A Few Things We Have Learned While Living in New England

Of Transportation

1. Rotaries are very popular here and a part of the road system no matter if you are driving on the interstate or a county road. It is most unusual.

2. While most interstate entrance ramps have yield signs, a small handful have stop signs. If you are not careful, you will run one…or five.

3. The entrance ramps, especially in the South Hamilton area, have signs that tell the public what is not allowed on the interstate: pedestrians, bicycles, and horses(!).

4. While the traffic into the city of Boston is not always horrible, finding a place to park is the worst and near impossible. At times, we would spend almost an hour trying to find a spot, before deciding to just go home. With that being said, we have found that the public transportation is reasonably priced, clean, and convenient. We currently prefer that method when traveling into the city.

5. It is not uncommon, in our area, to see horses and riders on the roads. We were most surprised, however, to see horses and riders in town!


Of All Things Financial

1. Surprisingly, the cost of food at a grocery is not much higher than it was in Missouri. Massachusetts does not have sales tax on food products, so that helps significantly.

2. Even gas prices here are not overly priced compared to those in Northeastern Missouri and Illinois.

3. Yes, the cost of living is higher, but so is the average hourly rate. We are currently working fewer hours a week and making more money than we were in Missouri due to the better pay rate.

4. Fast food restaurants are few and far between up here on the North Shore. Therefore, eating out does cost a bit more, especially if you go the route of seafood.

5. Also, regarding food, Dunkin Donuts has Starbucks beat in regard to popularity and convenience. A person can find at least one Dunkin Donuts in every town, while most towns have three or more.


Of People

1. At Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, we are in a bubble. So far, everyone Jared and I have contact with is, in some form, a Christian. We work for Christian institutions, live in a Christian environment, and have Christian friends. We are thankful for this community and for the opportunity to serve our brothers and sisters in Christ. Please pray that we will have more interactions with people to whom we can show Christ.

2. We have noticed that the typical stereotype of rude New Englanders is false. Yes, rude people are here. BUT, rude people are everywhere. It is not just limited to this area. We have encountered it everywhere we have been.

3. In continuation of the above statement, people here are very personal and private (which could easily be translated into rudeness).

4. According to several studies, the Boston Metro Area is one of the top ten most educated cities in the United States. The focus of people here is very different from that of the Midwest.

5. People are generally healthier here. With the lack of fast food restaurants and the availability of healthy food options (that are not outrageously priced), the general public seems more health conscious. It is catching!

Our third week in New York City marked a few things for all of us. To begin with, it was our last full week in the city. That week also contained our last full week at Grafitti 2 and our last visit to the South Asian Community Center. Jared, Kelsey, and I made more headway on the great amount of items we had to inventory. At the beginning of our last full week, we didn't think we would finish by the next Wednesday. However, we were diligent in our pursuit of completing the task set before us and we were successful (and with very little time to spare!). Colton and Kendra continued helping with homework, leading some of the games, and forming close relationships with several of the children.
During our last week at the South Asian Community Center, another group from North Carolina was volunteering as well. Due to the abundance of volunteers and the small work space, several from our group and most of the North Carolina group headed out to the Jackson Heights Square, or Mars Hill as it is called by locals. While there, we did as we had done before...we cleaned tables, swept the ground, and spoke to locals.
We had Friday morning off and took it easy doing laundry and shopping for groceries. That afternoon, we headed out to Bensonhurst to help pass out Bibles at a subway stop with Pastor Chris from Metropolitan Baptist Church. However, it was canceled due to rain. Saturday morning we traveled back to Bensonhurst to help Amanda and Julius, from Lighthouse Chinese church, prepare for their Memorial day service on Sunday (6/26). We were helping them teach and lead the children's service while the parents attended the main service. We preapred Bible stories, crafts, and fun games for the children to play. That afternoon we were again scheduled to help Pastor Chris hand out Bibles, but again it was canceled due to poor weather.
Our Sunday afternoon activities with the children at the Memorial day services went off without a hitch. The weather, unlike the two days before, was beautiful, and we all enjoyed our time with the children. Sunday evening, Colton, Jared, and I traveled back to the Upper West Side to attend Tim Keller's church, Redeemer Presbyterian Church while Kendra and Kelsey went back to Hillsong Church at Union Square.
Seeing as that Monday was Memorial Day, we had the day off to explore the city as we chose. Jared and I attended a small Memorial Day Street Festival near Wall Street and also toured Trinity Church (the church in National Treasure). That evening, we had the wonderful opportunity to hear the New York Philharmonic perform at their annual Memorial Day Service at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. It was beautiful!!
Our last Tuesday and Wednesday in the city were spent in the same fashion as the others, with Colton and Kendra working with the children at Grafitti 2 and Kelsey, Jared, and I scrambling to finish the inventory. Wednesday evening, our group, minus Kelsey and plus two other summer missionaries staying at the MNYBA building, walked to Times Square for our last hurrah and a bag of candy from the 3 (or 4) story Toys"R"Us!
Thursday morning we set out for the airport (all except Kendra, whose flight was for the next day). We arrived without any issues and thus ended our grand adventure to the Big Apple. It was a wonderful trip to the beautiful city where God is working in incredible ways through anyone who is willing. And we were willing!

