Tuesday, May 06, 2003
Welcome!
Androoolee is the latest addition to the Fighting Gobblers section in the Land o' Links. Andrew was a grad student in Engineering here at Tech last year, and led a Bible study in the Navigators for guys in the Corps of Cadets. He's originally from Philadelphia, and was so taken by the needs of Frederick Douglass Christian School in Chester, PA, that he put his degree on hold in order to teach there. He is an absolute stud of a Christian. I went with the Nav trip over Spring Break this year, and it was amazing how humbled and full of grace I felt that week. I've applied for a position over the summer as a counselor/teacher at their summer camp/school; I'll hear back soon. There was another trip over Spring Break, which went to Florida to help Habitat for Humanity. Several people, especially those who had gone to Florida and heard from the Chester group about our experiences, asked me if there was another trip going over the summer. The long and short of it is that I ended up putting together a trip that'll take place next week. It'll be myself, two guys who've been there before, and two Freshmen who went on the Florida trip (both are new Christians, and one is getting baptized in a few hours (the other was baptized as a baby and believes in the validity of infant baptism)). Chester is a very dangerous place; perhaps one of the most dangerous in the country. The World Impact mission there, especially the school, is truly a "city on a hill" for the community. While we'll stick out like sore thumbs on account of not being Black, it also means that we'll be identified as being missionaries and generally left alone by those who might otherwise seek to do us harm. That doesn't mean that we'll be completely safe, of course; if you read Andrew's blog, you'll see that shootings occur regularly on his street, along with other gang violence, drug dealing, and various other crimes. The area is seriously diseased, but you can sense something in the community which hasn't yet given up hope, and is still trying to raise children in a wholesome environment. It's not easy, but because of people like Andrew, the area (and the world) is a seriously better place.
Androoolee is the latest addition to the Fighting Gobblers section in the Land o' Links. Andrew was a grad student in Engineering here at Tech last year, and led a Bible study in the Navigators for guys in the Corps of Cadets. He's originally from Philadelphia, and was so taken by the needs of Frederick Douglass Christian School in Chester, PA, that he put his degree on hold in order to teach there. He is an absolute stud of a Christian. I went with the Nav trip over Spring Break this year, and it was amazing how humbled and full of grace I felt that week. I've applied for a position over the summer as a counselor/teacher at their summer camp/school; I'll hear back soon. There was another trip over Spring Break, which went to Florida to help Habitat for Humanity. Several people, especially those who had gone to Florida and heard from the Chester group about our experiences, asked me if there was another trip going over the summer. The long and short of it is that I ended up putting together a trip that'll take place next week. It'll be myself, two guys who've been there before, and two Freshmen who went on the Florida trip (both are new Christians, and one is getting baptized in a few hours (the other was baptized as a baby and believes in the validity of infant baptism)). Chester is a very dangerous place; perhaps one of the most dangerous in the country. The World Impact mission there, especially the school, is truly a "city on a hill" for the community. While we'll stick out like sore thumbs on account of not being Black, it also means that we'll be identified as being missionaries and generally left alone by those who might otherwise seek to do us harm. That doesn't mean that we'll be completely safe, of course; if you read Andrew's blog, you'll see that shootings occur regularly on his street, along with other gang violence, drug dealing, and various other crimes. The area is seriously diseased, but you can sense something in the community which hasn't yet given up hope, and is still trying to raise children in a wholesome environment. It's not easy, but because of people like Andrew, the area (and the world) is a seriously better place.
