1MISSION House Build Trip – 1 Year Ago

One year ago today we were in the midst of Day 1 of our 1MISSION House Build Trip in Mexico. Our group of fourteen from Wilmington, Ohio, flew to Phoenix, Arizona, and then drove to Rocky Point, Mexico, to build a house for Miguel and Deysi. We were excited and also somewhat nervous about this new experience. It turned out to be a great trip and one we still talk about.

While some of our group had done some traveling and others had participated in mission trips, none of us had traveled to Mexico to build a house. I remember looking through the house plans 1MISSION sent in advance of our trip and wondering if our group of inexperienced house builders could do the job. The group was fantastic, working hard every day, doing whatever needing done and trusting our crew leaders so we did things the right way. We wanted that house standing after we left!

Looking back at pictures I was reminded of so many things:

– new friendships with Miguel & Deysi, Ricky and others from 1MISSION

– getting a small taste of what life is like in that area of Mexico

– the great work that 1MISSION is doing

– the privilege of playing a small part in that work

– seeing our Ohio friends interact with Miguel & Deysi and others in Mexico despite a language barrier

– being grateful for what we have and how big God’s kingdom is

I know many in our group would love to go back in the future. While it’s hard to believe that the trip was a year ago, it was a great opportunity and one for which I am.

I posted this video when we returned from the trip and it offers a visual recap of some of our experiences.

Reflections on our Mexico Trip

After months of planning, promoting, sending emails, meeting with our team, getting passports and other documents, checking over the packing list and praying about this adventure, our trip to Mexico was a success.

I guess I say success because we traveled to and from Mexico and all fourteen made it back safely!  (The only hiccup in the trip was a long layover in Las Vegas that had us rolling into the church parking lot at 4:30 am)

I say success because we built the home on schedule…and it was still standing when we left!

I say success because we truly felt like we made a small contribution to the big work that 1MISSION is doing in that area of Mexico.

I say success because we were able to work alongside the young couple that would be living in the house we built – Miguel and Deysi.  For some of us on the trip, this couple is close in age to our own children.  For one of the students on the trip, she made the connection that Miguel and Deysi are the same age as her sister and brother-in-law.  She said she didn’t really understand what it meant to serve a brother and sister in Christ until this trip.  That’s too cool!

I say success because the trip changed us.  Our eyes were opened to what it looks like to live in a place other than Ohio.  For most of our group, this was the first trip out of the United States.  None of us had been to this part of Mexico.  So, to see what life is like for the people of Rocky Point, it offered us a different perspective.  While life isn’t perfect anywhere, we gained an appreciation for where we live.  While the house we were built isn’t extravagant by any means compared to what we see in the US, it stood out among some of the other housing we saw.  1MISSION seeks to create community by giving people in poverty the opportunity to earn a house by serving their community.  We were humbled to be a small part of that process.

We had a great experience in Mexico and are grateful to all those who supported us and made the trip possible.

We put together a short recap video of our time with 1MISSION.  You can check it out and see what happened during our time in Mexico.

House Build Group Leaves Next Week

The time of departure is getting closer. We are now counting down days, not weeks! Kind of hard to believe that at this time next week, we will be in Mexico working on a home for a family. Pretty exciting!

Our group has been making final preparations, talking about final details and insuring all paperwork is done. As I mentioned in a previous post, we have received great support from our church family and community. Over the past 9 weeks, we have provided a concession stand for a Karate Tournament and our Upward Basketball Program. After running the final numbers, we raised just over $2400! That’s pretty exciting! Thanks again to all those who supported us.

Please be in prayer for our group and for the family we will serve. If you are from the Wilmington area (or even if you aren’t), please be in prayer for our team. Here is a list of our team members: Scott, Leyah and Avery Bradshaw; Susi Bradshaw; Bob, Dianna & Bethany Brausch; Ken Driscoll; Lauren Ellis; Andrew Garrett; John Luttrell; JB Smith; Jeff Walls; Tony Brackemyre.

Support Spring Break House Build Trip

We are looking forward to our Spring Break House Build Trip to Rocky Point, Mexico with 1MISSION. Currently we have twelve people committed to be a part of building a home for a family and are even looking to add a few more to our group before the end of January. The trip will take place March 28 – April 2.

To help raise the necessary funds for the trip, we will be providing a concession stand at a Karate Tournament hosted at WCC and during this season’s Upward Basketball games at the church.

You can support this trip by donating needed items for us to serve.  Anything that is donated will help defray the cost of the participants on our trip.

Here is a list of items that would assist our concessions:

12 ounce cans of soda (Pepsi, Coke, Diet Pepsi, Diet Coke, Dr. Pepper, Sprite, etc.)

16.9 ounce bottles of water

All-Star size (12 oz) bottles of Gatorade

Homemade or Store Bought Cookies

Snack Size (1 ounce) bags of chips (Potato Chips, Doritos, Fritos, Cheetos, etc)

Little Debbie Snack Cakes

Candy Bars (Snickers, Baby Ruth, Milky Way, etc.)

Ring Pops, Sour Punch Straws and other individually wrapped candies

Whatever items are donated will be helpful to our group as we raise funds for the trip.  Currently, the cost per person is estimated at $1,200 which includes our airfare, vehicle rental and cost for housing and meals.

Feel free comment on this post or fill out the contact form below. Thanks!

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