No One Over 30 Review

It's been a week since we've returned from Asheville on our first annual No One Over 30 summer trip.

It is cleverly named No One Over 30 simply because no one, chaperone nor student, was over the age of 30 (or 28, because I was the oldest).

Instead of giving you a long summary of what happened and didn't happen, I'm going to give out grades for different aspects of the trip (with a little commentary, of course).

Students: A
All the chaperones were blown away with how little all the students complained and were willing to change plans on the fly...and there was a lot of that on this trip. I actually had one 23-year old chaperone say, "I only came because TJ begged me to. And I thought the kids were going to be really annoying, but I was wrong. They were great!" I was also given compliments by employees of different businesses regarding our students' manners. Kudos to you, BRINK family!! The only reason why you didn't get an A+ was because of the ocassional flatulence in the packed vans. :)

Chaperones: B+
Our oldest chaperone (other than me) was 26 and the youngest was 18. For most of them it was their first time being a volunteer with no one else looking over their shoulder. The chaperones jumped right in and had fun at every stage of the trip with the students. They definitely brought the youthful energy from that I wanted. I only have a few criticisms. Most of the complaints I fielded came from volunteers, not students. The chaperones also tended to clump together. It was evident when I had six of the 12 riding in the van I drove. But Myraida and Andrew were exceptional. Like they had parental instincts turned on all the time. But hey, for the first time, without much training from me, all the others did excellent!!

Our host families: B+
If you went on the trip, you might be questioning this grade. Let me explain. This grade is for the families that housed all the students, not for the ones that didn't or for Beverly Hills Baptist as a whole. BIG THANKS TO the Greene's, Kiser's, Caldwell's, Lee's, Ann Kellington and Annabelle White!! Once the housing situation was finally settled (on the third night) the trip went much more smoothly. Some houses were a little crowded but it was good! Other families totally pampered our students and refused to be reimbursed, oh my goodness what a blessing:) Most of these households will definitely be asked to house us next year!

The grade would've been an A if things were like they were from Friday on at the beginning.

Beverly Hills Baptist: C
I was sorely disappointed in some of the feedback I heard from certain students and chaperones. The one that continually stuck out was, "We felt excluded." Out of nearly 300 people who attend BHBC, we had the hardest time finding room for 39 students. The first two nights 15 girls were staying at one house with only floor space to sleep on and only one bathroom! Even though the pastor & youth pastor asked for host families for nearly a month, flashing a sign up sheet all the time, NO ONE SIGNED UP!!! I later learned all but one of the families were last-minute additions!

On Wednesday night, our band was unable to play because there wasn't an amplifier or a drum set upstairs. The youth from BHBC were told NOT to come and join us for a message, music and fun so we pretty much had OUR meeting in THEIR church....weird. Jared (from BHBC) decided to join us anyway, for which I'm very, very thankful. And he was the only student from BHBC that ended up connecting with our students very well (Jeffrey, you did too). Other than that, our groups were in the same rooms but completely separate from one another.

We felt like a burden, not brothers and sisters to Beverly Hills.


After reading this maybe you'll understand why I answer the way I do when people ask, "How was the trip?" I'll definitely say "good" or "great" but I know that it could've been better. This trip gave me a very strong confirmation that at Forest Park Church is where I am meant to be. I love this church and I love our students and volunteers! I am completely committed to seeing our church reach so many more than other churches that are afraid to change and progress (notice I didn't say compromise and disregard traditions).

Once again, thank you Jessica, Kaylin, Chelsea, Ashley, Myraida, Amanda, Jasmine, Leanna, Ryan, Jordan and Andrew! Thanks to you students who made the trip totally worth it! Thanks to our host families! I owe you all:)

We definitely will go back to Asheville because we had so much fun on the hikes, at Sliding Rock, Fun Depot and the waterfalls. I'm already making plans for next year's trip! Check out Turtleback Falls on Google Images, for example!! It's gonna be even better!! I wonder how many we can bring then?
60? 70?

Dude, I'm pumped just thinking about it!