First Christian Church Youth Mission Trip - NYC

A place to capture some of the "memorable" quotes....

2008-06-16T19:48:00.004-04:00

This first one was made when our groups (1 and 2) were at the Food Bank warehouse separating food. The food was piled in large bins next to a row of metal tables. Our groups were tasked with removing the food (which was not organized in any way) and placing like items into boxes, labeling and stacking them. As we got into a rhythm, the job went better. One repeated problem was when people would place a food into the wrong pile for boxing. For example, someone might put applesause with vegetables. In John's case, people kept putting different types of beans into his "vegetable" pile. He had to repeatedly remind EVERYONE that "BEANS ARE A PROTEIN" and needed to go into that pile...... After a while, as soon as he started to say it, we ALL chimed in.

On the Road AGAIN!!!

2008-06-16T13:47:00.008-04:00

Below are some of the pictures taken as we unloaded at the train station, waited for the train and finally, as we were on our way.

Today is "Father's Day" and Cameron's birthday (below you can see Joe and Cameron enjoying the moment .... Cameron was treated with a special "birthday" cookie)

Julie was kind enough to take some of the kids for a final bathroom run.

These next images are us mission members on the LONG train ride home : )

Editor's Last Day

2008-06-14T21:06:00.009-04:00

This is our last full day here in NYC. Here are some of my thoughts and an update for our families and friends about our plans for tomorrow. It's late (a little after 9 p.m.), John is providing us with mood music to relax. The adults are ready to slow down BUT the kids are up tossing balls, running around and having a blast. Owen is in the kitchen cleaning up a little. The kids made a banner earlier with their artistic impressions of this trip. There were not real instructions so each kid was able to simply create something from there imaginations. The creations vary wildly. This morning, we got up at 8 and completely cleaned up our stuff, packed our bags and moved everything into a storage room because the Church was having its Saturday luncheon service for the homeless and needy. We helped to set up 17 tables and over 100 chairs. That preparation was completed by 10 and we were free to go on our own until 12. Jenni, Meg and I went to Central Park for a long walk around that was much longer than planned (because I had trouble reading the park's map). Eventually we found the Central Park carousel and we all had a ride! It was really a blast.... From 12 to approximately 4, the kids all served lunch for the Church. The adults had the chance to go out for "dates". The Church staff was appreciative and it all seemed to go well. Dinner was different for everyone. Some groups went for short trips out and around the city. Pam and some others went back to the 9/11 memorial area and the museum there. Carla took some kids for a walk in Central Park. Unfortunately, for the Park goers, we had a severe thunderstorm and by the time they returned, they were all SOAKED!!!!! There was some debate this evening whether or not the kids would "stay up all night" or "be reasonable and get some sleep". I voted for sleep..... we'll see. I need to upload a couple of pictures before bed but that will be all from me. I hope all of our family and friends will take the time to read the posts from our youth. Our bus will pick us up at 5 tomorrow morning. If all goes well, we will be on our way home by 7 a.m.. Keep us in your prayers!!!!
Below are some of the pictures from our last day. I can't label them now (it's really late for me) but I will post some of the ones given to me tonight. ALL of the pictures taken should be available at a later date.

These pictures are from the luncheon service today during which our kids served the clients who came to the Church today. The kids filled all sorts of positions and seemed to truly enjoy themselves.

Kids Thoughts for the Last Day!!!!

2008-06-14T16:16:00.002-04:00

Click on the "Comments" link below this post to see the individual comments from the kids!
Also, below are a few pictures of activities on the last full day. These were taken in the famous store "F. A. O. Schwarz" (named for Frederick August Otto Schwarz).

From the Kids today!

