Sign up now for Odyssey 09!  Starting on August 9th the youth ministry will be departing for a week long road trip adventure.  The theme of our adventure is “Walking With God”.  Everyday we will be exploring what it means to walk with God and live in faith.   Along the road trip the youth will take part in a scavenger hunt in Solvang, exploring Morro Bay, Hiking Big Sur, Camping on the beach, playing in Great America Theme Park, touring San Francisco and finishing off with Yosemite Valley.

The Cost is $250 and your $50 deposits are due by July 8th!

Trip dates are August 9th – 15th

Trip Itinerary:

Places - Solvang, Morro Bay, San Simeon, Big Sur, San Jose, San Francisco, Yosemite National Park

To Do – Scavenger Hunt, Exploration, Hiking, Beaches, Roller Coasters, Water Park, Cal Academy of Science, Aquarium, Planetarium, Rain Forest, Cable Cars, China Town, Fisherman’s Warf, Ghirardelli Square, Golden Gate Bridge, Yosemite Falls, etc.

Campgrounds – San Simeon State Park, Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park, Foxworthy Baptist Church, Mt Tmalpais State Park, and the Sierra National Forest.

Join us Saturday, June 6th as we serve breakfast to the down and out.  We will be meeting at Covenant Community Church at 5:30 a.m. and then heading over to the Santa Ana Civic Center.  For a map follow this link.  We will be finished around 10 a.m.

If you are available we can use help in food prep the night before.  Meet at the church on Friday, June 5th at 4:30 p.m.  We will be finished with the prep around 7:30 p.m.  I hope you can stay after we are finished with the food prep for a special time of worship and Bible study.  Hope to see you there!

Backpacking Map

Start getting ready now for this wilderness adventure.  If you love to camp and want to go places that many people will never see this is the trip for you.  This is a four day backpacking trip through the San Gabriel mountains.  Starting at Vincent Gap off of Highway 2 and hiking through to the East Fork of the San Gabriel River off of Highway 39 each day has new surprises!

The trip dates are June 15th-18th.  If you have never gone backpacking, no worries.  We will be holding a couple of meetings to get ready for this trip.  We will meet in the youth room on Sundays at 10 a.m. before second service on May 31st, and June 7th.  If you plan on taking part in this trip you must attend one of these pre-trip meetings.  We will be going over the packing list, helping you to create a menu, and getting ready for this kind of strenuous activity.  We will also be dividing up group equipment.

You can download and print up a backpacking-check-list by clicking this link.  I also have created some backpacking-menu to help you out.  You will also need a medical release and an event release filled out and signed by your parent/s.

Backpacking Trip Schedule:
Sunday, May 31st – Meeting at 10:00 a.m. in the youth room.
Sunday, June 7th – Meeting at 10:00 a.m. in youth room.
Sunday, June 14th – Final packing meeting at 1:00 p.m. in youth room.  Bring your pack.
Monday, June 15th – Meet at church at 6:00 a.m. We will stop for breakfast at the Mountain Top Cafe.  Then we will have our drivers drop us off at the trail head.
Thursday, June 18th – We will be picked up at the East Fork of the San Gabriel river parking area around 11:00 a.m.  On the way home we’ll stop at In & Out for lunch and be back at the church by 2 p.m.

Some things that you will need to have:
1. $20.00 for food on the way there and on our return.
2.  An internal or external Frame pack
3.  Hiking Boots/ shoes.  Something good ankle support and solid tread.  Remember you will be carrying at least an extra 30 to 40 pounds.
4.  For the rest see backpacking-check-list

Be at the church at 6:00 p.m. on Friday the 29th.  The cost is $8.00 per person.  Bring extra money for snacks or food.  We will carpool to Cinema City Theaters for the 7:10 p.m. showing.  After the movie we’ll have a group discussion about the themes presented in the movie and how they relate to Christianity.  Hope you can make it!!!

Love like Christ,

Aaron

I hope you can join us for this great retreat/camping trip in Joshua Tree National Park.  If you have not been to Joshua Tree National Park you are going to be stoked.  Joshua Tree is giant playground full of boulders to climb and crevices to explore.  During the day we’ll be hiking, rock climbing, and rappelling.  Morning and Night we’ll be participating in worship and Bible studies. The theme for this years trip is “The Art of a Tender Heart”.

Meet at the church at 4p.m. on Friday, May 15th.  The cost is $60.  We’ll be back at the church on Sunday, May 17th around 6p.m.  If you want to go please sign up by; e-mail, sign up sheet, or call the youth office.  You will also need a medical release if you haven’t filled one out for the year and an event release.

Stuff to Bring: Sleeping Bag, Pillow, Air Mat (optional), Tent (optional), Active Clothes (Clothes for Cool nights and Warm days), Toiletries (Tooth Brush, Shampoo, Stuff like that), Comfortable Shoes (Desert Hiking and climbing), Flashlight, Bible (Mandatory), 2 Pens, a Good Attitude.

Stuff Not To Bring:  IPODs or MP3 players, or Video Games.

Here are some photos from last years trip: