2012 sp master's mission

Senior Projects 2012

Dear Senior Project Panel Members:

Thank you so much for taking your time to review our project and sit on our panel. We are excited to share our Senior Project with you. As you peruse our information, please enjoy our reflections and artifacts. We look forward to presenting to you and welcome any questions you have. Inside you will find:

• Sarah Flores’s Reflection

• Edith Herrera’s Reflection

• Rachel Langdon’s Reflection

• Emily Mouser’s Reflection

• Fabiola Ramos’s Reflection

• Joanna Smock’s Reflection

• Artifacts from the project

Sincerely,

The Master’s Mission Team

Sarah Flores

Senior Project Reflection

Over the course of the past few months my senior project group and I have had the best experience of our high school careers. Although we all came from different backgrounds, we became a family. We successfully organized, fundraised, and volunteered our time towards our mission trip in Chicago.

During our time in Chicago, we took part in many activities. The first day consisted of service projects around the church. Some groups painted, power washed, or cleaned alleys. We traveled to the “Lower Wrecks” (under bridges and parking garages) to hand out food to the homeless. Not only did we hand out food, but we got to meet the people behind the typical homeless stereotype. We sat down with them and heard their stories. Later in the weekend we bagged groceries at the food bank in the church for people within the community, as well as personally hand them out. Visiting the homeless shelter was probably my favorite experience. Our group traveled to a homeless shelter for men before the doors opened. We handed out water and snacks as well as talking to all of the men. At first it was intimidating, but the majority of the men who incredibly nice. They had so much respect for us, and they had such interesting stories.

Our outcome did not stray too far away from our initial goal. We all felt compelled in to be in a group that reflected our faith as well as what we have learned as seniors at CSA. We did not know at first what that would look like, but with the help of community partners (and a little brainstorming) we found our project. Cutting Edge Ministries has a vast network of churches around the nation that are always looking for mission trip groups. New Life Covenant Church in Chicago is one of those churches. Although Chicago is a larger community than Columbus, we saw the opportunity to showcase how important volunteering is in any community. Starting a revolution aimed at youth groups and high school students was our main goal, and we hope the video we create motivates our community.

At first we had a slow start in the beginning phases of the project. There was a small struggle with group meetings due to personal schedules, but communication was never argumentative. All of our pillars were successful. The fundraising group managed to achieve over $600. The education group created discussions and journals for each night. The logistics group worked with the community partner to plan each day to form an agenda. Each pillar had their own struggles, but as a group we didn’t accept failure. My senior project completely opened my eyes to the world around me. I want to convey what I learned not only to people of the same faith, but young people everywhere. Our video will showcase our beliefs as well as how we have grown as seniors.

Edith Herrera


At the beginning of senior year I wasn’t sure of what I wanted to do for a graduation project. There were different groups I could have joined but I wasn’t interested in any of those groups. One day Rachel Langdon proposed the idea of a mission trip project based on faith. By that time I was really interested in the project and when I knew who the other group members were it made it better because I knew the girls very well and I knew they are very passionate on what they do.

Seven months of planning seemed a lot of time, but when the time was getting closer we couldn’t belief that it was time for us to put up the physical part of the project on “work time”. Planning when so well everything we talked about our project was full of enthusiasm and every time we had accomplished something we celebrated. Because we knew that every little thing we did was going to lead us to the final project. We did have some up’s and down’s just like the other groups I imagine did, our group was very positive that we knew how to overcome any obstacle that was on our way.

During the planning time we were so excited that we trough in so many ideas for our project, not all made it to the physical part but we did had those ideas in mind just in case something when wrong, we had a backup plan. When this project was proposed there was some doubts about how revolutionary it would be and since it was not clear the purposed of the project, but later on after group talks and proposals written it made it clear, we wanted to go to a bigger city were we could get the experience and bring it back to our community to aware the community and to let young students like us, that there is ways to help our community even from outside the state.