2008-06-13T17:16:00.001-04:00

Chase Weitkamp said...
hi richmond..we are having a great time here in new york city. The trip has been very rewarding, but I think it is time for us to grace our presence in Kentucky again. Today was our free day and we got to see various things such as the Statue of Liberty, Chinatown, and the Empire State Building. While this was fun, i'm sure most of us missed the senior citizens and the food kitchens. Trips like these really make a person realize how fourtunate they are and makes them realize to not take what they have for granted because there are many people throughout the world who have it way worse than any of us can imagine! Anyways, see everyone soon! (We're not looking forward to the train ride back!)-Chase Weitkamp
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Clinton Weitkamp said...
New York has been a lot of fun. I've enjoyed the work we have done and the places we have visited. I am very ready to come home, even though we have to spend 20 hours on a train.-Clinton Weitkamp
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Sara Byers said...
I guess it's my turn. I love New York!!! It is so much different from Richmond and although I love my old Kentucky home, New York City is the place to be. There are so many people and places it's unbelieveable. At first it was overwhelming, no lie. As the days went by I became very aware that NYC is a very busy place, but everyone has there own schedule. So you either move over...or get run over. Very simple rule to live by. The work we have done has been so hard, both physically and emotionally. Never have I seen so many people out of a home or without something to eat. It breaks my heart to see all different kinds of people such as children, elderly, homeless, working people etc. without something to eat at the end of the day, or on the sides of streets looking for change. It's a whole different world up here. The work has been very fullfilling on a happier note. The smiles of the people are soo contagious. They are so greatfull that we contributed and it really is worth while. I know i'm writing alot...stay with me, i'm almost done.I loved loved loved Times Square! It was so busy and there was so much stuff! I was in heaven. My plan is to move up here and work at Virgin Records and room with the cashier that I met...she is infact my new best friend. I also loved China Town, so much cheap stuff. Oh its great here in NYC and you better believe I will be coming back. Thank you for your time =] We should be back soon...that is if the train isn't delayed ha.peace and love.-Sara Byers

June 13, 2008

2008-06-13T16:13:00.004-04:00

I don't have any pictures yet to share. But here's a quick run down of the day. The Today Show was noted earlier. After that, several of us went as a group to the Staten Island and took the ferry. Most of us sat on the uppermost deck and got some good pictures of the Statue of Liberty and the skyline. Once we arrived at the Island, everyone MUST leave the ferry and reboard for the return trip. We did this. When we arrived back at the original dock, we went as a group to the 9/11 memorial site. This, for me, was not really what I expected. Primarily, you just can't see anything at the actual site. There is an official memorial museum, but it's $10 and we did not want to pay that. So, we got as close as we could and took a couple of pictures and left. We went via subway to Canal Street (Chinatown) and shopped. We split into smaller groups with an agreement to meet back at the Church by 5 p.m.. We will be serving at the Church's Saturday lunch program 1 - 4 pm and the kids will be able to participate. So..... that's all for now.

UPDATE:

here are some pictures from our trip to Canal Street

Here is our "Central Park" visit.

Today Show

2008-06-13T16:09:00.002-04:00

This morning started VERY early..... Several of our crew left to go to the Today Show. They made a poster and were in the crowd during a Kenny Chesney (sp?) show. I heard them getting up but fortunately, I went back to sleep. We watched the show on a television the Church provided for us. I didn't see him, but I heard that John was visible and maybe Cameron. This is a poster that Pam and some of the kids made to hold at the show.

St John the Divine

2008-06-12T21:54:00.008-04:00

As mentioned earlier, we received a private tour of "St John the Divine". This is a short video of the front of the church.

Oh no!............ I was typing a much longer discription this morning and the computer's internet connection died and I lost it. So, this is a recreation of it (as best I can do) after our outing today... More on that later.
At St. John, we were given a private tour by FCC's former organist - Tim. When we arrived, he spoke to us on the front steps of the cathedral. Here are some general facts:
St. John is named after the believed author of the Book of Revelations.

The structure was begun in 1892. The construction was interupted in 1941 by the beginning of WWII. A bad ecomomy and other financial needs have made it impossible to really get that work going again. The overall design of the facility is in the shape of a cross. Large sections of the building are yet to be started. Even some of the parts that were started before the war have clear evidence that they were simply left undone. For example, in several of the archways, there are completed and beautifully carved figures in the stone. However, as you move your gaze from one side of the front of the building to the other, the figures loose detail and eventually are only large blocks of smooth stone. The cathedral has tried to revive and maintain the art of stone cutting by running a stone cutting studio. There was a bad fire on the site some time aglo and the restoration work is on-going. For example, the pipe organ (which has over 8,000 pipes) is still out for cleaning and restoration. They should be back in place by fall. The entire interior was smoke damaged. Some priceless tapestries were lost. The walls were cleaned by spraying latex on the walls and then peeling it off - taking the soot with it. When you look at the walls now, you really can't see the damage in the areas that are open to the public. We were shown several of the areas inside the church. One main area (the nave/sancturary) area had several large stone columns. A bit of history: the architect wanted the pillars to be cut from one solid piece of stone. This was attempted, BUT the first two attempts cracked at the same point(using up the only "spares" available). So, a compromise was made to cut the columns out of two stones and "piece" them together. If you look closely, you can see the "seam" in the great stones .

