Dakota Sioux youth find growth in mission trip to Kentucky
Jul. 21, 2006 News media contact: Tim Tanton * (615) 7425470* Nashville {439}
NOTE: Photographs are available at http://umns.umc.org.
A UMNS Feature By Cathy Farmer*
For Summer LittleWind and her friends, a first-time mission trip provided an opportunity to reach out to others and work with young people from different cultural backgrounds.
"It feels good to be a missionary," said LittleWind, 17, speaking for her cousins and friends from the Spirit Lake Reservation in North Dakota.
The large group of Dakota Sioux youth was in Western Kentucky on the invitation of the Rev. Gregory Waldrop. They were there to spend a week working on three projects for PUMP, the Paducah (Ky.) District's "Urban Mission Plunge" in the United Methodist Church's Memphis Annual (regional) Conference. The conference includes part of Western Kentucky.
"People are always coming to the reservation to help us," LittleWind said softly. "It's awesome to be able to help someone else."
Waldrop, pastor of Fountain Avenue United Methodist Church in Paducah as well as director of PUMP, said he first encountered the Sioux youth when he led a mission work team to North Dakota last year.
"It was a fabulous trip," he said. "Bob and Ada Lower, the General Board of Global Ministries missionaries stationed there, hosted us at the Presbyterian church on the reservation."
Many wonderful connections were made among the Native American youth and the kids from Western Kentucky, prompting Waldrop to ask the Lowers to bring their group to Paducah the following summer.
"Connection is a big part of what we're doing," Waldrop said. "These mission trips are designed to change people's lives, and by that, I mean mostly the lives of the missionaries, the youth. This is one of those amazing deals where those who serve are the ones who get the most blessings."
Raising money
Waldrop assured the Lowers that he would find the money to help underwrite their trip south.
"I thought maybe 10 or so would want to come," he said, "but 33 took us up on the invitation."
Waldrop patched together grants from the Memphis Conference Program Ministries office, the Paducah District Council on Ministries, and the Conference Youth Council. "I managed to come up with $1,700 (in) seed money," he said.
Bob and Ada Lower weren't worried about raising the rest of the $10,000 that would be needed for the trip.
"The kids raised over $3,000 themselves selling Indian tacos and fried bread," Bob said. "The rest came through gifts from churches and individuals in the Dakotas Conference. The Dakotas Conference is so supportive of our ministry, both financially and with their prayers."
Lower explained that the large number of youth, ages 11-17, who decided to make the trip are from all four districts of the Spirit Lake Reservation. Many of them are "unchurched." "This trip has the support of the whole tribe," he added.
"It wasn't all that hard to raise the money," Summer said. "We baked a lot, sold a lot, and to all kinds of people. This is our very first trip leaving the reservation."
"We were careful to explain to them from the beginning that it would be hard work and dirty," Bob Lower said, "but that it would be God's work, and God doesn't always give us easy tasks."
He also felt it was important for the youth to be in ministry to others "so they would understand about the people who come to the reservation," he said.
Multicultural effort
The Native American youth were joined in PUMP by Hispanic youth, African Americans and Caucasians. "We also have all economic strata represented as well," Waldrop said. "It's so exhilarating to discover God at work so powerfully among young people and adults across every difference we humans can invent."
Matt Gager, a member of St. Luke Aldersgate in Paducah, gruffly said the work wasn't "all that hard" as he chipped old plaster from a wall using a chisel and small hammer.
"This is my first mission trip, and it's a lot better than just sitting watching TV all summer."
Betty Stallins, one of the directors of the Hispanic Ministry in Mayfield, expressed appreciation for the work being done.
"I'd stand on my head over this if I were able," she said. "This is a gift from God - all this work in such a short time. Never in a year could our core group have done all the work the PUMP camp team has done in these four days. We thank God for them being the hands and feet of Christ."
In addition to working on the building housing the Hispanic Ministry, the youth were simultaneously working on two other projects.
"We spent two days on tornado relief, picking up debris in pastures and yards in Marshall County," Waldrop said. And 20 of the 54 were providing leadership at a vacation Bible school at Northside United Methodist Church in Paducah, and they were scheduled to read to children in a homeless shelter in Paducah and give them some books.
"All these kids were commissioned as short-term missionaries during a service at Broadway United Methodist Church when we first arrived," Lower said. All the youth were housed for the week at the downtown Paducah church. "The whole congregation prayed for them. This is so important for them."
Summer LittleWind agreed. "I like leaving the reservation. There's nothing at home for us. There's not much constructive to do. That's one reason most of us are active in the church. It would be a blessing for us to come again."
*Farmer is director of communications for the Memphis Annual (regional) Conference of the United Methodist Church.
News media contact: Tim Tanton, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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United Methodist News Service Photos and stories also available at: http://umns.umc.org
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