from Tricia

Greetings all! I am so greatful I had the chance to go on another exciting and rewarding Grace Presbytery Youth in Mission - Mission Trip! As I was preparing myself and my heart to go on this trip this year I had come to a couple of realizations; first, this would be my first trip with out Rick Carus; we all missed you Rick and we thank you for helping prepare Wes and Jesse to lead a wonderful experience. Secondly, this year was my son's first year to be eligible for Mission trip and I wondered how it was going to be and it all turned out A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!


My son, Wes, II, enjoyed the trip and talked his grandparents' ears off as they drove from Pueblo, Colorado to Nederland Colorado! He was telling them about everything we did and how much fun it was. I am so proud of him and I am glad he loves helping others!

On these trips I comfortably fit into the role of being one of the moms on the trip and I love it when all the youth call me mom! It is a nice feeling knowing you are there to help them through anything and everything and also to be there to have fun with them! These trips have made me aware that I feel called to work with the youth and be in missions. I love helping others and I love being around all the youth because they help me feel young again and some times they remind me of how old I am too.

This year we did some thing new every day and it was all hard work and rewarding knowing that God sent us to Pueblo to serve others. We helped the church by helping the VBS kids do some songs during church; we cleaned up flower beds at the church; we helped several elderly people from the church to clean up their yards and keep Drywall Dust from getting all over the house; we cleaned a Nature Trail up in the mountains so other people can enjoy God's beauty; we helped at a Raptor Center that needed some serious TLC; we helped at a Worm Farm that only has volunteers one day a week and she needed help "herding worms" to complete customer orders; and we helped at a Soup Kitchen where all of their clients were very appreciative and greatful for a wonderful meal. All in all we went out and served others as we were commissioned to do!

Even though there were some long hard hikes, bears eating our lunches, and cactus needles poking us we did as God said and served others and planted a seed everywhere we went.

I thank God everyday for the oppurtunity to serve others and being able to go on these A-M-A-Z-I-N-G trips! God bless you all and thank you for your support.

Tricia