Sun Valley Mission Trip

By: Travis Towne

On Thursday afternoon January, 24^th 2008, 20 students and three chaperones from Phoenix Christian Jr. High loaded up a school bus and set off on a five hour trip up to Sun Valley Indian School near Holbrook, Arizona.  These students were prepared to show the love of Jesus Christ to the Native American students that attend and live on the Sun Valley campus an ACSI non-denominational Christian school founded in 1963.  The school houses 34 students from 1^st through 8^th grade and has two 9^th grade students that take on-line courses.  The majority of the students live on campus with house parents and visit home on the reservation every other weekend.

Once we arrived, we were placed in a boarding house that was provided especially for teams in the Work & Witness program which ministers to the needs of the school, both materially and spiritually.  We ate dinner and then got the chance to help make candy with the students.  That night Mr. Towne challenged the group during devotions to learn at least two Sun Valley students’ names and find out a little bit about them.  Friday morning, students got up early and rehearsed for the chapel service.  Everyone did a great job and the ministry team worshiped God in their praise and worship, skits, and human videos.  The Sun Valley students, especially the younger ones, seemed to really enjoy our P.C. students.

After this, students were split into various work groups that cleared tumbleweeds, boxed up books and stained a porch.  Mrs. Koivisto was asked to teach several English classes to the Sun Valley Jr. High students.  After lunch, students were given the opportunity to interact with the Sun Valley students during P.E. classes.  Everyone seemed to have a great time and the P.E. coach was very impressed with the way P.C. students behaved and loved on the students.

Dinner was a fun event where students sat at different tables and hung out with Sun Valley students.  That night, Mr. Towne led a Jr. High service and Mrs. Koivisto lead an Elementary service.  P.C. students split into two groups that focused on these services and did skits and helped out.  The students had a great time and felt as if the Sun Valley students were opening up to the love of Jesus.  Devotions that night were the most memorable experience for me because our students talked about how the mission trip had impacted their lives and how God had shown that how these were kids just like they were with the same hopes, dreams, and feelings that they had.  I was able to remind them of the fact that some of these were kids that lived in poverty and even some of them without running water or electricity and we were still in Arizona.  It hit home with all of the students.  We marveled that the staff had such a heart for God and a love for the students that they taught.  The next morning P.C. students loaded up and headed home, making a quick stop in Flagstaff to play in the snow.  This mission trip will not be forgotten by any that attended.  All of us want to go back next year and get the opportunity to minister to and hang out with the students again.

From the voice of a student

By:  Katie Koepp

The mission trip to Sun Valley was fun, but we had to work a lot.  Some of the groups had to clear a track that had tumbleweeds on it, while others packed boxes of books in the library.  My group hung out with Mr. Towne and stained a porch in the freezing cold.   It meant a lot to go up there and work for the little kids and that school because we could really help them out.  It was awesome that we were able to minister to them.  I was a part of the elementary service with Mrs. Koivisto and it was really fun to hear all the little kids say the prayer of salvation.  That was so precious to me.