During our tour of the grounds we saw two of the three peacocks in residence - one was an albino. They came pretty close and honked at us some. There was also a small garden with a fountain in which the public can come to sit and reflect. All of the plants in the area are ones that are mentioned in the Bible (like jasmine and juniper).f

Swat Moment

2008-06-12T21:37:00.007-04:00

Some of the kids got the chance to deliver food again. This time they got to visit another lady and she took them out on to her roof for a look at the city. Here they are looking at everything.

We had to mix up the groups a bit today because of the age requirements for two of our sites. So, that meant that some of us went to the Foodbank Kitchen to work today and some of us stayed back at the Church to bake cornbread muffins. We had already baked a bunch of muffins and a cake to take to the Foodbank Kitchen. In fact, we our clean up crew showed up there today to scrub down the place, we walked in to see the staff giving out "our food" to their clients! The kids (and adults) were energized by this. The cornbread muffins we baked today were completely mixed and poured by the kids (baked by grownups) and taken to the kitchen. On the way there, our food transportation group was stopped at a bus stop waiting to catch a connection bus to the final destination. While there, we got to see some real NY life..... there were screeching tires of plains clothed police officers. They stopped their car in the middle of the street and ran down into the subway. For me, it was tense moment because..... you never know..... fortunately, it went OK and a few minutes later the officers returned to their car and left.

Quotes for the Day

2008-06-12T21:25:00.006-04:00

Livin' and a Kickin'
We were doing our evening debrief when Gary's grandson was telling about one of the elderly ladies he met today when delivering meals for the "Carter Burden Center". She was in her 90s and had was spry enough to invite them (Gary and the kids) into her apartment for a chat. He described her as "living and a kickin'!"

Aghhhhh!!!!
Each group went to one (or more) of the sites we have been helping. One of these was the "Foodbank Kitchen" in Harlem. Most of my groups adults went there this morning to assist with the "deep cleaning" that needed to be done in the kitchen. This meant that we had to scrub the walls, scrub the oven (which is a massive industrial sized monster), wipe down tables and generally go over "everything"! John, Pam, Chris, John and I worked first on the walls. The rest of crew started on that monster oven. While working on the oven, Julie said she was using a metal scrub pad to wash up a metal counter near some wiring. The chief came over to check on her and she told him what happened. She told him and he touched the shelf..... nothing happened. So she started cleaning again. Guess what........... she was shocked AGAIN. This time, the shock really buzzed her arms and hands. She decided to stop cleaning that shelf and moved on to another job.

Thoughts from the adults on Thursday...... June 12, 2008

2008-06-12T09:12:00.001-04:00

Thoughts from the kids on Thursday...... June 12, 2008

2008-06-12T07:43:00.002-04:00

Other thoughts for June 11, 2008

2008-06-11T16:35:00.003-04:00

We had a much slower morning. No groups needed to leave before 8 a.m.. After breakfast, the kids made several batches of muffins. These are a part of the "sweets" that will be given to each of our sites. Groups number 1 and 3 traveled together for a 1 pm appointment back at the foodbank. This time, getting there was a lot easier because had a good feel for the route (including train names / letters). When we got there, our wonderful liaison, Hannibal, was a little surprised to see us because we were not on his schedule. No problem.... he switched gears and prepared the work area for us to start getting at it!
We quickly split up duties and began to sort the food. We emptied all of the large bins that were set out for us get the food from.... then......... he got MORE! We almost completely emptied and packed this second wave... but we ran out of time. We had a brief sit down and cool off while Hannibal gave us the numbers for how much food we had packed. Cumulatively, between all of our groups, we have packed enough to come close to setting up a new record for any one group! We will update the exact number later.
The ride back to the Church was mostly uneventful. Mike took a small spill when leaving the building but was OK. Carla said the magic words and he was able to find the strength to get up and get moving : )

Back at the Church, we will have about a half hour to cool off before we leave for our guided tour of "St. John the Divine Church". More information later.

