METour

The Mission Education Tour has already left for 2009.  Read about their trip here.  Check back after January 2010 for new information and application!

2009 Itinerary

Wichita, Ks           Jacksonville, IL Omaha, NE
Emporia, KS  Chicago, IL  Lincoln, NE
St. Joseph, MO Evanston, IL York, NE
Kansas City, MO Rockford, IL Salina, KS
Columbia, MO  Iowa City, IA Newton, KS 
St. Louis, MO Des Moines, IA Back to Wichita!
East St. Louis, IL Harlan, IA           

*Day 1 Wichita, KS: *

We meet at East Heights United Methodist Church at 2:00 PM for registration. We’ll have a quick meeting with parents at 3:00 PM , and then it’s time to say goodbye! We’ll play some get-acquainted games and spend some time in our families. College Hill UMC will fix us pizza and then we will participate in a Christ Kin service where we will pick names for prayer partners. After showers and phone time, it’s time for bed!

*Day 2 Wichita, KS to St. Joseph , MO : *

Wake-up time comes bright and early this morning! East Heights UMW will fix us a fabulous breakfast and then we’ll be on the road to our first stop. We will meet at Open Door ministries to do our first mission work of the trip. Then it’s time to set sail for Emporia, where we’ll meet with the United Methodist Campus Center director for lunch. After that, we’ll head up to St. Joseph, MO to pay a visit to InterServ’s new facility. We’ll stay the night at Huffman UMC and fix a meal of chicken alfredo, worship together, and then hit the sack after a long first day.

*Day 3 St. Joseph, MO to Columbia , MO:*

Day 3 starts out with a breakfast prepared by one of our groups. Our first will be to Della Lamb, an agency that works with low-income clients in Kansas City . We will eat lunch and take a tour of St. Paul’s School of Theology, a United Methodist seminary. After that we will visit Spofford Home to work with some of their younger clients. We will spend the night in Columbia, MO at Missouri UMC, where they will treat us to a wonderful meal. The evening will conclude with worship, showers, phone time, then bed time.

*Day 4* * Columbia , MO to Jacksonville , IL *

After a quick breakfast, we will head east to East St. Louis, IL to Lessie Bates Davis Neighborhood House. We will spend the morning touring their agency and then travel to Epworth Children and Family Services to eat lunch and do some mission work. We will then travel to Shalom House, a homeless shelter in St. Louis. We will eat supper at Centenary Church in downtown St. Louis and travel to Jacksonville, IL, where we will stay the night at MacMurray College.

*Day 5 Jacksonville, IL to Chicago , IL *

We will become very familiar with the bus on Day 5. We will get up at the crack of dawn and travel to Chicago Temple UMC , the oldest church in Chicago . We will do a tour at Marcy-Newberry Association and travel to East Side UMC where we will stay the night. This will be our first mail drop and we’re looking forward to hearing from our prayer partners!

*Day 6 Chicago, IL to Rockford , IL *

This day will be a fun day for the girls! We will spend the morning at our mystery stop, which the girls will find out the location of on Friday morning as we’re traveling there. We’ll eat lunch with two female Kansas seminary students at Garrett Theological Seminary and then travel to see the fascinating exhibits at the Museum of Science and Industry. After learning all about science and industry, we’ll travel to Rockford, IL and enjoy a meal prepared by Christ United Methodist Church UMW. Worship and phone time will close out the day.

*Day 7 Rockford, IL to Harlan , IA *

Saturday will be a day of a lot of traveling for the METour posse. We have a long bus trip to the University of Iowa Wesley Foundation, where we’ll hear from students about campus ministry and college life. We’ll then travel to Cedar Rapids, IA, a town still recovering from a devastating flood a year ago, to do a little bit of flood recovery work. The girls will also receive disaster response training while traveling on the bus-a bonus for this METour! After an afternoon of labor, we’ll travel to Harlan, IA where we’ll rest our heads for the night.

*Day 8 Harlan, IA to Omaha, NE*

We’ll worship with our host church, Harlan UMC , and then travel to Omaha, NE, where we have three agencies eagerly awaiting our arrival. We’ll meet at Together, Inc., a ministry that helps struggling families pay their bills, among many other things. We’ll then split up, with one group going to the Pearl Pantry, one group going to the Blue Flamingo Thrift Store, and two groups staying at Together, Inc. We’re staying the night at Faith-Westwood Church in Omaha. Our worship tonight will consist of the Quiet Meal.

*Day 9 Omaha, NE to Lincoln , NE *

We’re starting the day out in Omaha again, this time at the Wesley House. After listening in on the director’s morning talk to the boys of Wesley House, we’ll split up again to work on different parts of a community garden. Most of us will stay and work on “The Big Garden” at Wesley House and others will go to smaller sites. The Omaha First United Methodist Church UMW will treat us to lunch while we listen to the inspirational words of Rev. Stephanie Ahlschwede, Executive Director of United Methodist Ministries in Omaha. We’ll load the bus to visit Nebraska Wesleyan
University, a United Methodist affiliated university in Lincoln. We’ll get the grand tour of the campus and then borrow their showers since our overnight hosts don’t have any in their church. Our next stop is across the street-Lincoln First United Methodist Church, where we’ll be fed by the UMW unit. After supper, we’ll have our “Grins and Giggles” night, where the girls will be able to use their active imaginations and endless talents to entertain each other and have fun.

*Day 10 Lincoln, NE to Salina , KS *

Our first stop is only a short hour away from Lincoln: Epworth Village in York, NE. Epworth provides a home for children that don’t have one anywhere else. We’ll take a tour of the place and eat lunch with them.  It’s hard to believe this, but it’s already time to head back to Kansas! We’ll be stopping next at Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina. The girls will receive a tour and have the chance to ask questions. After that, we’ll head to the church that we’re staying at for the night: First UMC in Salina. We will be treated to a meal there and then gather for one last Christ Kin ceremony. We’ll set up our stuff for bed and then travel over to the Salina YMCA, where we’ve rented out the place for two hours! The girls deserve a big going away bash on the last night!

*Day 11 Salina, KS to Wichita , KS *

The trip has gone by at lightning speed! Our last morning will be spent at Youthville, Kansas’s largest non-profit group, in Newton. We’ll eat a quick lunch and then be back at East Heights United Methodist Church in Wichita at about 1:30. We’re looking forward to being with our families again, as well as other people who have been praying for us during the whole trip.

 

Back to Top

 

News and Views

Youth

Mission Education Tour Information (METour)

School of Christian Mission
For information (SoCM)

  

Young Women

College Campus Units

Kansas Wesleyan University
100 Claflin, 
Salina, KS

Fort Hays State University

School of Christian Mission
For information (Socm)

 

Other Resourses

Kansas West Conference

Women's Division

United Methodist Women Online community

Response Online Magazine

New World Outreach Online

Kansas West Connection

Mission Resource Center

Upperroom Devotional