Beginning of Alaska 2012

Hello! Today was our first full day in Copper Center, Alaska for the 2012 VBS. We have been in the state since about 12:30pm Thursday. We were able to do some sightseeing on both Thursday and Friday. Thursday we just drove down the main highway and stopped to see various scenic views along the way. We saw some Dall's sheep that evening as well as a few bald eagles.

Beluga Point - Jake, Jenna & Christine

Friday we traveled from Anchorage to Seward and visited the Exit Glacier. On the way, we saw a bear, which was the first our return participant, Jenna, has seen in her 4 trips here. We have also seen about 10 moose thus far, including two babies.  The glacier was a fun thing to see and we had a nice hike around that area.

Exit Glacier

Afterward we had lunch overlooking the water in a little diner. On the way back to the church where we were bunking during our time in Anchorage, we decided to visit the Portage Glacier, which also gives you a chance to see some small icebergs that have come away from that glacier. Beautiful areas to visit!

Portage Glacier

Our Redeemer - our host church near Anchorage - at 11:30pm

Yesterday (Saturday) we met up with Gary, a team member from Pennsylvania. After a brief talk from Ruth Zoller, we were off to Costco & Walmart to shop for groceries, including the VBS snacks and supplies for a community picnic. We filled our Suburban to the brim and then some! Once we were all packed up, we started toward Copper Center and arrived here around 7:30pm or so.

This morning we attended Bible study, worship and a potluck with the Copper Center congregation. Afterward we met with Roeskes to figure out how things will work throughout VBS this week. We just finished our taco dinner and are about to tackle some prep work for tomorrow.  It has been a great weekend! Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we begin what everyone has been describing as an energetic, chaotic, but FUN week of VBS!

The closing thought for today is - where did our 2nd package of tortillas go?  Anyone have a bet as to how long it will take us to find them?  Jenna says Friday. I'm not so sure we'll ever find them!

-Christina