Photos of June 11, 2008 (uncaptioned)

2008-06-11T11:22:00.003-04:00

More Photos from June 10th

2008-06-11T08:14:00.034-04:00

There are photos of the activities from the 10th. I'll add some captions when I know what they were doing..... otherwise, they might just be images:

Photos for Tuesday June 10, 2008

2008-06-10T17:55:00.023-04:00

The photos below are from several sources and (unfortunately) uncaptioned for now..... this may change when time permits. As for now, the kids are occupying themselves with some rubber gloves that they've turned into balloons (they came from our food handling today). These images are the first turned in for "uploading" tonight. As you can no doubt tell, the site is being updated continually. If you read a posting already, be sure to go back in a day or two to see if any new comments of pictures have been added. This is a bit of extra work, but, the photos may not have been ready when the text was written.

Starting Tuesday.....

A late starter....... Will

another late starter..... Chris

Grandpa Gary....

A shot just for Pam....

Group 1 at the Carter Burden Center ("Meals On Wheels)...

We were given orientation. Everyone learned about delivering the meals or about working in the kitchen.

Pam, Sarah and Miranda heading out to deliver food... (Each of the teams took the bag of hot food and bags of cold food to deliver to each recipient. Along the way, the kids took the time to chat with the folks and take the chance to get to know them just a little. Pam even got the chance to take a couple of pictures of the beautiful cityscape along the way. Those can be seen below.

Meanwhile, "back at the ranch", some of the kids were used to serve the guests. In this shot below, you can see Cameron in the background wearing his mission t-shirt helping to serve the food. Several of the guests commented that they truly appreciate the kids (and grownups) coming to serve as volunteers.

In the other picture you can see Chris helping to serve as well. The center provided an educational session on osteoporosis after the meal (for which we were invited to stay and watch, but we chose to pass.....)

In the next shot, you can see John serving as well. I think that all of the kids really enjoyed the day. It was hard work for them (especially the walking to deliver the food.... the heat was brutal. However, the directions we received were very clear and we did NOT become lost!!!!! After all of the serving and packaging of food was done, it was time to do the cleaning up. The kitchen crews took care of washing and putting away. The "cold pack" packer wiped up their work area and put away things like boxes of butter and the bread. This group separated several loafs of bread and packed them: one slice and a pat of butter in a sandwich bag. We created several milk crates full of bread slices and covered cups of fruit deserts. At first this seemed a little like overpreparation until we found out that this would be fozen for use in the kitchen (as noted the kids carried the food to the customers).

Next, Group 1 went on a bus ride (instead of walking back to the Church). It was not a very long walk but the bus seemed like a good idea. For one reason, it was really hot AND it was a new experience! So, we got directions from someone at the Center, had map in hand and "went for it". Guess what..... it worked and we survived.

Thoughts from the Kids on Tuesday.....

2008-06-10T16:41:00.001-04:00

These are some thoughts from the kids.

Chasing the "pet" on Monday night

2008-06-10T16:26:00.010-04:00

We heard some "screams" on Monday night from the kitchen. It seems that we ended up with an uninvited guest. Where I grew up, we would call them "Palmetto Bugs"...... some people might call them cockroaches : )

This one was apparently big enough to take the kids for rides.... BUT, to be sure, no one was in danger and some of the kids took care of it. For evidence, take a look at this.

Eventually, this became a team sport and Cameron jumped in.... broom and all.

General Thoughts From the Food Bank

2008-06-10T14:47:00.009-04:00

I put some general information about the Food Bank earlier. However, as we have more groups going, I was asked to put up a running display of the amount of food that has been sorted, packed sealed by each team. For example:

Here is a video of the kids packing and separating foods.

Team: Number of Pounds Packed Represents this number of meals

Team	Number of Pounds of Food	Represents This Many Meals
1 & 2	3691	2839
3 (alone)	4163	3202

Owen"s Thoughts - Sleepless Associate in the Big City

2008-06-10T09:01:00.003-04:00

Well, friends, these words flow from a sleep deprived haze of earnestness, so be kind.