Throughout the project work time we had, we experience some troubles with the financial part because the amount of money that we had to collect it was big. The fundraiser pillar (Fabiola Ramos and I) had trouble coming up with ideas because there was always something in our way that did not let us fundraise. With the help of our youth group and our church we did a “Quermes” were we had to sell food after the church service, the outcome of that fundraiser idea was good we also sold the left over pastries at school. We created presentations for different organizations, for them to donate money for our project, which was also a big success. One of the struggles we had within this pillar was creating a fundraiser at school, because we had to follow guidelines and work on different things before getting approved to do such things at school. That made it difficult for us because we wanted to do something that would have had all the students participating, but things didn’t come up right so we decided to opt for other ideas.

I am more than satisfied with this project and also with my group, because we did such a big project and the outcome was more than just a success. What I wish I would known before we went in our mission trip, was to check the weather because since we went to the “Windy City” in the beginning of March, we thought it was going to be cold to our surprise the weather was the opposite, it was very hot and had to work out side with the incorrect type of cloths.

With the completion of this project I have gain so much knowledge over all and the different situations people live in, now I know the ways I can help and be a volunteer in the different organizations in our community. The experience that I have now will lead me to tell the others around me of the ways they can also volunteer. This project made see different ways I can focus for my future and relate them to my career. I have always wanted to do something faith base and I know I can continue doing mission trips or working with the community and my church.

Rachel Langdon

Senior Project Reflection Rachel Langdon


Our senior project was creating a mission trip that we would go on to learn more about ourselves and to take back the knowledge we learned to share with other youth groups and to the people who helped us out. We will do this by creating a video showing what options are out there for high school students and that it’s okay to show your faith in high school. We had three different pillars that supported our senior project. Sarah Flores and I were part of the logistics team. Emily Mouser and Joanna Smock were the lesson planning team and Fabiola Ramos and Edith Herrera were part of the fundraising team.

I had previously gone on a mission trip to Chicago with the Cutting Edge Outreach Ministries team. I had such a great time that I thought it would be cool to go again with my own senior project team! I contacted Rich Gibbs, who is the director of Cutting Edge, and he was really looking forward to working with us. We have had a conference call meeting every Tuesday for the past 7 months. Fabiola and Edith planned a bake sale at their church for fundraising and they scheduled two meetings with different committees from their church to listen to our presentation. We also sent out letters to family and friends asking for their support.

Our senior project hasn’t really changed that much over the 7 months that we have been working on it. Our original plan was to go on a mission trip and then create a video showing students that it’s okay to show your faith in high school and that there are student’s just like you. Our plan has stayed with us and hasn’t changed, which I am very proud to say that! I think that our senior project is revolutionary for our school. The only thing that I would maybe want to change is the number of students going and the dates that we set. If we had 20 students going then we would need to have our mission trip during actual spring break and not to miss any days of school, I think that has been a setback.

A struggle that our team faced was meeting with each other. Sarah and I were the only ones that were here during senior advisory, everyone else left for C4 classes. I think that was a major setback. It was very frustrating when we needed to meet and could only talk for the first 5 minutes of class. I think another struggle was for a short period of time we hadn’t raised any money and our group seemed to just push our senior project to the side. We all became so busy with our other classes that we kind of forgot about the senior project. I became very close to just yelling at my group but my mom and facilitators really helped me to get my groups attention without blowing up on them. I think once they realized that we didn’t have that much time to raise $600 in a month they got the point and everyone went into overdrive mode to get things done! Even though my group took a short break from working I don’t think I would trade them for anyone else. We all knew each other but may not have been close with them and this project really brought us together. I think one of the most successful things that have happened is how we had to keep raising our fundraising goal. Our original goal was $600 then we raised it to $800. We raised $264 from Kermes (Spanish bake sale), $300 from S.A.M.‐ Bill Jones, $200 from Peace and Justice Committee and $260 from the letters that we sent out. Fundraising has been our biggest success; we had a total of $1,026.

