What does it take to recruit and organize 80+ volunteers, truck loads of equipment and food, and organize them for a 24 hour event? I can honestly say I have NO IDEA. Kenna Schaller (that’s her on the left at the coffee stand) is our amazing events director who makes it possible. Here’s her final thoughts about this weekends event. -Don
After listening to Don preach for a solid month on BRING-BREAK-BLESS, I would have to say that it has now become my mantra. Coming into Relay 2012 actionchurch (the organization) asked actionchurch (the people) to BRING what you had. To me that meant not only your physical supplies in the form of pancake syrup, roasters and shade tents, but it also meant your time, your talent and your muscles. God gives us all those things and we honor God when we give those things back in the form of service to Him.
As my family and I loaded the Action Central Command Center (a.k.a the family camper) on Thursday night I was feeling a little bit like I imagine Noah felt when he was loading the ark. I had a list – a long, long list and we were checking it off as we piled stuff and more stuff and a million gallons of pancake syrup into the camper. Then we added more stuff, because I get nervous about not having ENOUGH stuff.
But when we pulled into Vo-Tech on Friday and started to unload THE STUFF it dawned on me just what an amazing bunch of people I am privileged to know and serve with. Noah only had his relatives – I have my family AND my actionchurch FAMILY. People were taking off work JUST to be a part of something so incredible. Set-up was smooth, station leaders were prepared and on top of it (I couldn’t have done it without all of you), volunteers were arriving in droves, 24 hour tents were popping up and actionchurch was making a difference in the community!
However, there is that BREAK part in the middle of the mantra. And boy! There times when we were broken. Extreme storms forced us to tear down and set-up AGAIN within hours of our original set-up. The heat index was like 210 and Don likes black t-shirts. Blisters, COPD, diabetes, heel spurs, headaches, Lou Gehrigs disease, cramps, torrential downpours, baby due dates – we were all broken people, but NOTHING was keeping actionchurch down. We were determined to put our words into action and to serve our local community.
And in the end the BLESSINGS were overwhelmingly multiplied. Not only did we do what we originally set out to do – which was to serve breakfast to cancer survivors, their families and friends – but because GOD was the focus and the center of our mission – we were able to bless so many more people – just from gathering the “left-overs”! We donated breakfast (a HUGE breakfast) and a million gallons of pancake syrup to the York Rescue Mission. We donated supplies to the Lydia Center, to a local Senior Center, to a youth fellowship group and to a local food pantry. And in the end we ourselves, were BLESSED with the fellowship and comradeship that only an event like Relay for Life and only a God like our God can bring out in people. It was such a joy and such a blessing to get to personally know each one of you who came out to support our mission.
Thanks a million (gallons of syrup!),
Kenna