Emily asked last night, "How are things going?" I had to laugh. The question seemed so loaded. Have I had to threaten death to a youth yet? No. Have I had to realize that most of the routes I planned out to our work sites are the absolutely longest way of getting to these places? Yes. Has 9 hours of sleep, shepherding 36 souls, brought me closer to Jesus? Yes, but because I now receive regular sleep induced hallucinations--Jesus has the coolest mustache ever by-the-way.

Things are going well. I had worried that a group of 36 would lack intimacy. Luckily, lack of sleep, too much walking and heat, and general giddiness has fostered an amazing sense of unity. Of course, it helps to have Mike Berry here. It is impossible to take frustration too seriously when he proceeds to interrupt conversations with his epiphanies of "God, Jesus...Bible loves God...baby Jesus and ice cream."

Know that after a couple of days, we, the church as a whole, are well represented. You would be proud. Whether it is going above and beyond at a food bank or sharing profound insights on life's simplicity and the future during a run around Central Park at night, we are living the Gospel in our very own corner of this concrete jungle. Many blessings.

June 10, 2008 (photos)

2008-06-10T08:59:00.024-04:00

Here are some photos from the "Carter Burden Center". There are various members of Group 3 in the shots working in the kitchen.

There are pictures also from the Carter Burden Center (named after a NYC citycouncilman who established this center to care for and feed those in need. He has since died but his wife, according to our host and volunteer cordinator - Yelana (see image at right in the front row, second from the right) - still works on the Board of Directors. The photos that follow are a collection from working there (remember, there are a lot more photos, these are just a sampling). For example, Group number 1 went there today and there were several images and even some video that were taken. During today's work, we split into three roving teams to deliver food and one that remained at the center to prepare food for the sit down meals for the people that come there. For the "delivery" meals, each team was given a large "hot" bag that included a hot meal for each recipient and a "cold bag" (see image at left) that included juice, milk, bread, butter and a fruit cup for desert. My team consisted of John C. and Chris B.. We had about a dozen homes to deliver and and the addresses were within 30 minutes of actual walking.

Every group was required to wear gloves during the food preparation and or handling. This was pretty easy for those of with small hands but a challenge for the rest..... Fortunately, we finally found some large gloves (as seen in the picture here). It was very humid and these gloves were not powdered, so they kind of "stuck" to your hand..... Oh well. I am sure that all of the teams did a great job. I want to take this time to at least congratulate my two young men for not only the way they addressed and interacted with the elderly people we had the honor to meet.... they also dealt with some "potentially" embarassing situation VERY WELL!!!!! Kudos to them. After completing our work (including the clean up phase) we were invited to eat lunch at the center. The meal of the day was roasted chicken, spinich, bread, fruit cup and apple juice. The food was good but the company was fabulous. After the meal, we cleaned OUR table and left as a presentation for the diners was about to begin.

Later in the evening, our dinner was prepared. Each evening's meal is prepared by one group and everyone takes turns cleaning up. The pictures below are from the Monday nights food preparation.

June 9, 2008 (photos)

2008-06-10T08:36:00.007-04:00

Here are some pictures from the trip to NYC

This first shot is of Savannah and Kayla at the train station during our "short" delay of three hours.

Below is a shot of Brennon and his "Cookie".

Here is Cassie taking a nap.

June 9, 2008 (first day of service) - video

2008-06-10T08:12:00.005-04:00

These are a couple of videos. This first is Owen opening the door of the Church for us.

Here the kids are serving food at the "Carter Burden Center"

June 9, 2008 (first day of service)

2008-06-09T20:43:00.018-04:00

June 9, 2008
Owen got us all settled in to the sleeping area:

We started the day with an early wake-up call of 6:30 a.m.!!!!! This meant that at best, most of us had less than 2 ½ hours of sleep : (

Owen and a couple of others woke up even earlier and went to a local grocer store and purchased groceries. That meant that we could have a breakfast (doughnuts, or pop tarts and orange juice) AND pack our lunches. Showers and grooming took place before and during breakfast. Then we split into our groups and confirmed our assignments.
Groups 1 and 2 traveled together to the Food Bank. This meant a 20 minute walk to the subway (it might have been shorter if we hadn’t gotten lost for a little bit). We took the uptown train to 125th street and there we took the “transfer” train to the “Hunt’s Point Station”. From there it was a short (but hot) walk to the actual food bank.