This project has made me better at organizing something on a larger scale and it has made me learn how to communicate to other people without blowing up on them. My “future career” may have me plan events that are on the larger scale and I may have to work with multiple people on the event. I think that this project has really helped me learn more about myself and how I communicate with people and what I need to work on as a leader in any other project that I may have in the future.

Emily Mouser


“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I [Jesus] am with you always, to the very end of the age,” (Matthew 28:19‐20– The Great Commission). Master’s Mission is a project that was created by me, Joanna Smock, Edith Herrera, Fabiola Ramos, Sarah Flores, and Rachel Langdon. Our goal of the project is to help those who are in need as we are called to do. We want to go forth as disciples and share the word of God with others and hopefully spread the fire we have in us to others so that they might do the same.

I was very pleased with how revolutionary our project was. I thought our video turned out really good and that it will really send the message we want to get out to others. The trip was very well organized thanks to Sarah and Rachel. We really got the opportunity to reach out

to others and get out of our comfort zone. It was really uncomfortable sometimes to be around the needy. It made you feel so ashamed for everything that you’re wearing and everything you own and that they have so much less than that. The trip was truly a learning experience for everyone.

Some of the struggles I personally had throughout the project were collaborating with our group. Our schedules were so crazy it was really hard for us to meet because of all of our other responsibilities. For example Joanna and I had C4 so we never could stay for Advisory which is the only time our school schedule allows us to all meet. Then outside of school it was difficult to meet because we all have jobs. We did a lot of working on Google Docs and posted things on echo to help improve our collaboration.

The most successful part of our project was fundraising. We started out with a goal of $600. The first fundraiser we did was selling baked goods at an event called Kermes at Edith and Fabiola’s church. We raised $250 doing that at the beginning which was a good start. Then we took the left over baked goods and sold them in our school which gave us an extra $16. Then we sent out letters to people we knew from church or just family member and received $260 from random people we selected. Next we gave a presentation to Bill Jones and he awarded us $300 which made us well over our original goal of $600. We wanted to then set the bar higher so we made our goal $800 knowing that we still had one more presentation to give. We then gave a presentation to the Peace and Justice committee at St. Bartholomew Church. They awarded us with $200. We were all very excited and pleased at how much we raised just by giving professional presentations. We did a good job of meeting our goal and just for the record our total collection from fundraising was $1,026.

This project is defiantly going to impact my future. Through this project I have learned that anything is possible and the money isn’t an issue. There are so many people willing to help aid trips. I learned that with hard work and dedication even students can plan mission trips. I have been so used to adults in my church planning a trip like this and it is a really awesome accomplishment to know that my and a group of my close peers planned a trip like this. It will help me with my future careers because I will know how to plan and fundraise. I will also know how to collaborate with my co workers.

I am very satisfied with our project. All of us girls had fun making plans and going on a trip together. This is going to be a great memory from High School and something that hopefully other future seniors will be encouraged to do as well. We have worked hard and it has paid off. We incorporated school with what we are passionate about in life and it was truly a rewarding experience. Our hope is to encourage and motivate others to do the same. Our

next steps will be to show our video to churches in the community and to make a difference in the needy people of Chicago’s lives.

Fabiola Ramos


I remember that last year I was so worry because I didn’t know what to do for my senior project, I was honestly scared. As the summer pasted and my senior year begging we got the news that the project was going to be in groups, which made me cheerful because I knew this was going to be fun and less stressful, the only problem was that didn’t know what project or who were going to be my team members. One day Rachel and Sarah came to my English 12 class and propose a project base on faith with the outcome of a mission trip to the city of Chicago. I fell in love with the idea so did Edith, Joanna, and Emily. I was excited to know that they were going to be in my team because I know them personally and I believe that they are all strong young women’s with a strong faith in God. Our faith is what put us together even do we were all part of different religions.

