Kaléo Program Goes Fishing - Catching Fish on the Open Ocean

We are back! Its been an adventurous couple weeks and there is finally a moment to fill you in with our latest stories. These past two weeks we went fishing, spent a week shredding the slopes of Mt. Washington, wrote 2 papers, finished 2 books, and spent 4 days in Vancouver at Missions Fest! We just got back from Vancouver on sunday and the students dove right into the course on Missions. There is a lot I could write, but first I would like to share one of our adventures from our week of skiing. I will be sharing more from skiing later this week, but for now lets talk about fishing.

Coming up to our highly anticipated week on the slopes the weather was not looking good. Mt. Washington was having a record low for snowfall this time of year, and the lifts were not even opened yet. We wanted to make sure the week was still a blast with lots of opportunities to hang out and try new things, there was snow in the schedule but no one knew for sure if that meant the lifts would be running. We had several contingency plans and we still ended up implementing the first one, deep sea charter fishing off the coast of Vancouver Island! 

On the monday of our Mt. Washington week we headed up to Comox to test our luck in the waters. Our group was split into two different groups of four, and each of these groups of four went out with different guides (For this reason I only have a limited amount of pictures from two of the boats).

Nic reeling in our next catch. Note the cable system pictured bottom right, it could take the lines down
 hundreds of feet with great accuracy. 

We had a blast! This was a first for pretty much everyone including the Kaleo Program and a majority of our group got to reel in fish. Unfortunately none of them fell into the category we could keep to cook, but we still caught tons nonetheless. There was varied reactions from people on holding the caught fish, some more humorous than others. 

Thanks for reading this week. I hope to post more stories from our week of skiing in the next couple days, in the meantime keep praying for us as we prepare for Missions Trips that are fast approaching.

Until next time,

Levi

Kicked off the new year! - Back to the books

Everyone is back at camp and we are now rolling into the second season of the Kaléo Program! Travel back for most as a little hectic with delayed flights and snow covered train tracks but we are thankful everyone is here and safe. 

Many of the students made comments about the warm weather here on the island, as most just came back from way colder places out east. The 5 degree temperatures have been welcomed by many. Unfortunately the warmer weather on the island and lack of precipitation has meant we are still in need of a good dump of snow to make our next adventure a success. Please keep us in your prayers and maybe pray for a little snow too, that would be very appreciate. 

Back in class with Josh Stigall!

For now though the students with renewed vigour got right into their first class of the semester Pauline Epistles! The class started on monday and they will be finishing their last lecture tomorrow. Josh Stigall came out to teach the course and has been actively getting the students involved in leading discussions and guiding their peers through what they have learned. They broke off into groups, each group tackling different issues and learning about the context of the letter they were studying. Their effort has been great creatively making each presentation unique and interesting. 

To kick off the new year I thought it would be fun to hear some voices from students and what they have to say about last semester, this semester and their time at home with their family!

What is something that you really missed about the program when you were gone?

When I went home for the Christmas break, I had a great time connecting with family and friends again. It was a nice break from the school work aspect as well. However, as much fun as I had at home, it is good to be back because I missed so many things about the program. I missed having roommates because no one was there to make me get up on time for breakfast. I missed having a genuine three meals a day. I missed the community and how much I have loved hanging out with all the fabulous people here. But most of all I missed the intentionality the program offers of developing relationships with each other, but most importantly with God.

- Heather Wilson

What is something that you are looking forward to in the second semester and why?

I am really looking forward to serving in the mission trip! I am so thankful for the opportunity to put to practice what I have been learning in class. I am excited to see Gods mights hand at work  in and through our lives. I pray that God would enable us to reflect his grace to the people we will encounter.

- Jon Loper

What was your favourite part of the first season?

The whole first semester was amazing. I was able to enjoy meeting a whole bunch of new friends, go on fun adventurous trips, serve in a camp setting, and learn so much about the bible. All of these combined made the whole experience my favourite part of the first season. I am very excited for it to continue as I grow in God more and more each day.

- Sarah Richards

What did you appreciate about being home with your family after the first time being gone for a semester of School?

I already appreciated my family a lot before I left, but being gone made my appreciation even greater. My little sister is what I gained a lot more appreciation for. She is the only child left at home out of six and sometimes I feel bad that she has to be alone a lot with my parents working. Now there are so many times where I wish I could be back home to keep her company. I appreciated my parents cooking and realized it actually takes a while to prepare a meal, right after a long day at work, and it always tastes so good. I appreciate the amounts of love they have for me and hugs from my mom a lot more. I knew I was not going to be home for long and that time was going to fly by, so I tried to take advantage of the time I had with them and the conversations we had. I really appreciate my family and how loving they are towards me and how much fun we all have together.

- Sharon Van Egmond

Thanks for reading this weeks blogpost! We are very appreciative of all of your support as we move into this new season of exciting growth. Please keep us in your prayers for safety as we move into the adventures that next week have in store.

