much closer than we even thought was possible. We’ve taken risks and stepped out of our comfort zones. We all have grown in some way whether it be spiritually or just as a person. We are beyond thankful that we were given this opportunity to serve God through serving others and we want to thank everyone who helped support us along our journey!

Nicole, Noelle & Kayla

Noelle, Kayla, and Nicole

Day 9: The last supper

After a late night of playing golf, spoons, & chugging aggressive amounts of water together, we woke up bright and early at 6:30 to head to a new school on the west coast of the country. We began our hour and a half drive with high spirits and arrived at the school in Puntarenas ready to ball out with the kiddos! We had 2 groups of about 40 kids each of various ages. We rotated through 3 stations: an obstacle course, dodgeball, & Manos y Cabezas (Catch it or Head it). After yesterday’s long and tiresome day, today seemed like a breeze! We installed a couple water filters for the school’s kitchen and loaded onto the bus for the beach. We ate a empanada lunch with a spectacular view of the Pacific Ocean and multiple palm trees. Using Hannah’s incredible cheer team skills, we plucked a coconut right off a tree and drank the milk straight out of it! We then took a dive into the ocean which was warm & wonderful for an afternoon swim. After many body surfing attempts, we had a highly unsynchronized synchronized swim session led by the highly uncoordinated Amie. Although Christian was not our driver today, we were allowed to climb on top of the bus for a sweet picture! Following our short photo shoot, we took a quick walk along the shore to dry off. We left the beach covered in salt & sand and headed  back to San Jose. We ran into a bit of traffic and rain, so we spent about 3 hours talking and laughing together on the bus. 

After showering back at AMCA, we had another exquisite meal followed by our sad goodbyes to Nati & Patri. We ended our night with one final devotional full of reflections and words of encouragement for each other as we prepare to return to the USA. We are sad to be leaving this place of growth & passion for God’s good work, but we look forward to bringing back the things we’ve learned & also a ton of coffee. We plan on spending our last night together bonding, playing cards, and packing before our 4:30 wake-up call.

Ciao for now! 

Mason, Mitchel, & Amie

Amie, Mitchel, and Mason
Creative games with limited space.
Hannah picks a coconut…
…and Luke drinks from it.

Day 8: Tough goodbyes

We started off our morning waking up bright and early at 6:30am. We had a great breakfast with fantastic bacon… yum. Today was unique because we got to go back to the same school where we spent another full day. We had yet another wonderful day with the students where we got to grow even closer with them. Today looked very similar to yesterday with four different classes coming through, but we all agree the recess/free time with the kids was the best. During the recess, it was a time we got to connect and talk with the kids to strengthen our relationships. 

Early afternoon it was time for us to depart. This is where it got sad. Many of the kids were clinging to us as we were leaving, with many of them returning for one last high-five or hug. There was even one little boy who started crying when Nicole was leaving. This left us with heavy hearts as we left, and we hope we’ve made an impact on their lives forever. 

Our next stop was the supermarket to pick up Costa Rican goodies and treats. We pretty much cleared the shelves of coffee and chocolate. Also, in the supermarket there was an ice cream shop, so we obviously had to get some… again. After having ice cream we headed back to AMCA for the rest of the day. The light rain produced a beautiful double rainbow before we ate dinner. 

This relaxing afternoon allowed us to grow even closer as a team. We ended the night with a devotional on the 4th commandment about keeping the sabbath. Tomorrow will be our last day and we will be heading to a new school and giving them water filters in addition to doing sports clinics. 

God bless and adios,

Nick and Hannah

Nick and Hannah