Pre-travel and thank you!
Hey!
To begin I wanted to say thank you. Many of you who will be reading this are a big reason why I am able to go on such a journey. From the very beginning of this experience, I was nervous that I wouldn't be able to afford this opportunity and to put it simply, I have be blown away by the support that has surrounded me. Whether that support be from the money you donated, your suggestions and our conversations about travel, or offering prayer as I am away, I simply can’t and couldn’t do it alone. I have been blessed with friends and family that have sent donations to my trip and I am humbled to say that I no longer have the financial stress surrounding this trip and instead I can focus on the real task at hand; prison. Each dollar that was donated helps cover all living and travel expenses including airfare, food, transportation, vaccinations, etc. So thanks again for contributing to this once in a lifetime opportunity and choosing to invest in me and allowing me to experience and participate in the work that will be done in South Africa.
To update and remind everyone reading, I signed up for a summer-long mission trip through the college ministry I am involved with in Boulder. This group is known as the Annex and is run through the First Presbyterian Church of Boulder. Each winter, they open the online application for this annual mission trip known as Messenger. Messenger is unique because after an interview process, you are sorted and placed on various mission trip teams around the world and the best part is you have no clue where you will go, what you will do, or who you will go with until a special reveal night later in the semester. I decided that I was willing and able to lend a helping hand this summer and couldn't think of a better time for such a thing - so I applied and was accepted. A few weeks after we were formally accepted, the 11 other messengers and I stood on stage in front of the whole Annex community and learned what our summers would entail.
In the past 29 years this program has existed, messengers have literally traveled to hundreds of different countries across the world so naturally there was no way I could try to predict my fate. I was placed on a team with three other messengers and on that same night we learned that we would be traveling to the country of South Africa interning for a prison ministry that is active on the grounds of over 15 prisons. We learned that this ministry, know as Hope Prison Ministry, focuses on building relationships, leading restorative justices courses, and facilitating Bible studies with inmates and officers of all ages, genders, and crimes. This was wild and a lot to take in, but overall I was excited to be outside of my comfort zone and I couldn't wait to take off. Other students this year are being sent to Bulgaria, Puerto Rico, Namibia, Vietnam, and Cambodia doing work varying between hurricane relief to prison ministry.
I finished the semester up strong but the few weeks leading up to our departure date were slow and anxious as my team didn't leave until the middle of June. During the time between school ending and our trip, I worked a lot but decided to give myself ample time to prepare as well as spend time with friends and family. I knew packing was going to be a challenge as I didn't want to bring to much but I was also aware of the fact that it is the winter in South Africa thus I would be needing more room for jackets and layers. I set a personal goal of fitting everything I needed for the entire summer in a duffle bag and a backpack to make traveling light and efficient. I packed and repacked all of my stuff about three times, removing unnecessary things each time I couldn't get everything to fit. For a week straight I was thinking about the most practical approach to bringing the bare minimum but bringing enough to stay warm and look professional while in prison. In the end, my packing included two airtight "vacuum" bags and plenty of internal straps. Thankfully our team will have the ability to do laundry about once every week and a half so I will be able to reuse clothes for most of the summer. Other than a few vaccinations and medications, I was about ready to take off!
Stay tuned for more and hit subscribe at the top of the home page to be notified each time I post a new excerpt on my time here! Thanks so much!
Connor Cantrell