Until next time,

Levi

Christmas Festivities at Qwanoes - The Fall Season Comes to a Close

Hello everyone! The last couple weeks at Qwanoes have been an amazing time of hard work and Christmas celebrations. The students just left today on their Christmas break and we have many stories to share from our last moments together in our fall season of the Kaleo program. We wrote to you in our last post just as the lectures for Gospels with Wes Olmsted were finishing. The days that followed the students were all busy prepping essay outlines for their final exam and studying hard with all the content they had to memorize. They really came together working as a team and helping each other study and review the immense amounts of material they had to review. Just before the weekend we went to the famous Ladysmith light up together. It was a fun night with a parade and fireworks!

Some of the students stopping for a picture waiting for the parade to start.

Andrew MacDonald with his super cute daughter Aubrey!
Andrew and his wife Jenn also have another girl on the way expecting her very early in the new year. 

The evening after their final exam there was an optional viewing of The Passion of the Christ, a film by Mel Gibson. The gospel message and graphic imagery struck deep for the students who had just spent so much time studying the life and ministry of Jesus. Although its painful to watch, it served as a helpful reminder in the Christmas season of what Jesus mission coming to this earth was, showing just a glimpse of the price he paid to reconcile us to Himself. 

The following was our big Christmas prep day. We spent the morning making our own creative decorations and listening to christmas carols. It was fun to see each student put their own flair and personality into their decorations. We then had our last Qwanoes community lunch of the fall—the staff-student relationships that have been forming over the semester have become a integral part of the students experience here at Qwanoes. 

Sharon and Stephanie making ornaments out of dough!

Later in the afternoon we packed up in vans and headed to a tree farm to pick out our very own tree! 

This is a slightly hectic task with 23 students, but after carefully inspecting many candidates they managed to settle on a beautiful tree! We took turns cutting it down and then brought our prize tree back to camp. 

We then proceeded to paint and decorate our ornaments that had been in the oven while we were away. We strung the lights and put our ornaments on the tree while drinking hot chocolate and enjoying each others company. Setting up a tree is usually something done with ones family in their own home. For most this was the first time they have ever put up a christmas tree with a majority of people they had only met 3 months previous! As a guest in the room you would have never guessed that most of these students didn't know each other just months previous—a huge testament to the family God has been developing here in the program. 

The next night after a day of paper writing we had an amazing Christmas banquet enjoying a turkey dinner and awesome desserts! After the banquet we had our annual talent show! These sort of things can always be a toss up, going into it many were not sure what to expect only aware of what they personally had put effort into preparing. Its safe to say everyone who attended that night was blown away by the amazing different pieces staff and students had put together; there was beautiful singing pieces, parody songs written by the students, skits, movies and comedy acts! (there was even a presentation on blue whales!) It was amazing what the talented group was able to pull off given the busy season of academics they were in. A new standard has been set for the Kaléo program talent show.

A photo of the students and Aubrey at the Christmas banquet!

After a day of paper writing we spent an evening hanging out separately as guys and girls doing our own activies. The ladies had a surprise cooking contest. They had to compete against each other with the ingredients they were given and make do with some interesting surprise ingredients as well! It was incredible what some of them were able to pull off with ingredients like goat cheese and hot peppers. 

A few of the different groups working together in the contest.

The guys played some games in the afternoon and then spent the evening on Mt. Prevost to watch the sunset. The guys finished off the evening with an awesome meal in the town and a game of Laser tag in the dark across the camp property.

Yesterday we closed off our season together with a Kaléo Christmas morning and mug exchange around our beautifully decorated tree! Each student had brought a mug that represented themselves and we played a fun game unwrapping the mugs,and stealing them from each other in a typical gift exchange fashion. After an awesome morning the rest of the day was spent putting in the last finishing touches of their final assignment for Gospels. The last assignment, can you believe it! They worked so hard right to the very end and I speak on behalf of the leadership team in regards to how proud we are of all of them. 

It was hard to say goodbyes today but excitement was still high as everyone was looking forward to spending time with their families back home. We have been blessed with such an amazing season so far—it is crazy to think that this chapter has already come to a close. God has been doing some incredible work in the lives of his disciples here and it has been an amazing blessing to see his handy work happening right in front of us. We are expecting the big things God has in store for our next season together. We hope you all have an amazing Christmas and may you encounter our incarnated Lord with your friends and family in this season of celebration. 

Until next time,

Levi

Foundations of Church Ministry - And Exploring Caves Deep in the Earth

Hello Everyone! The last two weeks have been very full and our students have been hard at work in some challenging academics. After our week of prayer came to a close we dove straight into Foundations of Church Ministry course with David Ernst. 

Here is one of the panel discussions where a few pastors from the local churches came and shared first hand
what it is like to serve in full-time church ministry. 

