Toronto - Day 1 (Sunday)

We finally made it, we are here in the great white north. For those who are not familiar with the mission trip blogs, I will be doing very little of the writing. Each night three students will be sharing on what they have seen and experienced throughout the day and trip. But, since we've spent more time on the highway than here, the stories are a little varied today.

And for everyone's sake of mind, yes we blew a tire this morning. It was a back tire, of which each side of the bus has two back tires. If it wasn't for the noise people wouldn't have known we blew a tire at all. The technician noticed our valve stem was broken (meaning it was likely we were slowly leaking air until the tire couldn't sustain pressure), it's all fixed and we're here safe and sound.

Now for some other perspectives...

Today was quite the interesting day. First, two hours were wasted fixing the buss tire, fun times. Later on, when the border came, we were not interrogated and everything went pretty smooth. Space is crammed at the church we are at but we will make the best of things and I feel that we all will have a great time in Toronto and change the lives of many people including ourselves. Happy birthday Scott!

-Adam Woodward

Greetings from the frozen frontier of the North American continent, also known as Canada. I write this at the conclusion of a long day that began at roughly four in the morning and included, among other things, terrible renditions of the Frozen soundtrack, a border crossing, and the exploration of an alternative route on the Canadian highway system. It was also my first time leaving the country. The lack of American flags is somewhat startling, but interactions with actual Canadians have been limited so far so culture shock is not really a factor at this point. Tomorrow we will be placed into groups and assigned service locations, which will see the beginning of the main service portion of the mission trip. Concluding sentence.

-Griffin Hobson

Preparing to leave the church this morning, with coffee in hand, I was pumped for this trip, to say the least. The drive didn’t necessarily go as planned… forgotten pillow, blown tire, wrong turns, and sweaty, hot buses. Despite all the bumps in the road, we made it to Toronto safely. As this being my first time leaving the country, everything as similar as it might have been, suddenly seemed so foreign. We pulled into the church and the excitement took over. I write this, ready for the week ahead and ready to change the lives of people I meet. (Happy Birthday, Scott!)

-Lauren Detrich