Day 2

On the second day, Sunday, we spent 4 hours of the day driving from Montevideo to Paysandu. There was not much for houses, cities, population, or anything between the two cities. It was pretty much flat with an occasional city here and there.

Here are some pictures of the camp:

Once we arrived we dropped our stuff off at the Couto's house, ate lunch and left for the Hot Spring, about an hour and a half away.

After the Hot Springs we went to a church in the area where Ethan, one of the members of our group spoke. 

Then we went out to eat around 9:00pm.

Here we had the privilege to try some....guess what...?

...cow tongue.

It actually did not taste that bad, I kind of enjoyed it.

Then we traveled about an hour back to camp and got settled into our rooms for the night.

Here is where the girls stayed for the week. 

and I even got my own room

I think the thing that has stood out to me the most at the this point in the trip after going to two church services is the fact that even though we couldn't speak their language and communicate very well with the natives there still seemed to be a bond - brothers and sisters in Christ - that brought us together and it was okay that we couldn't understand each other. The church service was nice on Sunday, because there was an American missionary family there, Andy and Collette Thompson, and then a Uruguayan family that spoke English as well, so that was helpful.

So far the trip has been full of fun and relaxation, but that was the last of it (for the most part)  for the rest of the week, the work was beginning the next day....but that was still fun too, just in a different way. ;)

Day 1

Here is a picture of the team that went to Uruguay. This was taken just a few minutes before we left. 

We started the trip by driving down to Charlotte, NC where my grandpa drove us to the airport and we flew from there to Miami to Montevideo. The trip went very smoothly, without any complications. When we arrived we were greeted by 

Danny Vallette 

and 

Bruno Couto 

the two missionaries we were working with. 

Here is a picture of us once we arrived at the airport after 24+ hours of traveling.

We spent the first night at the Vallette's house and then traveled four hours north to Paysandu, where the camp was and where the Couto's lived. 

Saturday when we arrived we were able to go to the beach and relax for a little bit before the youth rally that evening. The youth rally was a success, and it was fun to interact and get to know the teens there, even though none of them spoke English and none of us spoke Spanish. Here are a couple pictures of the event. 

The church the youth rally was held at.

Mike, one of the guys on the trip spoke at the service through an interpreter, Danny Vallette.

These are some of the games we played. Most of them were name games. Not sure what the first one was, but the second was the game of swat. 

Our group with the teens. 

All of this was the first day, when we first got there, so we were all pretty tired and worn out from the trip, but it was a lot of fun. 

I'm Back

Well, friends. After 29 hours of traveling I have finally arrived back in West Virginia at school. It is good to be back, but I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent in Uruguay. I will miss everyone. 


Sorry, I was unable to post while over there, they kept us pretty busy, and internet was not easily accessible. However, I did make sure that I kept a journal of all the happenings of each day, and next week sometime I will be receiving a CD with all the pictures that were taken while we were over there. So, over the course of the next couple weeks, in my spare time, ;) I will be posting what we did, how it went, prayer requests, and of course pictures. 


Thank you all for your prayers while we were over there, even though I wasn't able to help you make them specific like I had originally planned I know God heard them and He was with us and in control every step of the way. 

We're Leaving!

Well, the time has come for us to leave. I am super excited, but nervous at the same time. I just have to sit through chapel and then we will head down to Charlotte where we will catch our first plane to Miami, and from there we will be flying to Montevideo. 


It's hard to believe the time has come for us to head out, but as I was packing yesterday it was just starting to hit me that this trip after all that preparation and planning is now a reality. I can't wait!


I will try to keep this updated while we are over there, but depending on computer and WiFi accessibility it may not be as often as I would like. Thank you everyone for your prayers. They are a great encouragement!


Right now the only prayer request I have is for safety in our travels and that everything will go smoothly. Love and appreciate each one of you!

Trip Preparations

The Lord has given me an amazing opportunity to travel to Uruguay during my Spring Break, March 2-12 with 9 other people from Appalachian Bible College. It has been exciting to see how He formed the team. I also have the amazing privilege of having my dad along on the trip as one of the sponsors. It has also been encouraging to see Him provide all of the finances. I am excited to see what else He has in store for me there. We truly serve an awesome God! 

We are now a week away from leaving and the final preparations are under way, however, there are many things to do between now and then. The main thing is getting ideas together for a youth rally that we are putting together. We will also have various work projects that we will be doing throughout the week. 

Please pray for the group that everything will come together smoothly, and for safety travelling over there. 

Please pray for me that I will have a humble attitude willing to do whatever is asked of me and ready to learn. This experience is brand new to me, especially in the area of camping which is something that I know little about. Also, pray that God will use me and grow me through this experience. Thank you all for your prayers they mean so much to me and are very encouraging!