April Newsletter

Emily’s AIM

AIMing in Searcy, Arkansas for now J

Well, April has been quite a month! We started April by ending Challenge week. Our team left Allen, Texas on April 2 and got back to Lubbock that afternoon. That evening was spent welcoming the rest of the class back and then going to see a movie later that night with our little group “the ZW.” That’s the name Katherine, David, Cameron and I made up for ourselves.

The rest of our time in Lubbock, about a week, is called “goodbye week.” So each day was a different kind of goodbye basically. There were times when past teachers would come in and give us their last charge. There was our “Final AIM Chapel.” They showed a slideshow video of our class and prayed over us and gave us a final charge from the SIBI people. There was “Judgment Day” which is where the AIM class puts on skits of the AIM staff and the AIM staff puts on skits of the AIM class. It was amazing!!! Then there is “Final Goodbyes with Staff” where we all sit facing each other and the staff says things to us and we say things to the staff. Then there is the “Final Send-off.” The reveal our class composite picture, they give us packages for the field, they say a few final remarks and we sing and say goodbye. We had our final Sunday and we got to choose where we went to church, so David, Katherine, Xavier and I chose to go back to Denver City one more time!!! It was awesome!

During this final week we also have to pack and clean our apartments. It was pretty crazy! We would clean all day and then hang out all night. It was perfect! Saying goodbye to classmates that we won’t be seeing for a year and a half and getting all the last hangout times in was so awesome!

So we finished Lubbock time. It was kind of bitter-sweet. Then we all set off on different adventures! Some people went straight home. Some people went to raise support. Some people stayed in Lubbock a little longer. Some of us went on trips of our own with each other.

Personally, I started a two week trip with Cameron and Franco. We left as soon as we could after final apartment inspections. Our first night, we drove to Borger, Texas. That is where Cameron is from. We dropped all of our stuff off  and Cameron’s car. The next morning we loaded up my car with just our trip stuff and we headed to Arkansas. We had about a 10 hour drive and it was a blast! We got in a picked up a guitar for Franco so he could play with Cameron and then we went to my house and had dinner with my family.

We had a super eventful week in Arkansas. Franco ended up getting a sinus infection so he was down for a little bit of it and that was sad. We still had a good time though. We went fishing, we rode horses, we working on a barn, we went 4-wheeling, we went to Camp Takodah and swam and canoed and hiked a little, I took them to my high school to see my teachers and things, I showed them the daycare I used to work at, Cameron and I took Tara to her banquet, we had a fire one night and lots of people came, we shot guns, Cameron killed a rabbit and we ate it, we all cooked lunch together on Sunday afternoon, we went hear the Harding Academy Chorus sing at Highway, we had a little bit of chill time where we just watched movies or talked or they played guitar.  It was just a super amazing week! We had so much fun! It was amazing to have them here to share a little bit of my life with them.

Then after a week here we drove back to Borger for a week there! We had another awesome ride through a beautiful storm! We got back to Borger and it was a more chill week than Arkansas. We started out by helping Cameron’s family get ready for a garage sale for him to raise money to go to his field, Bolivia. We helped a lady move one night. We spent an afternoon at a lake. In the middle of the week Cameron and I drove Franco back to Lubbock. He had to get ready to go home to Trinidad. So we dropped him off and then drove back to Borger. Cameron showed me a few things in Borger and then we just chilled at the house and talked with his brothers! Katherine and David got to Borger really late that night. So the next day we all got to hang out again! We basically just hung out and got ready for our camping trip that night.

So the 4 of us andColton, Cameron’s little brother, packed up the truck and went camping! We had a tent and food and a guitar and we headed out. It was lots of fun! We set up our tent and then went hiking. We got the fire started and cooked dinner. We basically just talked, looked at the stars and had tons of fun! It was awesome!

Then next day we went back to the house and got cleaned up. Then Cameron, Colton and I drove to Amarillo to meet their family to celebrate their Dad’s birthday. It was so fun! Later that night I went with Cameron and his brother Josh to play tennis! That was super fun as well!

Then on Sunday we had church and we played volleyball that night with some people from the church. It was also our last night to all hang out together until after the field. So just the 4 of us went driving and Cameron and David took us to a few places that they used to go. It was so fun. Then we went out on the golf course and looked at stars and talked! It was bitter-sweet, but mostly amazing! They are my best friends!

Then on Monday morning we got up and packed up and said good-bye to each other. It was kind of sad but we know that as long as it is God’s will we will be together again someday! Just the 4 of us being crazy again!