Rachel and Sarah were in the logistics in other words they did all the planning, Joanna and Emily were the lesson instructors and their job was to create lessons that involve God. Edith and I were in the fundraising team in our job was to create ideas to raise money for our trip. We all got along very much because we were all friend and determent that we didn’t even need our group contract because we hold each other accountable. There were times some good time and bad like everyone else but we pull our self together. One of the hardest things was meeting with one another because we were all so busy but we manage to work on our schedules and became very flexible.

Edith and I had a hard time finding ideas that would help use raise money for our trip. We try and failed several times but that didn’t stop. At the time we meet with our church administer and she gave us multiple ideas that we put on to play. We had a “quermes” with is selling food after church, we raise a little more the $200 dollars. We also had presentations to community partners at church and we mad $500 dollars and also sent out letters to friends and family about our project and we raise $300 making a total of $1,000 dollars. A lot more then what we wanted. I would recommend not giving up on raising money because they are people always being glad to help out.

After 7 mounts of planning the finally day came and we when to Chicago. There are no words to describe my experience but I can say that it was a lot more than I expected because I truly learn so much. This mission trip is meant for ourselves to be challenged as well as the people we are helping and we accomplish our goal. We work with different diverse individuals who have come from many different backgrounds, some of who are still struggling with addictions and

substance abuse. We hope that through our ministries we reach them and help them realize that there is help for them out there. We hoped that the time spent in Chicago will give us the confidence to help people in our own town. Through this mission trip we became more comfortable in praying out loud for other people. We are still working on showing our final product (video) to different organizations, youth groups, and to the people who helped us get to Chicago. We hope people get involve in organizations we have here in Columbus like love Chapel, Turning Point, East Side Community Center to name a few. Our project over all was a successful and revolutionary.

Joanna Smock


Mater’s Mission was a faith based senior project comprised of group members who felt the need for change within the community and surrounding areas. The idea was inspired by a former senior project completed by a high school senior last year. The group was presented with the ability to partner with Cutting Edge Ministries (a worldwide organization) and volunteer in order to better the overall establishment housing the New Life Covenant Church (Chicago, Illinois).

At the beginning of the school year, it was a difficult finding ways to work around C4 schedules and other school related activities. There were no projects in which particularly sparked my interest. As a result, I waited and researched groups in need of assistance. Eventually, Sarah Flores and Rachel Langdon presented a proposal during my third period English. Every last detail had every last bit of my attention and interest. The project was closely relatable to the personal issues in my life I am most passionate about. I absolutely fell in love with the idea and goals the girls had set in place for the final product. I knew I was ready to revolutionize the way in which senior projects are carried out.

In the early stages of project planning we all knew we would want to take a trip to Chicago to work with the organizations who had agreed to partner with us. What we didn’t know was how many people were going to go, how to fund the trip, or what the physical final product would be. As we began to hash out some ideas and put together rough plans we found it in our group’s best interest to divide the group members into pillars. Each pillar contributed their own piece to the project, acting as multiple mini groups that would come together to form one large group. Eventually the pillars were narrowed down to logistics, fundraising, and lesson instructors. The logistics pillar was able to set final dates and get the ball rolling for the entire group. The logistics pillar was truthfully the group core. Fundraising set up multiple meetings and events that would aid in raising the necessary funds. The lesson instructors provided resources, lesson plans, and trip journals for each group member to complete.

The project went much better than expected. We were exposed to many situations that required us to step out of our comfort zone. We all took part in activities such as painting

(inside and out), Adopt a Block (picking up trash), power washing awnings and buildings, staining a three story deck, taking an evening to pass out food and provide ministry for those living under the bridge, packing groceries to donate bags for families in need of assistance, and being a friend to the men waiting for the homeless shelter to open. Stepping out of our comfort zone is what allowed us to apply the 21st Century skills and habits of mind embedded within each and every one of our minds. Many of the group members attempted to expose themselves to similar situations through community service activities in hopes to mentally prepare for what would come. Three of us went to Indianapolis together partnering with an organization based in Trafalgar, Indiana (Lord’s Locker). There we also passes breakfast and provided ministry to those living on the streets of Indianapolis. Each experience was life changing and allowed us to see how truly blessed we are, even on the “bad” days. I was very satisfied with the project.

