Chanku Waste Ranch 2013....The End.

FRIDAY, DAY 5 of CAMP: 

Day 5 of the camp is always the shortest yet hardest on some of our teens.  Camp ended at noon instead  of 3:30, due to the fact that so many of the campers & their familes participate in the Sundance or take trips to Rapid City on the weekend. The actual day of camp went well, with 32 campers in attendance.  Caleb Murray concluded the camp day with sharing a lesson that he wrote on the Resurrection from Matthew 28, and did a great job! 

As usual with the last day, the tearful goodbyes are considerably prolonged and we had several tear-streaked faces on our teens for the remainder of the day.  They did gain extra time with some of the campers when the bus to take them all home ran out of gas on the way!  You would think the extra 30 minutes gained from waiting for gas to be delivered  would have been enough to say goodbye, but there were still saw cars lined up behind the bus waiting for the kids to eventually and reluctantly exit!  

After camp ended we took a short trip to Wounded Knee Memorial,  the sight of the massacre that marked the last conflict between the US Cavalry and the Souix nation.  Wounded Knee's location on the Pine Ridge Reservation drives much of the tension that still exists between the Lakota and white's to this day, 123 years later. 

Some purchased authentic jewelry from natives across the road, and almost all were completely smitten with the adorable newborn puppies that were for sale as well.  There were a few pleading calls made to parents as a last ditch effort to bring one home with us, and I'm still searching the cars and backpacks thinking one just might have been smuggled home! 

After Wounded Knee we started cleanup and packing the vans and trailer, and then paused around 7:00pm to join to the local teen youth group that meets out at the camp on Friday nights.  We enjoyed a time of fellowship, sports and a BBQ, followed by a bonfire, then a team meeting for  our own teens. The night was short, falling into bed between midnight and 1:00, and waking at 5:30 am for breakfast and last minute cleaning, then departure.  

SATURDAY, SIGHTSEEING DAY!

Saturdays following a trip usually are a day of rest and fun for the team, after a long week of little downtime.  The mornings activity included a 1.5 hour tour through Wind Cave, the 6th largest cave in the world. It carries cultural significance for the Lakota as tradition holds that their people originated from Wind Cave.  Following a picnic at Wind Cave, a short trip down the road took the group to Evan's Plunge, a Hot-Springs Water Park.  The enjoyed various water slides, games of water volleyball, a lap area, an outdoor and indoor swim area, hot tubs and some tried to wow us with their strength on the swing rings that went from one side to the other! 

We were delightfully exhausted after the swim time, and headed out for dinner at Pizza Ranch before continuing on to Murdo, S. Dakota where we stopped for the night for another very short night! 

SUNDAY, HEADED HOME!

Sunday morning came quickly, waking at 6:00am to be on the vans by 7:00am.  We made great time, arriving back at the church by 7:30 pm.  Everyone was pretty exhausted and all are ready to be home!  

Thanks for all your prayers!! We greatly appreciate our support 'staff' back home!! Until next time....