Hello Everyone! Greetings from New York City. We originally intended to spend more time writing about our ministry here in the city, but we have been incredibly busy, more than anticipated which is something we are grateful for! We have continued our work with the Graffiti 2 ministry in the South Bronx for their after-school program. Brianna and I have been able to help G2 with doing some inventory of their items to help with logistical and insurance purposes. In addition, we have continued working with the South-Asian Community Center in Jackson Heights. This week Colton, the other male on our team, and I were able to have a conversation with someone from that neighborhood in regard to Christianity and its relation to Islam. This lady, a native Jew, claims to have converted to “Christianity”, and many years later, converted to Islam. Please be in prayer for our encounters with her, for she is very hostile toward us and real Christianity. The same day in which this conversation happened, our team was able to meet several pastors from various places, including one from Boston, Massachusetts, who is helping start a church plant this coming fall. This man, Jared Kirk, and his wife moved to the Boston area at the beginning of this year and invited us to become a part of their church plant. As Kelsey, one of our team members, said: “This encounter may be the reason God had to you come on this trip.” While making connections for our move to Boston is not our primary goal while here, it is a huge blessing and we can’t help but feel the encounter has a purpose! In addition to these two primary ministries, we have been able to work with Metropolitan Baptist Church in Brooklyn for various tasks. We worked there last Friday and Saturday and this Saturday, doing odd jobs for the church such as stamping tracts, organizing the pastor’s library, leading youth, and assessing the neighborhood of its other churches and ministries. We are all finally starting to adjust to the fast pace of New York City…just in time to go back to Missouri. God Bless, Jared and Brianna

MayMester 2013: New York City In May of 2011, Jared and I attended the MayMester trip to New York City. This year, we are attending as leaders along with three other students: Kelsey Harrison (who attended last year), Colton Bock, and Kendra Derryberry. We departed from Lambert International Airport in St. Louis Monday, May 6th at 11:50 AM and arrived around 3:30 PM (2:30 PM Central Time) without any problems or issues. After obtaining our month-long metro passes (for Subway and Bus Transportation), we lugged ourselves and our items onto a bus and began our hour-and-a-half-long trip from LaGuardia Airport in Queens to the Metropolitan New York Baptist Association (MNYBA) building on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. After a short orientation with John Ramirez and Joshua Austin, both employees of the MNYBA, we began to settle in to our rooms. John and Joshua provided us with a take-out meal from Taco Grill, a Mexican restaurant owned and ran by Chinese immigrants. Despite their cultural differences, the food was delicious! Not long after we finished eating, we began our clean-up for bed. Our schedule was full and busy and we had a full week ahead of us. The next morning we departed around 8:45 to Jackson Heights, Queens, to work with the South Asian Community Center. Our groups' task that morning was to teach English to immigrants from countries such as Bangladesh, Nepal, India, Tibet, etc. I worked with Tenzin, a young woman from Tibet, who had only been in the United States for two weeks and already had an incredible grasp on the English language. Kelsey and Kendra also worked with women from Tibet while Colton and Jared worked with men from Nepal and India. After we finished our session, Josiah, an intern at the MNYBA and a worker at the South Asian Community Center, took us to eat at a local and authentic Indian restaurant. Shortly after eating, we took our leave of Jackson Heights and began our long journey to the southern Bronx where we would be working with an inner-city after school program called Graffiti 2. We were scheduled to arrive at 1 PM in the Bronx, but we were given the wrong address and ended up approximately 45 minutes in the wrong direction. When we finally arrived around 2:30 PM, the staff at Graffiti 2 were gracious with our transportation issues and we were thrown into the organized chaos of children, homework, and activities. While Kelsey, Jared, and I struggled with being overwhelmed with the program and the children, Kendra and Colton immediately jumped into the activities. We wrapped up around 6:30 PM and began our trek back to Manhattan. That evening, we ate supper at a restaurant a few doors down from the MNYBA and then traveled around the corner to the grocery store, Trader Joe's. However, the line was so incredibly long that we all agreed with it would be better to try at a different time. We explored our surroundings for an hour or so and then retired back to the MNYBA for the evening. Wednesday's schedule was very similar to Tuesday's. We traveled again to Jackson Heights to teach English. However, Tenzin did not attend class that morning, so I worked with Rafa, a young Muslim woman from Bangladesh who has been in the States for nine years. We practiced her vowel sounds and vocabulary. At the end of our session, she told me how to say hello in her native language (although I cannot remember it!), and that she was looking forward to working with me again next Wednesday! How encouraging! Again we went out to eat with Josiah. This time he took us to an Indo-Chinese restaurant called The Talk of the Town. Our second afternoon at Graffiti 2 was a much more pleasant experience as we easily transitioned into helping the kids with their homework and during recreation/crafts. That evening we explored more of the surrounding Manhattan area and enjoyed the lights and the bustle of the city that never sleeps. We had Thursday morning off, so we traveled back to Trader Joe's to purchase our groceries. After putting them away and eating a light brunch, we headed out to Graffiti 2 for the after school program. We started out with a short orientation and prayer walk before the children began to arrive. That evening was different than the others because of the special Mother's Day dinner and talent show. We helped cook the meal, serve, and clean up so the mother's could enjoy time with their children. We left a little later that evening, but still before dark and with enough time to walk along the Hudson River and through part of Manhattan. Friday was a completely different day. We had originally been told that Fridays would be our free days, but had a last minute schedule change on Tuesday. We left around 8:15 AM to travel to southern Brooklyn to Metropolitan Baptist Church/Lighthouse Baptist Church to meet with Chris Gardner and Peter Gu, respectively. It is one church building, but with three congregations. Metropolitan Baptist Church is an English speaking congregation, while Lighthouse is a Chinese congregation. The third congregation is a South Asian congregation. We finished there around 2 PM and our small group headed toward the Brooklyn Bridge. We walked the bridge from Brooklyn to Manhattan, explored the federal district, and shopped Chinatown. Josiah met us later in the evening and introduced several of us to Bubble Tea (which I have had before and was not partial to the interesting drink. Jared didn't mind it). After leaving Chinatown, we traveled to Macy's on 34th and Broadway and the Empire State Building before making our way back to our home for the month.