I drove to Garland that night to stay the night at Katherine’s house and then I drove back to Arkansas the next day.

It was crazy when I got back because it was the week of my brother’s wedding. We had family here and more coming. We were getting ready to host the rehearsal dinner. It was crazy, but fun! It was great to get to see all my family before I leave for the field!

That’s basically all. Now I am just trying to raise the rest of my money to go to Guadalajara. It’s getting really close to time to go. I am so excited! I am still in need of some one-time funds though. If you would like to help me out by making a donation then please make checks out to Highway Church of Christ and mark that it is for me and send it to…

 Highway Church of Christ
128 Highway Church Ln 
Judsonia, AR 72081.

Prayers are much appreciated as well as our team gets ready to go on May 19^th. Thank you all for your support! I seriously can’t thank you enough!

Love EmilyRose.

Contact Info:

Facebook: Emily Rose Hale

Email: emilyhale17@live.com

Phone: 501-230-7353

Riding out the sunroof :)

Spent the day at the Lake

Ready for our trip!

Last picture together...for now :)

We shaved Xavier's head on the last day....

SKIN BALD!

Last time at Denver City!

Skinning the rabbit :)

Last night with the ZW in Borger

We took Tara to her banquet

Well, right now I am back in Searcy for a little while. Lubbock time ended about 2 and a half weeks ago. Then I went on a little road trip. Cameron and Franco and I went to Borger (where Cameron lives) for a night. Then we drove to Arkansas and stayed for a week. We did all kinds of crazy stuff. We had a bon-fire. We went to Camp Takodah. We went to Quitman and worked and fished and rode 4-wheelers. Thats just a few things...we stayed really busy. Then we drove back to Borger. We were there a few days and then Cameron and I brought Franco back to Lubbock and then went back to Borger. Katherine and David met us there later on. In Borger we went to the lake one day, we went camping, we set up some stuff for a garage sale, we helped a lady move and some other things. It was lots of amazing fun! This past Monday we said goodbye and Katherine and I drove to her house in Garland, right outside of Dallas. Then Tuesday I drove back to Searcy. This week I am getting ready for my brothers wedding and trying to get some last things set up for moving to Mexico. I am looking for some support and things like that. Its been pretty emotional saying goodbye and stuff like that, but God is so good and so it's been alright. Thank you all for your prayers and support. If you have any questions please let me know!

Support!

Hello Everyone!

I am done with the schooling part of AIM! Now it's time for the field portion! I am so excited! Our team of 4, Dustin, Katherine, Franco and I are getting ready to move to Guadalajara, Mexico in the middle of May!

So, I need support! It takes about $815 monthly and $4,435 one-time to make it happen. So, I need help! It's getting close to time, but I know it's all going to work out. If you would be willing to support me at all, just send me a message or call me. My number is 501-230-7353 and my email is emilyhale17@live.com.

If you have questions, feel free to call or email or facebook me! I would love to answer!

Emily

Mexico City!

MEXICO CITY CLASS TRIP!


It's been so long! I apologize for waiting so long to write! This is always my excuse, but it's been so insanely busy! So here you go! I am going to tell you about our trip to Mexico City as a class!

We left Thursday, February 2 and came back Thursday, February 9. The AIM class and a few assistants and our directors rode a bus all the way there and back. It was a crazy long time! But, the ride went very smoothly. A group from the Sunset International Bible Institute flew and met us there.

We got there Friday night and 25 of us girls stayed at "The Pink House." It's the missionary house that Sunset owns there in Mexico City. The rest of the people were staying at a hotel. So we basically had a quick meeting and then a group of us went to a little restaurant to eat dinner. We didn't get back to the Pink House till about 11 I think. Anyways, so that was our first night in MC. 


The next day, Saturday, we got up and our whole group went to an orphanage to paint! We painted basically the entire place. I think there were 2 buildings and i'm pretty sure we painted outside and inside some. The reason I am not really sure is because my group was in the very back corner and we couldn't really tell what else was going on all day. It was an excellent day. We all ate lunch together and had a great time. At the end of our time there we sang for the kids and took up a collection for the ladies who work there because they are just volunteers. Then, the best part of the whole day happened, the kids from the orphanage sang to us! It was so sweet! Then we loaded up the bus and the kids all wanted to come on the bus just to see what it looked like, so they all walked up and down the aisle and gave everyone high fives! It was so sweet! Then we went home.