We were very successful in fundraising. We participated in multiple meetings outside of school with those who had the desire to contribute towards the cause. Many thanks go out to those who supported us. Now, we have one last task to complete. We have to make a video for our community partners as well as those in Columbus, Indiana, who can benefit from our great experiences. We hope to get across the message that it’s okay to stand up for what you believe in. Whether young or old, it’s our duty to help those in need. We want to encourage the organizations in Columbus that are providing assistance to those community members who need it most. The video will also be distributed to community partners who provided donations. Without them, this project would have never become a reality. I sure plan on adding the final video to my list of successes.

The project was extremely relevant to what I see accomplishing in my future. I have always had a heart for helping people and more particularly those who live in the big cities. I have always considered being a pastor or youth pastor and I could see that as still being one of my career options. Despite overcoming obstacles and stressful moments I enjoyed every minute of the project.

Artifacts

Invoice

January 13, 2012

Columbus Signature Academy

New Tech Campus

3170 Indiana Avenue

Columbus, IN 47201

Invoice Description Total

Mission Trip – Chicago $2156.00

3/14 – 3/18, 2012

11 students x $196 ea.

Amount Paid ($637.00)

Deposit Due (2nd installment) $539.00

Please make check payable to Cutting Edge Outreach Ministries and send to:

200 East Verona Avenue, Verona, WI 53593. Thank you so much!

If there are any questions or concerns regarding this invoice please do not hesitate to contact us.

Together we are helping to bring young people into life changing encounters with Jesus Christ and equipping them to make a difference.

Rich Gibbs

Cutting Edge Outreach Ministries

200 East Verona Avenue, Verona, WI 53593

Phone: 608‐695‐9457

www.cuttingedgeoutreachministries.com

Fundraising Letter

Dear

I hope this letter finds you well. I have exciting news to share with you. As a graduation requirement at Columbus Signature Academy New Tech I am participating in a senior project. A group of us got together because we share a commitment to living our faith even in high school. We wanted our senior project to help others less fortunate and inspire other teens to share their lives and faith with others. We have planned a four day trip to the Dream Center in Chicago starting March 14, 2012. The Dream Center meets the practical needs of people while sharing faith, hope and love. The Dream Center offers ten ministries ranging from street evangelism, prison ministries, help for victims of human trafficking, adopt a block programs, and providing food to families. We have partnered with Cutting Edge Outreach Ministries to provide logistical support and ministerial staff for our trip. We will likely be participating in bagging and delivering food to community families and providing sack lunches to individuals who find themselves living on the street. While in Chicago we will participate in a Bible study based on the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan led by members of our own group. We will document our experiences in journal and video form. The video will then be shared with local youth groups to challenge them to live their faith daily. While we plan to have fun on this trip the goal is not just sightseeing; we hope our lives and the lives of those we encounter will be changed.

All of the planning for this trip is done in addition to our regular studies, jobs, and other responsibilities. We are so excited for this opportunity and look forward to seeing God move in Chicago and in our local community.

Each individual in our group had already made three payments to fund the expense of the trip. Our goal is to raise enough money to cover the fourth payment for the entire group. We need to raise $600 by March 14th, the day we leave for the trip. I am writing to ask for your support in helping us reach this goal. If you feel led to help us reach this goal, would you please send your donation in the enclosed self‐addressed stamped envelope by March 5th, 2012?

