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The Campion Ski Club spent four days enjoying God’s nature in the mountains on their annual four-day trip to Copper Mountain.
They started their trip off by holding a church service at the Leadville church, where they shared praise music, testimonies, and experiences from the recent mission trip with the local church members. Brayden Marroquin, junior, expressed, “It was fun being able to share our experiences of going to the Dominican Republic and being missionaries there. I could tell that our testimonies really spoke to them.” The students were able to fellowship with the members of the church over potluck. After church, the students went tubing at Leadville’s Dutch Henry Sledding Hill. A group of the students made it their goal to send a tuber over the top of the track, but despite multiple attempts and recalculations, they were unsuccessful. For the next three days the group went skiing and snowboarding at Copper Mountain. Each person had a different skill level: some had been skiing and snowboarding since they were small and others were just starting. “I really liked growing closer to everyone on the ski trip. I liked how everyone was willing to help me when I was struggling on my first day,” Yolanda Han shared. During this trip there were several friends that decided that they wanted to switch gear and try something new. Addison Gann, sophomore, shared, “My favorite part of ski trip was trying skiing again. I had skied before but preferred snowboarding. It was really fun to try it again and to watch my friend try snowboarding.” Elin Sorensen, freshman, who had switched gears with Addison, agreed saying; “It was fun to try snowboarding for the first time.” In the evenings, the students were able to explore the historic town of Leadville, eat dinner together, catch up on schoolwork, and play games. On the last day, the students gathered for a group picture and went on a run all together. “My favorite part was going on a run together. It was a lot of fun and I enjoyed getting to know everyone better.” Jovanna Maldonado, senior, reflected. Vashty Segovia Santos, Student News Team
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Members of the Campion Church, Academy and community traveled to the Dominican Republic for a mission trip. 31 Campion students, accompanied by an additional 20 students from Thunderbird Adventist Academy, reached the Barahona community with sermon series, Vacation Bible Schools (VBS), and construction on the boy’s dormitory from March 7 to 18.
During the mornings, students leading VBS, preaching, and translating began preparing for the evening programs while the construction team mixed concrete and carried bricks to create an addition to the boy’s dormitory. Unfortunately, the construction work was unable to be completed due to funding. Moises Hernandez, senior, reflected, “I really enjoyed doing construction and I learned the importance of productivity. We would work hard, and I enjoyed working with my friends. I was sad when the construction ended, but for the remainder of the trip, I helped Claire translate for VBS which was a blessing.” Each evening, the student missionaries spread out to nine different area churches and put on evangelistic sermon series and VBS programs. The student preachers personalized ready-made sermon outlines to share our uniquely Adventist Biblical truths with the attendees, while other students worked with children in the well-attended VBS programs. Pastor Leandro Bizama, the main coordinator of the trip expressed, “I was proud of how our students grew and bonded and shared the gospel. They traveled many miles on crammed vehicles, and ministered to hundreds of people every single night.” Alexandra Cordoba, junior, shared, “There were two things I learned while preaching and translating. First, the church was on fire for God. I would ask who loved Jesus and everyone raised their hand. Second, I learned that we should be grateful for the stuff we have here in America because they don't have the basic necessities.” In addition to the work, students and sponsors from both schools were able to form a closer bond by sharing meals, going to the beach, hiking in the mountains, exploring the town, and worshiping God together. Keon Paez reflected, “I had a great time experiencing the country and it’s culture. It was so beautiful, especially the sunsets.” After seven nights of sermons and VBS programs, 24 local community members and three of the Campion students chose to get baptized on Sabbath. Sergio Enriquez, sophomore, shared why he decided to get baptized during the trip, “During the mission trip I was a translator, and I had to translate the verse Acts 22:16, ‘And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on His name.’” Sergio explained that this verse hit home saying, “I decided I should be baptized now.” Bizama furthered, “The biggest blessing of the trip was to see all the baptisms, and also how the Spirit kindled the fire of evangelism and service in our students’ hearts. A fire I believe will never be put out until Jesus returns.” Eva Resz, Student News Team Professionals from the Campion Church hosted Campion students for a job fair. The students had the opportunity to meet with people from different careers that they might want to pursue, and ask any questions they had.
Keaton Drake junior shared, “It was very interesting and helpful to get advice and knowledge from people who are experienced in the profession I’m interested in. They were very friendly and were willing to answer all my questions. It was a good experience to be able to learn from someone in the field I want to work in.” Professions like occupational therapy, graphic design, photography, law, and education were a few of the careers represented there. The professionals talked to the students about colleges and universities that they could apply to for their career track. The job fair was a great way for the students to see what the future has in store for them. “They really helped me figure out exactly what kind of job I want and how I can get there,” Max Bicknell, sophomore, expressed. Vashty Segovia Santos, Student News Team Campion’s international students had a winter retreat at the YMCA of the Rockies in Granby to experience snow sports and some of the activities that they are not used to in their countries.
As soon as they arrived, the students went to the snow tubing area and enjoyed sliding down the hill. Eriane Saraiva, senior, shared, “It was an amazing and new experience for me. It was very hard going up and down holding my tube, but I think my favorite part was snow tubing with all the Brazilians. I felt really happy at that moment.” For Sabbath, they started with a worship time with Jill Harlow, international club sponsor, sharing a message about how snow represents purity and the brightness of God in the Bible. After worship, they went snowshoeing in the mountains, where they took a lot of pictures and got to enjoy the cold but sunny weather. Yngrid Silva, junior, commented, “I loved the view of the park when we went snowshoeing. I was very cold and tired of using the snowshoes, but it was good to experience the hike and take a lot of pictures with my friends.” In the afternoon, the students practiced ice skating and had the chance to go snow tubing again. In the evening, they enjoyed playing sports and roller skating in the YMCA gym. To finish the weekend on Sunday, the students went skiing and snowboarding at Winter Park, getting to experience the adrenaline of a new sport for most of them. Nicolas Rodrigues, freshman, added, “I really loved the trip and I really had fun. I think it was a little hard to snowboard, but in the end it was kind of easy. I wasn’t used to being that cold and I’ve never worn so many jackets in my life, but I really enjoyed the international retreat.” Campion Academy currently has 20 international students from Brazil, as well as students from Democratic Republic of Congo, China, and recent immigrants from Tanzania and Mexico. Luca Lu, sophomore from China, shared, “It was my first time going to a mountain resort. It was so fun to try some snow sports and the icy world truly gave me an unforgettable memory.” Pedro Vieira, Student News Team |
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