We’ve been in North Carolina for a week, and it has been quite eventful. It’s been a week of serving at different ministries in Black Mountain, NC. We served in a garden, at a camp, a conference center, and cleaned the place we were staying at. I’ve had so many incredible experiences here, and I’m so excited to share some of them with you!
On the first day, we served on the Black Mountain Home for Foster Kids campgrounds. The camp hosts various events that bring people in, from a summer camp to a wedding. It is a beautiful campus across the street from their foster homes. I got the opportunity to pick up sticks around the campus. This may seem like a mundane task, but my partner and I made it very fun. We played music as we picked up sticks and laughed a lot. We picked up sticks of all sizes, and this included big branches that had fallen. Since this was the case, they gave us a Kawasaki Mule utility vehicle to drive around and collect the sticks. This was super fun and made the task more enjoyable! After we completed this, we joined the group and helped to clean out the cabins, get rid of cobwebs, swept and scrubbed the floors inside and outside. We had lunch and then we went to a garden. We pulled lots of weeds, and it was cool to see how much better it looked afterward. This completed our first day of work which started at 9 am and ended at 4 pm. It was very productive and enjoyable.
On the second day, we went to Ridgecrest Conference Center. They are a Christian organization that puts on various conferences and takes care of everything from food to a place to sleep. We had the opportunity to help the staff set up for a big conference. I was able to help set up the dining rooms for the event. It was cool to see all the behind-the-scenes work that goes into these events. It takes a lot of preparation to have these events go smoothly, making me appreciate all the work that goes into even the tiny details. I pondered over this over lunch as I sat with my team. We had a great buffet with lots of delicious options. After lunch, we were sent to the kitchen to help with preparation. Some of my teammates filled saucers while a couple of other teammates and I cleaned them off. We prepared salads, desserts, and rolls. We had assembly lines going for these, and it went smoothly. After this, we helped sweep the dining area and wiped down tables. This concluded the second day of work which was very productive and fun!
On the third day, we went back to Ridgecrest. This time I went to the laundry room. I started with folding towels, and then it moved to me helping fold top sheets, pillowcases, napkins, tablecloths, and more top sheets. My partner and I made folding the top sheets so much fun. We had a great time talking and laughing while we folded. By the end of the day, we started dancing while folding, making the process more fun and efficient. It was cool to see the process that they go through every day, and it made me appreciate all the work that goes into having clean linen in a hotel room. We spent all day in the laundry room folding, which was very productive and exciting.
On the fourth day, we were at Ridgecrest again. This time I was in the kitchen doing dishes. The big conference had happened the night before, so there were a lot of dishes that needed to be cleaned. I walked into the kitchen and was so excited. They have a rinse-off and scrubbing area and a conveyer belt machine that deep cleans, sanitizes, and dries the dishes. They have a silverware sorting section and carts to put dishes away. This system was really cool to walk into and was fun to help with. I was able to help rinse and scrub, load dishes into the machine, put away dishes, and sort silverware. I really enjoyed helping clean the dishes and was very satisfied at the end of the day seeing that the kitchen was all in place with the dishes done. Overall it was a very productive and fun day.
On the fifth day, I was at Excel college, which is where we are currently staying. I helped with cleaning up the place and making everything look nice. I helped to clean the dishes, which is always fun, and then dried and put them away. After that, I organized the silverware and then scrubbed the sinks. I liked seeing how shiny they were after I cleaned them. I spent my day cleaning the kitchen while the rest of my teammates cleaned windows, bathrooms, etc. It was a very productive and fun day that I got to spend with my team. We finished early, so we spent time as a team which was very fun. I have the best team that shows love so well and whose presence brings peace. It has been fun to grow individually but also as a team in community.
Excel college was nice enough to bring us in and feed us while we are here. They are a small college that sets students up for success in life through its 30-month bachelor's degree program. Half the time, they are in liberal arts classes, and then the other half the students spend interning in the area of work they’re interested in. They have students staying in homes because that is how life is. On top of that, they make the program very affordable, so no one leaves with debt. Overall it’s a very cool place that sets people up well for life.
This week was very eventful and productive. I learned just how much people take for granted, and I’m so grateful for all the work everyone puts in to make things go smoothly. Each person has a role, and though very different, when it all comes together, every aspect is covered, and the event goes well. I am so thankful for each role! Like there are different roles in this job, there are different roles in the body of Christ. Although we have different things we’re good at, when we all come together, we are strong, and things run smoothly. How cool is God! He’s so awesome!!
I’m so grateful for this experience and can’t wait for another week of serving in North Carolina before heading back to Georgia! To God be all the glory forever!