The class went well and the students throughout the week were putting a tone of work into their research papers for the course. There was 5 topics that they all had to chose from to write their papers on, and would do their research together in groups. They had the opportunity to present some of their findings to the class and took part in lots of discussions.

Durring the week of classes Nicole Pauls a program graduate who was helping as an faculty assistant for David Ernst set up a Skype call between this years students and some previous graduates of the program currently studying at Briercrest. It was really cool to see the dynamic from these to separate yet still connected groups of people. Although communication was a little challenging the students got to ask questions and advice from the ones who have gone before them—It w as a pretty special moment.

2014 Students on a Skype call with previous Graduates of the program

The weekend after the course a few of the students were serving in the Sr. High retreat at camp. Even though they just finished a tough week of studies there was smiles all around, and it was a huge blessing to see our students serving with full hearts.

Dayna is slowly building an impressive reputation for her dedication and consistent smiles helping to run
the camp coffee bar called the 'Coco Hut.'

Dawson helping to belay at the breath taker.

Smiles all around.

Some of the students who were not helping serve on the retreat got to try some of the fun for themselves during
a break from writing papers!

Sarah helping belay at the Qwanoes Climbing tower!

The week after the retreat the students had lots to do in their studies. They had an exam, a research paper, and a book to complete amongst other things during the week. They are right in the middle of the busiest academic time of the year and it is encouraging to see all the hard work that students are putting into their studies.

At the end of the week we took off on an adventure to the famous caves of Horne Lake. It was such a blessing to get out and enjoy such a unique aspect of God's creation. This was a new experience for most and we all found ways to push ourselves out of our comfort zones. The formations and rock surfaces in the caves are incredible and its amazing how beautiful these caves can be. While we don't have many pictures due to the water and dampness, I can assure you everyone had a great time and good memories were made.

Stephanie pauls standing on a ledge in the first cave we visited. 

A picture from Sarah R, of her with Cara and Kyla!

The students are back at another course as the atmosphere around camp definitely is gearing up for Christmas. They are currently finishing up lectures from the last course of the semester called Gospels. Its crazy to think that this season is already coming to a close! I will have more stories to share from the class room soon! 

Until next time, 

Levi

Mt. Albert Edward - A Look Back

I am excited to share a video highlight from one of our adventures at the beginning of the year!



I hope you enjoyed a glimpse into what one of our adventures was like. The Gospels course just kicked off today with Wes Olmsted and later this week we will be sharing pictures and stories from a few retreats that have been happening!

Until next time,

Levi

WildPlay Adventure and a Week in Prayer

There has been a lot of academics and paper writing these past weeks. The students have been working hard and putting in a lots of hours studying, reading, and writing. After the students finished their papers and final exam for Old Testament Literature we spent time away from the books on another adventure. We headed out to WildPlay in Naniamo which has a fantastic high ropes course!  

It was an absolute blast! It was great for the students to get out and just hangout with each other doing something fun. The high ropes course is a set of challenging linked elements progressively getting higher up in the trees. There are zip lines, nets, swings, and every type of bridge to cross you could imagine. 

Chris and his co-counselor Nic at a Camp Qwanoes DQ invasion during Junior High Retreat.

The following day after WildPlay we kicked off another fall retreat with Junior High campers! This was a jam packed weekend where lots of the students got opportunities to counsel and lead activities.

Katherine and Cara with a few of their campers

Paul and Kyla presenting the winning "Champion" buttons!

Riley with one of his campers from the weekend.

Cara and one of the volunteer staff who came in to help with the retreat. 

The following week after Junior High retreat we kicked off our Week of Prayer! We had a room specifically set up in the lodge where prayer was occurring almost 24/7 the entire week. It was a really special time and a common theme was students wished their time in the room didn't have to come to end. There was a prayer journal, paper with art supplies and other ways the students could interact and respond with where God was leading their time in prayer.  The dedication of the students was great; waking up all hours of the night to trade off with someone in the prayer room.

Durring the Week of Prayer students had papers and books they were finishing for Foundations of Church Ministry. Associate Director of Apologetics Canada John Morrison also came in this week to teach a few workshops on how to grow as a leader. Highlighting characteristics and lifestyles of highly effective leaders and helping the students explore what it means to lead practically in their own lives.

We also had an night filled with costumes, candy, and scavenger hunts! Lots of fun times together as a group fully embracing all of our 'uniqueness'. 

Foundations of Church Ministry just came to a close and we are now looking towards another busy couple of weeks. Please keep us in your prayers here at camp, God is doing incredible things in the lives of the students, growing and shaping them as they immerse themselves in scripture and academics, and community!

Until next time, 

Levi

Old Testament Video - Brought to you by the students of 2014!

Well we teased you about it last week, and here it is. This years Old Testament video put together by the hard work of the students. You can see pictures of the screening and a word from your directors in the previous post. Enjoy!




Until next time,
Levi