Fall adventures

As a team we came to  a collective decision that this year we wanted to make our weekend trips with the kids about experiencing new things, appreciating the simple things and enjoy the people and things around us without spending a lot of money. Each other of our team members is an active adventurer and hard core nature enthusiast. And so our first trip this weekend was one to a park for a picnic and to slack line.
In the end only two boys were able to come of the 5 we invited and so we decided to make it interesting and try to find a back entrance into the park. This brought us to jumping fences, falling down hills, walking along the Humber river, trying to find a way to cross and finding out way to the park. Side note the whole thing was done while carrying lunch and a bike!
We finally arrived at our destination and clasped in a heap for lunch. One of my young man prayed, he prayed for safety in our crazy travels, for us to have a good time and for us to have double the amount of fun on the way home.
The rest of the day was spent tossing a football around, climbing trees, slack lining, catching a frog (and bring it home), observing deer, teaching/learning how to bike and lots of laughter.
Never before had either of these boys hiked through a forest, slack lined or climbed a tree. One of the boys for the first time learned "how" to ride a bike and never had they ever had a pet frog named jumpy or been so close to deer.
It was a day of new experiences and enjoying the things God has created so beautifully. It was for them a Saturday they didn't spend in front of their TV playing video games. It was a day of adventure. One that I hoped taught they how much there is to enjoy in this world if you just look around.

A new season!

Once again my apartment as filled up with young adults from around the world as we dive into a new season and a new year of after school program in our much loved communities through UrbanPromise.
Going into my second year holds more responsibility in training, leading, as well as be pushed past the normal grind of running after school program.
Yesterday was a revamp day as we evaluated last years program, schedule and carefully made adjustments for this year.
Over all our youth program in Rexdale is a much younger crowd compared to last year. We have about 10 youth who will be moving up from the kids program into our youth program which is very exciting for them and for us!  There is so much potential in the group we will have this year. They are eager, full of questions and are up for anything. This gives us huge opportunity which I feel a huge responsibility to make sure that it is not ignored.
As I brainstormed what I wanted this year to be about I kept coming back to experience. Experience God, experience new things, and to learn.
There is so much to be learned and experiences by our kids that if not for what we plan they will never get a chance to experience.
As I thought on that I also started realizing all the many resources I have in people I know and friends. Resources not so much in the materialistic way but in the resource of brains, ideas and skills. So one of my big goals this year is to use these resources, to use the skills of others I know to bless these kids and I am very excited to see God is going to bring up and pull out of this desire and what He is going to do through it all.
He has also opened more opportunities for me to be involved in the bigger picture of things happening in Toronto as I helped start up a brand new daily bread food bank last Sunday in east Etobicoke and will be continue to help with new branch of out reach into our community.

Please pray for Camp Victory, Camp Freedom and Camp Hope as we buckle down, evaluate, pray and plan over our program plans from now until Christmas season. Pray for wisdom and creativity to see outside of the box.
Pray also for the food bank that through it we would be able to build relationships with families within our community and share with them the living bread of life!