At the Food Bank:

We had a short orientation by “Hannibal”, one of the workers and our personal guide. The orientation included a thought provoking video about hunger and the mission of the Food Bank to make a difference. One quote that several of us immediately felt connected to was “You don’t have to be homeless, to be hungry.” We signed in as volunteers and were directed to the work area. Essentially, this is a portion of their warehouse with a 30 foot table off to one side. Next to the table were several large bins with food products. We split up into two groups; one consisted of 4 -6 of us on the side of the bins and the rest were on the other side. The “bin” side people picked up food from the bins and separated it into categories like: cereal, protein, canned fruit, condiments, etc. Each item was checked for general appearance and its expiration date. The people on the non-bin side rechecked the dates and put the items into boxes, taped and sealed them for shipping. The first few minutes were a little hard for me to find the best place to be to be helpful and not in the way. After a little maneuvering, it all seemed to work!!!! Everyone jumped in there was a real grove to effort. After about an hour and a half, we actually reached the bottom of the bins! There was no more to do. So, Hannibal led us to a break room for debriefing. He asked us to guess how many pounds of food we’d processed today and several numbers were through out….. all of them were too low.

The total was 3691 pounds of food. Based upon the average “weight” of a meal, that means that we separated and packed 2839 meals this morning! The kids really did a great job!!!

After our debriefing, we ate lunch and took a moment to reflect. The walk back to the bus stop was absolutely flawless……… except for the fact that the bus driver who first stopped for us told that were at the WRONG stop and that we needed to walk even further in this really hot sun : (
Well, we pulled ourselves together and started walking. After about 5 minutes of trooping along, we still did not see another stop. Finally, we all agreed to go back to the original stop and simply take our chances with whatever bus that came along. (to be sure, the heat and fatigue played a part of that decision) The next bus came by a few minutes later and we made it back to the Church without any problems.

We have a few minutes to sit (type) and cool off before our afternoon sessions. Those start at around 3:30. Group 1 will need to hit the road at around 2:30.

Here is a picture of group 2 in the subway:

Here is a classic "yellow cab":

Here are two intrepid subway travelers (James Clay and Taylor)

June 8, 2008 (traveling day)

2008-06-09T20:34:00.019-04:00

Sandy's take on the day....
June 7-8
We arrived at the church at around 10:30 to load bags and to get organized. There was a table to sign-in and pay for tickets (for those of us going to the ball game or to the show). We selected our activities for the free day and received out t-shirts. Everyone was there and ready to go at a little after 11. Next it was out to the parking lot to pack the vehicles. Fortunately someone had changed plans and we ended up with a moving truck to use to move our baggage to the train station. We had so many people going that the church’s bus, the church van and private vehicles on-site to transport were barely enough to carry the people! Owen ended up riding with us in the van. When he got in, he as wearing a big smile saying that had “just enough seats for everyone!” That’s a testament to the number of people sharing the experience.
The ride to Cincinnati was relatively uneventful. With the windows we didn’t hear any cicadas and few if any hit the windshield (unlike my trip to Lexington earlier today). Traffic was light. Our driver, Joe Rice did a great job.

Here is our arrival at the Amtrak station.

Once we arrived in Cincinnati, there was a little confusion about how to get to the train station. At one point, we could see the station from a block or two away, but we could not seem to find the access road to the door. It took a quick “over flight” and a turn around before we got there. Skip was there ahead of and had unloaded our bags (all ten thousand of them) and had them ready for us. Hurray for us! We were on-site in plenty of time to make out train! A short walk from the unloading area to the desk, time for a short settle in….. then I noticed that several people were unloading blankets and food. That didn’t seem too strange, it was late and people will do what they need to do. But, when I saw Owen unroll his bedroll, I new something was up. That’s when I heard that our train was at least 2 hours late!!!!!! That time for a short settle in had turned into a LONG settle in. People debated whether to open sleeping bags or to just suffer in chairs. Most of us used the chairs. Ryan curled up in a corner, hoody over his head and knocked out. Owen and Mike shared an area of the floor. Mike started laughing and kept it up, so, Owen was NOT going to get any real sleep. Oh well….

Many of the kids whipped out their electronic games or mp3 players. Others (the older kids, boys mostly) decided to walk around the area. Julie got a couple of pictures of the sleepy crew. Bobby and Greg sat and discussed world affairs (I think they solved a few of the major problems too). Jenni used her bag as a pillow and tried at least get a few winks. Carla and her young one found a relaxing spot to lay flat for a while.