On Sunday we were in our "groups of the week" which were our teams and our assistants and a couple SIBI people, oh and someone from Mexico. So we took public transportation to church and the church service was great!  We sang and Paul (from SIBI) preached in spanish and it was and awesome lesson about love. Then we got back in our groups and we went to Coyacan. It's a market place with all kinds of food and shops and stuff. We split up into smaller groups and had a few hours to eat and shop. That was basically the big part of the day.

On Monday we went to Cuernavaca, a little town near MC, to work! It was probably my favorite day! I got to work really hard! We went to a canyon place first and sang and had a devotional. Then we split up in pretty random groups and went to different places to do different things. There were two painting groups, a group that went to an orphanage, a group that went into town to sing and pass out fliers and then there was our group, we went to another church to help them clean up a little bit. Well, we got there and they needed us to fill their water container on top of their bathroom so a few guys spent the couple hours hauling buckets of water from the stream to pass them up to the guys on top of the roof to fill the water tank. They also need us to clean out their church building which required us to take everything outside. There were huge cabinets and filing cabinets and bookshelves and things like that, that were all very heavy! So we did all of that and a few people scrubbed the church down. Then they needed a few of us to level out the ground in front of their church! Yay! So I got to dig and hoe all day! It was awesome! I met a man named Mario from the church there and he only speaks spanish so we started making fun of each other and then he started telling me about his daughter and her kids and things like that! It was awesome! So we were really dirty and just had so much fun!


On Tuesday we got in groups and went to the Basilica and to the Latin American Tower. It was a day of sight seeing but also a day of seeing the Lord. It was amazing. We passed out bibles and food and got to see other cool things too. It was wonderful!

On Wednesday we went to the pyramids and then headed home. It was another long drive but it wasn't too bad. I didn't get to sleep very much this time, but it was ok. I had a lot of fun!

That's basically the trip. We had devotionals every morning. We watched the super bowl and had real mexican tacos on Sunday night. We did lots of other little random things! It was great! God really blessed us by giving us a safe, smooth, fun trip! I think He was glorified a lot!

Sorry, this was so long! Oh, the new picture on my blog is of my team! The five of us are going to Guadalajara, Mexico for our field time! We are so excited and ready to see what God has is store for us!
We got to meet our coordinators and their family and the AIM team that is already in Guadalajara. They came to work with us in Mexico City! It was awesome! Cory and Toni Burns are our coordinators and they have 3 kids, Josiah, Abigail and Hannah. The current Guad AIM team is 4 boys, Angel Duran, Jordan Pointon, Luke Merrick and Landon Fuller! We are so excited to get to  go work with all of them!

Have a wonderful week! May the Lord Bless You and Keep you!

AIMing for the Lord! Emily Rose Hale

Back in Lubbock.

Well, i'm back in Lubbock! It was kinda bittersweet to be back. I miss home, but I miss my AIM family too!

I had a great week at home! Surprising people was awesome! Then I went to Highway for church on Sunday and got to see A LOT of people! That was so awesome! I miss them all so much! Most of the week I just spent visiting people. On Monday we dropped Beatriz off in Paragould to spend the week with her ex-AIMer friend. Then I went around visiting all the people I know there with my cousin, Laura, and Bianca. That was awesome!
I went to see "Breaking Dawn" with Patty and Cindy and Bianca! That was fun! I babysat Greg and Patty's kids one day for a couple hours. Bianca and I ate Lunch with Greg one day. I went to Curtis Kindergarten for a little while one day to visit. I spent time at home with my family! I went out to dinner with Chelsea and Sheryll! It was a pretty chill week. We went hunting on the Friday after Thanksgiving! That was awesome!
Thanksgiving day was wonderful too! I got up and got ready. Everybody was running around cooking up a storm. We had lunch at 12ish. I think there ended up being 28 or so people there! It was crazy! But, I got to see a lot of people and some family that I only get to see a couple times a year! Lots of fun!
That's pretty much it. It was so nice to be home and see everyone. The 12 hour drive there and back was definitely worth it!
On the way back Katherine met up with us and drove back with us. We got caught in traffic twice for wrecks. The second time was really bad. It ended up making us late for curfew, but it was a legit reason so we were excused. We ended up finding another way around it or it would have been lots later. Say a little prayer for the people involved in both of the wrecks please!

Anyways, we are just getting ready to finish up this term. It's about 2 1/2 weeks. We also find out our teams and fields in the next couple weeks. It's exciting!

Thank you for all of your support! Love you all!

Home Again!

Well, hello everyone!

I am writing from SEARCY, ARKANSAS!!!!!!! It's so good to be here.

