First of all, huge congrats to Caitlin and her husband Des on the birth of their son late last month! Caitlin experienced her first summer working with Mission 2540, and wrote this reflection on all she experienced. She’s off for a few more weeks to be with her baby. Our kids are counting down the days until she returns!
Caitlin’s Summer in Review
Summertime came and went too quickly, but we still managed to make the most of it! This summer looked a little different than the school year as far as attendance goes–we have kids who leave for the summer to stay with other family members, and we have new kids arrive who are visiting just for the summer. Some days, we had smaller groups due to vacations and summer sleep overs. I can’t complain though, having smaller groups created an opportunity to connect more deeply with the kids who were with us week after week. There was more space for conversations and more one-on-one connections which is always a blessing.
One of the biggest highlights this summer was the incredible support we received from different churches. We had groups from Hillside Christian Church, Paramount Baptist Church, and Huntsville Tx come out and host summer fun across our communities. Whether it was bouncy houses, eating popsicles, singing silly songs, or sharing bible stories, the kids had an absolute blast. For many of them, these weeks are the highlight of their summer. We have kids wait all year to see their “church friends” that they make at these events. These weeks are a blessing to us as well as it gives us the time and space to prepare for other events of the summer (fundraisers, camp, back-to-school, etc.) knowing the kids are being loved and cared for well.
Of course, no summer could be complete without Camp Awesome, and this year was no exception! We were able to take 37 kids to Hidden Falls Ranch for 3 days of fun. We were blessed with cooler-than-usual weather which I was personally very grateful for (being 36 weeks pregnant). We did have some rain which interfered with some of our swimming and ziplining, but the kids had great attitudes (for the most part) and managed to make their own fun in the meantime. The kids had an awesome time swimming, rock wall climbing, ziplining, painting, hiking, and playing games. Camp Awesome is far and away my favorite part of this ministry. For so many of our kids, Camp Awesome is one of few opportunities they get throughout the year to get away from the everyday stressors and chaos of home life. They get a chance to just be kids and experience God’s love in a new way.
We concluded the summer with our annual back-to-school backpack handout which is a really amazing chance for us to bless the families we serve with some practical support. This year we were able to provide nearly 130 backpacks filled with school supplies to the kids and families who chose to participate. Huge shoutout to our incredible volunteers who made this happen! I loved getting to see each kid pick out their very own backpack and start to get excited about this new school year and everything that will come with it.
School is back in session and our Kids Club groups are slowly growing again as kids are back in town and back in their normal routines. We’re so grateful to be seeing faces that were missed this summer and hearing everything they’ve been up to. We’re excited to see what this school year will bring!