Fortress Week 6

This week was very different from the last few weeks. I went to Fortress with the youth group from Highland. We left Abilene around 3:30 on Sunday. Since I was with the group, they did not have to go to Fortress for orientation. I was able to do it with them. When we got to the DFW area, we had dinner and then headed to the church building where we were staying. We stayed in a gym that had an emergency light that never went off. It was fun though. We got everything ready and set up and then I led the group in orientation. We had a short devotional and then the kids found out who they would be paired with for the week. They prayed over their kid and we went to bed.

Monday we got up really early packed everything up and headed out to breakfast. After breakfast, we went to Fortress. The youth group just hung out while the kids showed up and ate breakfast. Then we loaded everyone up and headed to the children’s museum. The museum was awesome. I think we could have spent a lot more time there. The girls from the youth group loved getting to know their kids. It was so much fun. Then the youth group went and got a tour of Union Gospel. I love that place. It is pretty amazing what they are doing.

Tuesday we went and saw Toy Story 3. The kids loved it. Towards the end of the movie, one of the kids got scared and the girls he was with brought him to me. He wanted his brother. I told him that he could see him after the movie and he just stayed with me. It was really sweet. Then the youth group did a thing called pay it forward. They got $50 to spend and had to think of something nice to do. My group decided to get bus passes for the next day and we went to the down town bus transfer and passed them out. It was pretty amazing to watch the way people reacted. People do not think that someone would do something like that for free. Then we went on the prayer drive. I think that is one of my favorite things to do because you get to see the neighborhood that the kids you have been working with all week live in. There are a lot of run down houses, vacant lots, and boarded up houses. It is crazy to see it all but it allows people to see what kind of houses the kids go home to at night.

Wednesday we took the kids to the zoo. I had never been to the Fort Worth Zoo. It was hot but fun. All the kids loved it. We then had lunch at the Zoo and then headed back to Fortress. After all the kids said their good-byes, we left and headed back to the church to pack up and head to the Rangers game. The game was hot but fun. I am just starting to get into baseball and I have only seen like two games ever. It was fun though. We then headed to Farmers Branch to stay at a house that some people had just moved out of. The house was HUGE. It was a little crazy. I slept in a closet with 5 other people on air mattresses and we still had room to spare. It was fun though. One girl said how this house makes me feel is how the Fortress kids would feel if they came to my house.

Thursday we hung out for the morning, swam, and just chilled. Then around 1 we packed up and headed out. It was a ton of fun. I got to know some people I did not know very well and spend some quality time with some of the girls I have been missing.

My favorite part of the whole trip was listening to the girls I have worked with and lived near talk about the Fortress kids. I would start crying every time they started talking. I love the Fortress kids so much and it was amazing for me to be able to share them with people from home. It just helped me realize even more that I want to work with low income or poor families. I have a gift with them and they always seem to find a place in my heart. I only have two more weeks at Fortress and I know that they are not going to be easy. Saying good-bye, this year will be hard.