Kaleo: Week 8!!

Dear Family and Friends,

Well we have now entered the final week of Kaleo....
It's kind of bitter sweet knowing that its over.  But, I can honestly say I've had the best summer ever!  It wasn't always easy or fun but I wouldn't have wanted to spend my summer any other way!

Week 8 consisted of lots of rain, which meant for some very busy days at work.  And for me it consisted of car troubles.  My car has been through a lot this summer and finally bit the dust, but thankfully the people of Niceville are really nice (no pun intended) and I got it all taken car of and she's running like a race horse!

Minus the car and work stress of this week it was overall a great week!
We got to spend some times in seaside which is always fun, and of course we got to spend some quality hours on the beach!

Evangelism this week was absolutely AMAZING!!!! Each week when we go out to the beaches I also go to the person who is already a believer but still doesn't fully understand the gospel which does bring its challenges, but most of the time we show them the bridge and move on to someone else.  This week was different.. me and a girl named Christian went up to these two women, one my age and the other was an older lady.  We ended up sitting and talking with them for almost 2 hours!!! they were both so incredible and we were able to share our testimonies and hear theirs.  Their love for Christ was so visible in their lives.  Both of them had gone through some really tough times and they were able to remain strong in their faith and find hope in God which was incredible to hear and see how God is working in other peoples lives.

God has done and is continuing to do amazing things in my life.  I can't wait to see what he throws at me after Kaleo is over but I know I'm ready to head back to campus and share the gospel with others!

In Christ,

Mary Kate

Kaleo: Weeks 6 & 7!!

Dear Friends and Family,

Week six was a week for the books!!  It's starting to sink in that the summer of my life is almost over and I'm really sad about that. (I’m pretty sure I talk about being sad that Kaleo is almost over in every blog post…sorry)  This week though was a fun one for sure!! It was the fourth of July and we spent it in seaside!  Seaside has become one of my favorite places to go this summer! We got to walk around and eat at one of my favorite food trucks down there, The Meltdown.  Then we got to watch the most amazing firework show on the beach!  This week also marked a monumental moment for me…I had my first waffle house experience haha!! Abby and me decided to treat us to an all-star special Sunday morning before church!  I have to say that I am now a waffle house lover!

Week seven we had mission’s conference! I was kind of dreading it… I was excited because it meant a short work week and a long weekend but I was quick to judge what would happen that weekend.  Going into missions conference I was convinced that all that they were going to talk about was the StuMo team in India and try to recruit us to go to India with them next summer blah blah blah.  But no it was nothing like that.  I learned so much about what it means to be a missionary and how missions got started in the United States and a lot of history behind mission work.  Todd Aaron was our speaker for the weekend and he was INCREDIBLE!!  

I can not think everyone who helped me get here enough!  Because of generous friends and family I have been able to grow in my relationship with  Christ, watch others grow, and learn so much more than I ever thought I could learn about the gospel and what is looks like to share my faith.  I've made so many new friends, and even more unforgettable memories this summer!

In Christ,

Mary Kate

Kaleo: Week 5!!

Dear Family and Friends,

It's crazy to think week 5 has come to an end!! I only have 10 more days of work and three more weeks at Kaleo!! This week was a really fun week. We had our big Kaleo dance party!!  All the D-groups got paired together and were given a letter and you had to dress according to whatever letter you had.  My group had the letter H so we did H is for heroes and all dressed up like different super heroes!

H is for Heroes!

The dance party was for sure one of the biggest highlights of this summer! It couldn't have come at a more perfect time!  I was feeling really run down and exhausted from the long work days, but the dance party was a real recharger to keep everyone going through these last few weeks of Kaleo!

In Christ,

Mary Kate