Wednesday May 25, 2011

The duties for Wednesday kept us in the MNYBA building for most of the day. Anna Ramirez gave us a check list of duties to do around the building. We cleaned the bathrooms on every floor, folded linens, washed and dried towels, bedding and personal laundry, emptied the 4th floor apartment of any items left by John and Anna Ramirez, and moved a few beds around to different rooms. Although it does not seem like much, it was more than enough to keep us busy for the entire morning and afternoon.
As with every Wednesday, that evening consisted of traveling to Harlem for teaching ESL. Katy Aleshire was able to travel with us this week and she thoroughly enjoyed teaching and speaking with Sory, whom I had worked with the previous week. That evening I worked with a lady who knew enough English to speak, but still did not know many words. It was a challenge trying to explain words to her when she did not understand the synonyms either. Thankfully Chris (the missionary who lived in Mali for a few years) was able to explain things to her in either French or their language, Bumbra.
We all left that evening a little saddened, knowing it was our last time to work with the ESL teachers and the people from Mali. However, we were happy in knowing that many more missionaries would bless the doorstep of that building and people of Mali. That whole experience had definitely blessed us and given us new skills in working with people.

Tuesday May 24, 2011

Our project for Tuesday morning was to do Soularium in Central Park. Katy Aleshire, Dani Bothe, Jared Doyle, and I headed to the park as a group to hopefully utilize this evangelism tool. We set up in an extremely populated spot, but barely had anyone even look in our direction. We stayed there for quite a while, and even dispersed ourselves across that section of the park to pray and give people the opportunity to stop. No one did. It was extremely discouraging, but at the same time, we almost expected it.
An hour or so later, we saw some of our co-HLGU missionaries and asked them about their time with Soularium. They seemed to be having the same issues that we were encountering. The people in Central Park were not concerned with what others were doing and simply wanted to be left alone.
On our way to look for another location, we heard a band playing and stopped to listen. We learned they were called The Dirty Urchins and actually have songs on ITunes. They had a really neat sound and sang wonderful harmonies.
In our search for another location, we found ourselves at Times Square and at TGIF for lunch. After finishing our food at a leisurely pace, we headed back to the housing.
That evening after supper, Jared and I headed toward the Hudson River to amble through River Park. We walked the boardwalk, watched the sunset, and eventually saw the city lights from New Jersey. As we walked down the boardwalk, we came across a restaurant on the river. It was beautiful and very popular! The atmosphere of the place was incredible and the people were thoroughly enjoying themselves.
We soon directed our paths back to the MNYBA building to end another successful day in New York City.

Monday May 23, 2011

Monday morning, the three people who journey every day to Graffiti 2 left as they usually do while the rest of us ventured to Jamaica to Ebenezer Mission Church. This church is led by Pastor Jae Lee and has three congregations that are all integrated. They do have separate church services for the Hispanic, Chinese, and English speaking congregations, but all three congregations participate in fellowship activities, picnics, and many other group functions. It was amazing to hear Jae Lee speak about how the church started and how it had grown! The youth in the church are a large part of why so many people attend. They became involved, and in response to their changed lives, their parents began to attend as well. This church seemed to be doing great things in the community, and we were there to serve that church.
Our projects included painting the fellowship hall (bright yellow), moving many items in storage from the basement to be sorted through to throw some things away and put others to use, and cleaning up debris (trees limbs, shingles, etc.) from a recent storm. We all had a blast working that day and we all helped in all the areas needed.
Lacey Colborn, Erin Jeffries, and Kyle Morrison left early to go to the hospital in Flushing to have Lacey’s staples removed from her head. Those of us still there finished the painting, chatted with Jae Lee, and headed out by 3 or 3:30 PM.
Working at Ebenezer Mission Church was truly a great experience. We were able to work at a church that is having an incredible impact on its community and continually growing in its congregation and outreach. I know that God will continue to use this church in many, many ways to glorify and enlarge His kingdom…and I am blessed to know we were able to serve those who serve others so much!