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College Mission Trip 2009
Yakama Christian Mission
Yakama Nation, Washington

Greetings, friends~

Thanks for checking in with our group!  We are very excited to be heading to the state of Washington to learn and serve through the Yakama Christian Mission.  Kay, our church's office manager has kindly agreed to update our journal each work day.  We will try to send a few pictures as well, but the internet connection on the Reservation has been sketchy during our past trips.  We are thinking of you all and thank you for thinking of us. 

In case you are interested, this is our trip packet.

w/much joy - amy kay

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Monday Night, May 18

Good evening from the sanctuary of the Log Church!

We have had an eventful day...This morning we got our feet under us and were ready to go by 10am when Dave came to give us a brief orientation.  He spoke of our openness to "continuing conversation"...some can take years.  Ours here will last only a week, but the conversations we have from this experience will continue for many moons beyond our Washington nights.

Dave then led us to our first work site.  It was the location of what was, until two days ago, a lunch spot for primarily farm workers.  For whatever reason(s), someone intentionally set fire to it and it was only a pile of debris.  We cleaned up the ash.  We didn't realize it at the time, but our church knows the owner's son from previous trips which makes the whole thing even more sad.  If the owners want to rebuild while we are here, we will look forward to helping.  We could say more about this, but perhaps more will unfold throughout the week.

We then went out to Dave's farm, ate our sack lunches and had good conversation about the Reservation.  Then Andy and Dane went with Dave to the dump to leave the trailer of ash we had picked up, Julie and Charise went with Jill to work at the cooperative food garden and the rest of us stayed at the Mission to pick up the fallen sticks and trash that had accumulated from big wind storms.  We seem to be having another one of those storms tonight!  Around 4pm all of us reconvened and had our first workshop.  It was an introductory piece about racism and the systems of power within which we live...stirring...coming to Yakama is really a "learning and serving" experience.

At 5:30pm we headed out to Ft. Simcoe where we had a BBQ supper and took in the historic, sad significance of the park site.  Perhaps we can find a good website when we get back and link it to this journal so you can see/read about it yourself.  It is worth the time.  While at the park, a bit of wildlife intrigued Andy and us all and some bowling ball softball ensued.  We stopped by the gas station/grocery store/everything mart and then toured the town.  We stumbled upon the "Methodist Cemetery" and were taken by the customs we witnessed.  The graves are mounded up and many sentimental things are left on the mounds.  The children's graves were especially difficult to see and in one case, multiple babies were buried in one plot.  We are looking forward to asking the ministers about all of this tomorrow.  In fact, if we could just all be with Dave and Jill ALL THE TIME, it would be awesome.

We in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) really don't know how fortunate we are to have Jill and Dave ministering here at Yakama.  They not only "get" this place and their calling, they respond to it even when our financial hard times have forcing them each to take additional jobs outside of the church.  Dave sells hay, Belinda (the Mission's Social Worker) is a hospice Chaplin and Jill teaches at the Yakima Junior College 45 minutes away.  (!)  Dave and Jill don’t talk much about this, but it is our job to recognize what is happening and ask questions.  Essentially, Yakama's DOC funding was eliminated because of the crunch that came from all of us local churches giving less to Basic Mission Finance.  This year our denomination gave Yakama only $2500. (!)  The three staff persons here are now all three sharing one salary at the Mission.  (!)  Fear is an appropriate emotion about what could happen to Yakama if local churches and individuals are not able to make up the difference from what our denomination has cut.  Here we are with two perfect ministers for this unique context and, in my opinion, the only thing keeping them here is their strong sense of calling and commitment to that call.  Their witness is amazing...our response should be also.  May the conversation continue...