The station is really quiet for now (3:15 a.m.). There are a few other passengers strolling in but only a few. The desk area has a wood panel look and two-toned grey stone floor. The gate’s desk is secured with a roll-down gate and the agent only presents himself for a while. This is my first Amtrak ride since 9/11. I am not sure if there are a lot of new security measure in place, if so, they seem to be more “behind the scenes” types of things.
Well, Mike seems to be quieting down for now. There is no wi-fi available here so this will be uploaded later. Not much to report for now.

It’s 5 a.m. and time for an update. We received news at an hour ago that our train would not be here until 6! So, that long “settle in” has gotten longer. Mike is having a little trouble sleeping. Several of the kids went for a walk / chat with Pam. Meg and I took a walk around the station. There is an IMAX theater here. There is also a museum. A traveling show is somewhere in the building; the one where human bodies were injected with a plasticizing liquid and placed in positions or dissected.

At 6:30, we stopped (only briefly in Huntington, WV). None of our group got off of the train. Many of the group seemed to be trying to sleep. By the time we were back on the road from that stop, some people were taking the short walk back two cars to the “little” dining car for breakfast or just coffee / softdrinks. There were very differing opinions about the quality of the meal. Greg thought is was not really worth the money. Gary W. thought it was pretty good,

At our next stop, Charleston, we were told by the train’s staff that “every single seat would be taken”. There were several new passengers but we still had a couple of empties in our car. Speaking of cars, our train was only about a half a dozen cars in length. As I type this, some of our empty seats are being taken. So, maybe the train is mostly full.

We’ve passed a lot of very small towns. It’s interesting to pass these hamlets and to wonder “Who they are?” and “What must their lives must be like?”
As for my crew, Meg is asleep (it’s 11:00), Jenni is trying and Cameron is up front with the “big kids”. The conductor says we will try to make up the nearly three hour delay by “hurrying up at stops”, but that seems overly optimistic.
(others may post later about the trip....photos ~~Will be~~ HAVE BEEN added)

This picture was taken (if memory serves me well), upon our arrival at Penn Station.

The appliances in the kitchen of the Church were donated by a name that should be familiar to Kentuckians.

While this sign could not been seen at the time we actually arrived, this is the plaque that resides upon the exterior wall of the Park Avenue Christian Church (our temporary home). While this is a "reduced" image, the text should be clear enough to read. If you want the "full sized" version, just let me know.
The plaque reads:
"LANDMARKS OF NEW YORKPARK AVENUE CHRISTIAN CHURCHTHIS CHURCH, DESIGNED BY GRAM GOODHUE AND FERGUSON IN A GOTHIC STYLE INSPIRED BY THE SAINTE CHAPELLE IN PARIS, WAS OPENED IN 1911 AS THE SOUTH REFORMED CHURCH. PURCHASED BY THE PRESBYTERY OF NEW YORK IN 1914, IT REMAINED A PRESYTERIAN HOUSE OF WORSHIP UNTIL 1945 WHEN IT WAS ACQUIRED BY THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH (DISCIPLES OF CHRIST) WHOSE CONGREGATION WAS ORGANIZED IN 1810.PLAQUE ERECTED 1960THE NEW YORK COMMUNITY TRUSTThis church, designed by Gram Goodhue and Ferguson in a gothic style inspired by the sainte Chape"

Less than one week left....

2008-06-03T08:18:00.007-04:00

We have less than one week before we leave for our trip! That's amazing that time has flown by so fast. Our group met last Sunday during Sunday School to discuss several details. A big item of discussion was what activities were available for our free time on Friday. Two of the more "involved" options were 1) a Broadway show and 2) a professional baseball game. Essentially, we were asked to pick one (if you wanted to do either) and Pam or Owen would work on tickets. For the Broadway show, the most likely candidates were "Mary Poppins", "Wicked" or "Hairspray". I am not sure who will be playing NY in baseball that day.
For our schedule, we will be leaving on Saturday night.
That's all for now...... Feel free to leave a post (be sure to leave your name if you post anonymously .... unsigned posts may be deleted). Thanks.

May 13, 2008

2008-05-12T19:34:00.000-04:00

May 12, 2008

2008-05-12T19:31:00.000-04:00