If I can answer any questions for you please don’t hesitate to contact me at 812‐XXX‐XXXX or [email protected]. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Master’s Mission Information Sheet

The dates for the Mission Trip are March 14th‐ 18th. We will be missing Thursday and Friday of school. Everyone that will be going needs to fill out the form up at the front desk saying why you will be missing school so you can get an excused absence.

There are a total of four payments. Our group will be paying for the last installment for each person that is going. You can pay the total amount upfront or pay three times over the course of three months, the dates are listed below.

The total amount of the trip (not including what the group pays) will be $147. The first payment is due Monday and Tuesday of next week (December 5th and 6th). The second payment will be due the fist Monday and Tuesday of January (January 2nd and 3rd). The third and final payment is due the first Monday and Tuesday of February (February 6th and 7th). Each payment will be 25% of the total amount, which comes out to be $49.00. Please make check payable to Cutting Edge Ministries. Payments are NON REFUNDABLE.

You got a packet when you came to the meeting. This packet will be due with the second payment. If you lose your packet go to the Cutting Edge Missions website: http://www.cuttingedgeoutreachministries.com/index.php

You will need to click on Student Mission Trip Packet.

Here is a rough schedule of what we will be doing during the night:

Wednesday: Arrive. Rich Gibbs will give an orientation and Joanna and Emily will give a devotional.

Thursday: We are going to go site seeing. (If you want to bring money for shopping) Joanna and Emily will give a devotional.

Friday: We will be doing Bridge to Life during the night. Joanna and Emily will give a devotional.

Saturday: We will be going to a homeless shelter during the night. Joanna and Emily will give a devotional.

Sunday: Rich Gibbs will give a debriefing. Joanna and Emily will give a devotional; we will also be going to church. After church we are going to head home!

If you have any questions please contact Rachel Langdon at (812) 344‐6178 or email her at [email protected]

Master’s Mission Schedule March 14th- 18th Wednesday: 3:00 Leave Columbus, IN 6:30 Arrive to Chicago (get settled) 7:30 Getting Briefed and Answering Questions 9:00 Worship 9:30 Rich- Team Devotional 10:00Free Time 12:00 Lights Out Thursday: 7:00 Up n Ready 7:30 Personal Devos 8:00 Breakfast n Briefing 8:30 Rich- Team Devotional 9:00 Ministry Site- Work Projects 12:00 Lunch 1:00 Ministry Site- Work Projects 4:00 Wrap up, back to base 4:30 Break and Getting ready for Dinner 6:00 Leave for Dinner 6:30 Dinner (will make reservations) and Site Seeing 9:00 Back to Base 9:30 Worship 10:00 Emily and Joanna Lesson Plan 10:30 Free Time 12:00 Lights Out Friday: 7:00 Up n Ready 7:30 Personal Devos 8:00 Breakfast n Briefing 8:30 Rich- Team Devotional 9:00 Ministry Site- Work Projects 12:00 Lunch 1:00 Ministry Site- Work Projects 4:00 Wrap up, back to base 4:30 Break

6:30 Dinner 7:30 Outreach: Bridge to Life 9:00 Back to Base 9:30 Worship 10:00 Emily and Joanna Lesson Plan 12:00 Lights Out Saturday: 7:00 Up n Ready 7:30 Personal Devos 8:00 Breakfast n Briefing 8:30 Team Devotional 9:00 Ministry Site- Serve Homeless 12:00 Lunch 1:00 Ministry Site- Adopt a Block 4:00 Wrap up, back to base 4:30 Break 6:30 Dinner 7:30 Outreach: Homeless Shelter 9:00 Back to Base 9:30 Worship 10:00 Emily and Joanna Lesson Plan 10:30 Debriefing 12:00 Lights Out Sunday: 7:00 Up n Ready 7:30 Personal Devos 8:00 Breakfast n Briefing 8:30 Team Devotional 9:00 Ministry Site 9:30 Church 11:30 Depart

2012 sp master's mission

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