My travels to Bluefield

Since our programming does not start until June 22nd, I have spent this past week working in Bluefield, WV. The Charleston crew and I have been working alongside of the Bluefield staff to help run the week. It has been great to see a week of programming with another group first so we have a better idea of how the week will look. The four of us at Charleston have never done YouthWorks before, so now we have a little better idea of how the trips work.
Bluefield is beautiful, as shown in the picture above. It is the highest town in West Virginia and has some gorgeous scenery. In addition to the sites, I have also enjoyed getting to know some kids. The week as a site director is a little crazy with constant movement from here to there. Even in the craziness, I had a chance to see how awesome it will be to work with kids in the community. The Outrageous Sports Camp was awesome! It was so fun seeing the little boys and girls playing basketball and really warming up to the YouthWorks staff and participants. I can't wait for the OSC back in Charleston. I also was able to see some of the ministries and I am excited to help and encourage the ministries that we will be working with. I realized this week that these ministries are really working hard throughout the year and probably for many more years in the future. I feel blessed to work with people who devote so much of their life to serving everyday in these communities. More than anything, I learned that these trips are really about the ministries and just loving on the students, kids, and leaders. It is really simple when it comes down to it. As long as I keep that in mind, all of the logistics and other details that I have a tendency to worry about will take care of themselves.
Tomorrow starts my journey back to Charleston. I will most likely be leaving early in the morning to pick up the starter who will be helping us next week at our site. And Sunday at 4 o'clock, students are coming to Charleston, WV. It's crazy!!!