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Good evening from the Log Church~

The smell of yeast bread is lofting up from the kitchen as our group, with Charise at the helm, made bread tonight.  We are going to learn from the process of it all through a workshop tomorrow, and in the meantime, it is a wonderful thing to smell the loaves.  ;)  It is rather late and I need to be done with this by the time the bread is ready to be taken out of the oven, so I will be more brief about the whys of all of what we are doing…

This morning our group started off with a wonderful pancake breakfast made by our leaders of the day (Andy, Chloe and Charise) and their helpers.  We then went over to the parsonage to sort clothes and took two van loads to Yakima to a local clothing place like our Wardrobe.  Sara started mowing the place and Charise carried on the task throughout the day.  The ladies are dedicated to the project, I tell you!  They mowed for hours!  Chloe and Jenny did an amazing job cleaning the trailer for either the two summer interns or Jill and David to use this summer.  They are detail oriented women!  The rest of our group took the front sleeping area apart, cleaned it and put it back together again.  This process involved everyone and Dane and Andy even made a couple beds bunk.  Even with tool hiccups they got it done.  That's my handy man!  ;)  I saw Jenny cleaning out the trash cans really, really well at one point and realized that I don't even know all the little tasks that our group completed today.  It was a good, productive day...plus, we had a good workshop, chat time with Jill and David over spaghetti supper and Dane played basketball with a local 13 year old baller.  Apparently there will be a HORSE rematch tomorrow and it involves a girlfriend and a wife...

 I also asked for time to learn more about the financial status of the Mission from Dave and Jill.  When I wrote yesterday that the denomination sent $2500, I was wrong.  The denomination forwarded on money that individuals had given with the designation for Yakama.  I should have caught that nuance because our church was fully aware that funding was eliminated two years ago because of the lack of funding by our local churches to the denomination who then can't fund all of our ministries.  Because of this change, our World Outreach Department has written in DOC Mission Centers in hopes to fund a little directly each year.  It just isn't enough though...it breaks my heart that the Mission has no funding by our church and yet they are the church here on the Reservation.  This is such a unique ministry and we have two ministers who are experienced, wise and willing to be here...but who have very little money for their own salaries or their programs.  Yet, through even these times, they speak of their calling to be here.  They speak of the future and the longevity of that future in relationship with the people of Yakama. 

 I speak of something else...of the need to fund their positions so that they continue on in their ministry through the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).  We are one of few denominations who has been here in good relationship with the people (since 1919/1921) and who have continued on in positive ways under the direction of Dave and Jill.  We need to do what we can to make sure that the ministry continues. 

 Okay, so maybe I wasn't as brief as I thought I would be, but there is so much to say!  I did go down and get the bread out of the oven and it looks and smells outstanding.  Tomorrow will be a great day to break bread together.  May it be for you as well.

                   

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Wednesday...

 Happy Beautiful morning from the Yakama Nation~

 We have what looks to be another gorgeous day in the valley...as we look around at the landscape throughout the days, it is hard to even take it all in.  There are mountains/foothills all around us with a big mountain poking up over it all.  We wrote some good things down at the Cultural Center about Creation and how it all is woven together in story for the Natives here.  We will try to soak it all up so that we can share it best with you in person. 

 As usual, yesterday morning we woke to a great breakfast prepared by our leaders of the day (Jenny, Emily and Julie).  It was a nice lead into our field trip to the Cultural Center (Native museum type of place) in the neighboring town of Toppenish.  The place was obviously created by Natives and told their stories beautifully.  From there we went out to the farm where we spent the rest of our day. 

 Dave and Belinda have a farm about fifteen minutes from the Log Church where they keep the Mission's livestock.  They also have their own things going, obviously, (hay is Dave's second job) but the tie for us was through the goats.  Dave had us come into where the goats were and sit on the lush grass for our first workshop of the day.  He talked of the land and of all of Creation...what our relationship is with it all as humanity.  The goats hung out with us.  First they were very curious and nibbled on our hats and hair and as the hour went on, they became more interested in their grass than the eleven of us sitting in it.  ;)  As with everything, Dave challenged us with our traditional views of food production.

 From the workshop we divided up into different work groups to do the following:  weedeat around the electric fences of the goat pens, prepare for and string a new electric fence, move an irrigation line, put together an irrigation line (!), and mount a sink for groups to wash their hands by the barn.  We also got to hold baby goats that were born less than a week ago and then watch them discover electric fences.  We enjoyed the companionship of the Rooster in all of his glory throughout the day and we enjoyed one another through these tasks.  The day was wrapped up with a workshop by both Dave and Jill in the barn where we heard the one body with many parts text recited by Dave.  They posed good questions for us to discuss and contemplate further about real equality.  It was a good piece for us as a college group...invested in higher education with bountiful hope for good careers before us.  More conversation will follow on this one for sure...

