The Goodbye - Last Day of Camp!

Sadly, today was already our last day with the kids here at Bridges of Hope. The time flew by and the goodbye was not easy, but we ended on a good note with a trip to Retanga Junction - the local amusement park near Cape Town. We surprised the kids this morning about the last day's events and the huge smiles on their faces were priceless! We had a blast on the rides - a lot of the kids rode a roller coaster for the first time. We didn't let a little rain down our spirits either. Saying goodbye to each kid was rough as we all made strong connections and bonds...we will definetly miss everyone very much!

Last night was amazing as well, we had a special dinner (spare ribs!) and individually served each kid and then held blessing ceremonies for the boys and girls separately. Each of our team members chose a kid or two and prayed about and then wrote a blessing for each of their lives. The ceremonies were so powerful and the kids very much appreciated it and were touched. It was so awesome to see how the Spirit moved through our team to speak to each of them and bless their lives.

Summer camp pictures

More Christmas pictures

Nativity Pictures

Christmas Day!

Merry Christmas from South Africa! What better way to celebrate the birthday of our Lord here with our new friends at Bridges of Hope halfway across the world. We started off this special day singing traditional Christmas carols with the kids and then put on a Nativity play (thanks to a Barkley family tradition!) while reading the real story straight from the Bible. A handful of brave kids helped act out the different parts, and really got into it! Then we surprised each kid by giving them gifts donated by Rock Harbor, including new bathing suits, CDs, makeup and cool bags! The kids loved everything and were so thankful and appreciative. The cards written by our August team were especially well received as each kid carefully read every note with a smile on their face. Swimming and slip n' slide fun followed and we will continue the day with more celebration, including a special dinner and birthday party for Jesus later tonight!

Arrival

We just received a text message that the team arrived in Cape Town with all the luggage. Camp starts in 5 hours...

The trip begins

The whole team left for South Africa this afternoon. After a hectic morning getting all the bags (everyone was allowed three 50lbs bags) and people in cars we headed off to the airport. As they were leaving one car had a flat and we did a quick switch. Then leaving the neighborhood there was a small collision which caused a short delay but no visible damage to either car. Surprising since there was a distinct "crunch" heard in the vehicle in front of the two that collided.

After that the trip to the airport went very smoothly. A lot of (heavy) bags were moved from one location to another in a coordinated chaos of sorts. All the bags were checked in and the team headed into security after a group prayer to send the team off. The team will be flying directly to London where they will have a 6 hour layover, then another flight to Cape Town. All in all it was a very smooth trip to the airport.

The kids will be arriving for the summer camp the same day the team arrives so you may not see a lot of posts during their trip since they will be very very busy and hit the ground running at full speed. Please pray for team unity, protection, health and for the development of deep connections with the kids at the camp and people in the townships (Sweet Home, Philipe, Lower Crossroads, Samora, Franschhoek).

The December Team!

His Warriors

I was praying the other day was asking God to reveal more to me about my purpose for this trip. The word warrior kept coming to mind. The last couple of days it has stayed in my heart and I finally realized what He meant by that. We are His warriors. Africa is our battle field, and the last few months have been a battle field as well. He wants us to spread His love to everyone not just the people of Cape Town. Every single letter that each one of us sent out asking for support was sharing our love for Him, and every dollar raised was for Him. The momentum has continued to build and now here we are a few weeks out from this life changing adventure, and the enemy is mad. We are God's warriors and it's time to go in with the full coat of armor on and fight for what we believe in. We can't let the enemy cause us to lose focus on what we are here to do. Each one of us is here for a reason, and I believe that our small group is going to change the world with love. I love you all and am so on fire for this trip.
-Shannon

Ephesians 6:13-18 Therefore, put on every piece of God's armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God's righteousness.15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.*16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.*17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.*

Gavin & Lindsay

Gavin & Lindsay…

Gavin is a kindergartener who somehow heard about Bridges of Hope ministry to orphans and decided on his own that he wanted to do something. He decided to carve little crosses out of wood and sell them, giving all of the proceeds to BOH. His first gift to BOH was $50 and he continues to make the crosses and sell them one by one. When we were trying to decide what we could give the kids to always remind them that they are the precious sons and daughters of the King we thought of these crosses. We asked Gavin if he would be willing to make 40 crosses (of course we will buy them for the going rate) with six weeks time to accomplish this, he eagerly said yes and started carving away. Each one of these kids will get a hand carved cross from Gavin.

Lindsay is the youngest member of our team at 8, but quite possibly has the biggest heart of all. Every time we go to her house (where we meet for training) I hear her practicing Christmas songs on the piano so she can play for the kids at camp. As most of you know, fundraising is a required aspect for all those who participate in this mission. Lindsay, along with some friends, decided to do a neighborhood bake sale to raise money for the kids, they made $134!!! Lindsay asked if that money could go towards the crafts for the kids to do during free time… how precious!

Two kids who have greatly inspired me.

-Heather

Barcelona Soccer Club supports Bridges Of Hope

Taylor and Hailey Frick and their soccer teams collected all of this soccer gear over the summer.

Hailey

Taylor
They collected it to donate to Bridges Of Hope and the townships where they work in South Africa. They both play for BFC (Barcelona Football Club) in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. They've seen and heard the stories of the students at the academy and wanted to do whatever they could to help. Knowing that soccer is so popular in Africa they started to gather gear as donations. Most of the gear is new and includes two full sets of team uniforms, lots of cleats, shin guards and sweat outfits.