Aim Right Winter Retreat

If you read the previous blog post, you already know that Aim Right's Winter Retreat didn't go as planned. Here's a recap of events as I recall them (which means the timing of events may be a little off):

Friday, January 28

5:00 p.m. Staff and teens gathered at Aim Right to load vans with luggage and people.

5:40 p.m. Prayed over the trip in our vans and began the journey to Flagstaff.

7:40ish p.m. Arrived safely in Flagstaff and ate at McDonald's.

8:45 p.m. Arrived at El Nathan Christian Camp. Relieved vans of luggage and people.

9:15ish p.m. Gathered for our first session with speakers Tom & Marcia Kuyper. Made collages reflecting our lives and relationships.

Saturday, January 29

12:30 a.m. Lights out, with campers in their bunks and (mostly) settled down.

5:30 a.m. Intern Andrea Stoltzfus, sleeping on a top bunk, awoke feeling nauseated. She attempted to climb down from the bunk and fell, hitting her head on the floor. Stephanie Reed, who was staying in the same room, kept a close eye on Andrea from then on, especially when Andrea began throwing up.

6:30-7:30 a.m. Other campers began to wake up. Several complained of headaches and nausea, and some were throwing up as well.

8:00-8:45 a.m. Symptoms appeared to be worsening. With a hunch that carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning might be the cause, the heat was shut off in the lodge, doors opened, and Darrell instructed all campers and staff to evacuate to another building. Camp director and 911 notified.

8:45ish a.m. Flagstaff fire crews and emergency medical personnel began to arrive at the camp. They checked each individual for evidence of CO poisoning and placed oxygen masks on those with the highest levels of CO in their body.

Ro lightened up the morning for us. He had quickly slipped into the wifey's boots, not knowing that would be the only footware he'd be wearing for a long while!

10:00ish a.m. Following the advice of EMS personnel, everyone in our group was transported to Flagstaff Medical Center via ambulance or van. There, CO levels were once again tested, with the most affected being placed on oxygen. Darrell and other "well" staff members called parents, comforted the afflicted, and served as patient's advocates throughout the lengthy ER check-in and treatment process.

Andrea suffered a mild concussion from her fall and was the most serious patient. As you can tell, the other campers were in good spirits while they patiently waited for the oxygen to do its job -- a process that for many lasted 2 to 3 hours.

Finally....an Andrea who is looking and feeling much better!

Darrell, in charge of keeping paperwork straight, questions answered, fears calmed, and wise decisions made. I recall him saying, "Now we know why we always make sure the kids have signed release forms!"

Even with the wifey's boots on his feet, Ro still kept smiling!

Mama Julie, who was most often back in the ER as a patient advocate / guardian for teens.

Our speakers for the weekend -- Tom & Marcia Kuyper. They were troopers!

Several individuals in our group felt fine, testing at very low CO levels, and therefore could refuse treatment. Others were checked into the ER for extended oxygen therapy and monitoring. After everyone in our group was released and fed, we headed back to El Nathan to pack up and head back to Phoenix -- definitely not the camp experience we had hoped for, but nevertheless the wisest decision considering the circumstances.

To my knowledge, the exact cause of the CO poisoning has not been determined. We are just grateful for God's protection of our group and know that His hand was upon us!

Also, if you are interested, here is a live report that aired on the 10:00 news Saturday evening.

And...special thanks to all of you I "stole" photos from on Facebook!

In the News.....

It's been a rather eventful day, but all praise goes to God for His protection! Check back for a more lengthy update on Monday, but for now, you can read about "us" through the reporting of various Arizona news sources.


Kids in Flagstaff Poisoned; Officials Blame Furnace.

Gas Leak Sends Dozens to Hospital.

28 Taken to Hospital After Flagstaff Gas Leak.

Flagstaff Lodge Carbon Monoxide Sends 28 to Hospital.

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork." (Psalm 19:1) Even poor photography skills can't hide the beauty of the Arizona sky yesterday. It was a perfect day to postpone homework awhile and play b-ball with friends.

We have a wall inside the Rec Center where we display photos of various kids. Some new attendees wanted to be "on the wall," so we did some photo taking during Rec time.

Recently we've included play time outside at the beginning of Kids Klub, to take advantage of the remaining daylight. The hula hoopers were hoopin' it up last night.

In continuing with lessons from the life of Jesus, children learned that Jesus raised His friend Lazarus from the dead. Then, we wasted some perfectly fine TP re-enacting Lazarus in his graveclothes.

Almost 2 weeks ago, we welcomed new intern Seth Roggie. We're so glad he's joined our team!

Now...some Q & A with Seth:

Q: How many brothers and sisters do you have?

A: 1 brother, 4 sisters

Q: What is your favorite snack?

A: Oreos and Peanut butter

Q: Something that kids and teens today need to hear:

A: That no matter what they have done or are going through, God is there and loves them.

Q: What is one of your pet peeves?

A: People thinking that you have to get married...that it's impossible to be content being single for the rest of your life.

Q: Choose 3 toppings for your pizza.

A: Pepperoni, Sausage, Bacon.

Q: Name a Bible character you admire and why.

A: David. Whatever was going through, he took it to God.

Q: Something you've never done, but would like to do:

A: Get to drive an Audi R8 for a week.

Q: What is your favorite cereal?

A: Homemade granola.

Q: Describe your Sky Harbor baggage claim experience in 5 words or less.

A: Greatest greeting ever!! [See this post if you want to know why]

I know that interns love getting packages from afar, so if you're reading this and know Seth, why not bless him with a stockpile of peanut butter and Oreos? I'm sure he could find a way to use a Papa John's or Pizza Hut gift card, too!

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Please be in prayer for this weekend, Aim Right's first ever Winter Camp in Flagstaff, Arizona. Twenty-two youth are attending and will be learning about relationships -- with God and with others.

Guess what showed up at Kids Klub last night?

A bus full of kiddos!

We've owned the bus for several years, but the rub is that we haven't had a bus driver for over a year--perhaps even closer to two years. God recently provided a driver, so the bus is back on the road again!

"So Abraham called that place The LORD will provide. And to this day it is said, 'On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided.' " Genesis 22:14

The 3-Day Weekend

Caleb was "in the zone" (literally) while he shared about trusting God and stepping outside of your comfort zone at Teen Night on Friday evening.

On Saturday evening, our newest intern, Seth Roggie from Castorland, NY, flew into Phoenix Sky Harbor. Here are a few scenes from his memorable Aim Right welcome at the airport.

Home sweet home for one year!

Monday's teen Bible study crowd filled the living room of the guys' house. Jeff led the study from Romans 8 and also tackled some deep questions that teens asked, like "Why did God create Hitler?" and "Is capital punishment wrong?" I didn't get photos of the actual study time, but here are a few of the hang-out time afterward.

Tutoring 1.11.11

Tutoring kicked off on 1.11.11 with students getting to know their tutors, taking a reading assessment (thanks, Mrs. Chupp!), doing worksheets, and reading books.

Trisha Chupp (pictured below) is a teacher at Imagine Elementary in Avondale and will be joining us monthly to do special reading instruction and activities.

We always have a waiting list of students, so if you are interested in volunteering as a tutor, please call our office at (602) 462-1987 or e-mail me (Amy) at amy@aimright.org. Tutoring meets every Tuesday evening from 6:00-7:30 p.m. Students are in 1st or 2nd grade and have been referred by Garfield Elementary School. If you can read and love kids, we'd love to have you!

What you do on a 65-degree day in January

Play ball!

The boys are out in full force today.