We had mid-terms this last week. It was a pretty crazy, hectic week. We were all getting ready to go home for Thanksgiving break and take mid-terms and things of the sort.

We had 3 mid-terms. They all went pretty well for me! I was so excited to go home all week that I had a hard time focusing, but I got it all done.

I am home now and I am so happy to be here. Bianca, Beatriz and I drove about 12 hours yesterday to get here. We got home about 10 last night. My dad knew I was coming, just in case we had any problems. But I surprised my mom. She said "what are you doing here, my house isn't even clean yet!" lol she's crazy! Kate and Jacob came over and saw me! Tara came home and I surprised her.

Then today I went around surprising a bunch of other people. I have lots of plans this week already. Just hanging out with people. Lots of people want to hear how it's all going in Lubbock at AIM. I am excited to tell everyone about it! On Monday we are taking Beatriz to Paragould. She is going to spend the week with one of her friends there. Bianca will stay here with my family all week. I am so excited!

Anyways, I will probably write again after I get back to Lubbock to tell you about my week here at home.

 Thank you all for your support and prayers! I appreciate it so much.
Have a SUPER HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Emily

Catching up!

Well, it's been way too long!
I'm so sorry that I haven't been keeping up with this. It's been so crazy insane here!!

October was absolutely crazy busy! We had 2 trips only a few days apart. Well, we ended our first term on October 6th. It's crazy that we are already in our second term! Whoa! Well, then we went to Paducah, Kentucky. We left and spent a night in Springfield, MO. We ate dinner at Lambert's Cafe! We made it to Paducah the next night. It was a wonderful week! We had a couple classes. We did a few service projects. We had a fashion show. We helped with their annual community fish-fry. We did a flag presentation and had lots of fun! I was in a group of 5 girls that stayed at Carlin and Barbara Cook's house! It was so great! They are wonderful people! We got to know them pretty well. I set the fire alarm off 5 times I think. It was interesting. Carlin has a 1958 Ford Fairlane that he took us for rides in. All in all it was such a wonderful trip to get to serve people, spend time with people and have lots of fun!
On the way home from Paducah we stopped in Sheridan, AR for a night. My mom and my sisters came to see me while we were there! It was SOOO good to see them!

When we returned to Lubbock after our trip we started our second term. We only had classes for two days and then we left for the Global Missions Conference in Fort Worth, TX. It was also a wonderful trip! We got to attend some really great classes. We heard quite a few keynote speakers. We sang and had a huge flag presentation. I got to see Benny and Donna! I also got to see Ashli and Mark who I interned in Nicaragua with 2 summers ago. Mark brought Joshua, his little brother, who I got to meet this past summer while I was in Nicaragua! It was sooooooo great to see them all and catch up a little bit! Well, the whole conference went really well. Bianca and I stayed at a house together! The family has a daughter who went through AIM and is now married and her husband is the preacher at one of our area churches. So that was fun! That's about all that happened there.

We came back from GMC and got right into the second terms classes! We have great classes this term! We have a Romans class. We have an Acts class. We have a Spiritual Disciplines class and a NT Church class. So far they are wonderful! 


We had trunk-or-treat in Denver City this past weekend and that was so fun! We dressed up like crayons! I think we were pretty stinkin' cute! Then we spent the night there and went to church Sunday. We had a pretty crazy Sunday. Church, Potluck, Homework Time. Well, then after that we were just waiting to go to a party. Well, on our way to the party in the people's driveway....they have long dirt road driveway and there is a pretty sharp turn at one point, well one of our girls cars flipped off of the road. There were 3 girls in the car, but they were all ok. It was pretty scary though. So we didn't stay at the party very long at all. We were all just tired and in shock so we went home. They had to bring her car back to Lubbock the next day. We just thank God that no one got hurt!

Tonight we actually filled out our lists. It's so crazy how it's already time for this. We all got together at the Powerhouse at Sunset and we sang and prayed and talked. We then filled out our top 5 girls, top 5 guys, top 5 fields and our bottom people and fields. A lot of people were worried, but I feel pretty good about it. I just want God to do what He has planned. I am excited! It's going to be super great!

Well, that's just the main things that have been happening. We are all excited that thanksgiving break is coming up! It's going to be a nice refreshing break from all of the crazy wonderful busy life of AIM! I am so excited to go visit home for a little bit! Then we come back for a couple weeks and right before we go home for Christmas break we find out our teams and fields!

Alright, well...sorry it's been so long. I hope you all have a blessed weekend!

EmilyRose