 We were pleased to meet Belinda who had come home from her second job in Yakima as a Hospice Chaplin.  She told us about the summer kids' program here at the Mission.  It was great to hear it from her as she was the one who created it ten years ago.  She took a VBS hodgepodge summer happening and turned it into a whole summer care program complete with grant and United Way funding.  The school supports them when they can as well with bussing for a few field trips.  The free and reduced meals in the public school here is at 85% (!), so this program allows kids to have good meals during the day as well...when they truly might not have had the option.  Belinda also gave us two eggs from the coop to scramble up and compare to the store variety.  I'm looking forward to that in a few minutes here!

 I shouldn't be hungry because from the farm we went to the town of Harrah where we enjoyed a wonderful Mexican supper.  It was just amazing with lovely cooks/waitresses.  We greatly enjoyed ourselves and brought home some of their sweet breads for a late night snack.  From there we were ready to come home, shower, have our Vesper reflections and straggle off to bed.  There were a few additional happenings though:  Charise held her daily cooking course in the kitchen to end the evening for a few of us.  She demonstrated how to make scones which she refrigerated and is baking now.  It is great to have a professional baker with us!!  Dane played basketball again with some community men.  There were five or six adult men who showed up on the court to play hard for an hour or more.  Dane held his own in the game and more importantly had super relations with them.  They asked if they could come back again today to play once more with him.  ;)  Jenny and friends met a couple really cute little boys who they played with on the playground for an hour or so.  The delight seen in the boys' faces was just priceless.  A couple good pix were taken of the little ones because they don’t mind cameras and we will add them to this journal when we get home.  (We don't have the proper attachment to do it from here.) 

 It was a good day.  We hope yours was too!  Thanks for checking in with us - we will post once more on Friday before the office closes for the weekend.  Peace be with you as it is with us ~ amy kay

 

                       

           

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Our last journal...

Special thanks to Kay for posting our journals and pictures this week.  J

 We have a different sort of a day today and I’m a bit anxious about how all of our different tasks are going to get done... so this is in brief so I can make long lists for us.  ;)

 Yesterday we began with a good breakfast by Emily Smith, Sarah and Charise (leaders of the day) and then had a morning exercise outside.  Dave led us through a connecting piece with the north, south, east and west as we listened to the sounds around us and enacted nature (rain coming down--slowly bend to touch toes).  We moved inside for a great workshop about culture.  We created three cultures (in a big, fun way) and then were told to imagine that we live in a different people's culture.  I think we are doing more with this in today's workshop. 

 We went out to the organic coop where this really cool guy name Jerry has opened up his land for other farmers to come in and plant food products.  Perhaps we will write more about this after we come home, because the theology behind this project is outstanding.  There are a couple acres of land that the coop shares and we planted corn on that piece for them.  It was a great way for us to learn about the days of farm workers because we planted by hand.  Not that farm workers plant by hand, but they do all the hand work of crops which is the exact same movement in many cases.  We worked, from start to finish, for almost four hours which was a big day.  There were also friends who planted with Jill.  They transplanted a lot of little cucumbers and perhaps other veggies.  The groups had good conversation as their little plants or seeds were lovingly put into the ground. 

 We had a BBQ at Jerry's with some of the coop members complete with corn on the cob and lamb burgers.  There were also a few beef patties too and even two veggie burgers.  ;)  We cleaned up and came home to the Log Church around 9pm.  Straight to the sanctuary we came to have our Vesper Reflections.  It was a good day.

 Today's activities involve working at the Just Living house, cleaning in the Log Church and reading the craft and snack area for the summer kids' program.  We will wrap up at the end of a normal day, clean up and then clean the bathrooms.  Out the door we will go to begin the journey home.  We will be stopping in Salt Lake City for a fun break in the journey. 

 Thank you for checking in with us!  We have enjoyed the discipline of sharing our happenings with you and look forward to hearing about your week.

 From the Log Church on the Yakama Nation -- peace.

                   

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