H.O.P.E: Back at the Ridge

So, after an incredible week at Pine Ridge last month (with 27 awesome high school kids, 5 incredible chaperones and one amazing Next Step Staff) I decided to make the trek back the Ridge and serve for another week. And, I got to bring Karrah with me!

On Saturday I picked Karrah up around 7:30 and we went straight to Barriques. Coffee was a must!

We got on the road just before 8 am - not knowing what was ahead of us.

The 13 hour drive started great. We moved our way up Hwy 12, through LaCrosse and finally made our first stop for lunch at a McDonald's in Albert Lea, MN. It happened so fast. Before we knew it, there were Amish people sitting at just about every table except the one we were at. It was like we blinked and they appeared. They literally took over the McDonald's. We looked for the horse and buggy, but didn't find it. :(

We got back in the car and drove, making our next stop in Mitchell. We needed some gas and a stretch of the legs. We had some interesting conversations - Karrah told me a lot of stories - like when she ran her car into a hardware store (it's a great story - you should ask her!) On our way out of Mitchell, I had Karrah look at a map to figure out an alternative route for us because I was really sick of driving on I-90. Best. Decision. Ever. Literally.

We drove south for a bit and caught up with HWY 18 which would take us the rest of the way to the Rez. We drove for about 2 hours, laughing and singing (if you don't know Jason Mraz's song I Won't Give Up, you need to listen to it!). Then, the greatest part of our drive happened. I'm serious. We found a hidden gem in the depths of South Dakota. A little town, with a population of about 3,300 people called Winner. Yes, Winner! Karrah immediately got on her iPhone and googled it - we found out that Frank Leahy (a former Notre Dame football coach) hails from there - except not really because he's from Omaha, Nebraska. Pheasant hunting is super popular in Winner and Dolores Taylor - creator of the Billy Jack films was born and raised there too. Karrah and I plan on watching all four Billy Jack movies when we get home - we're super pumped about Billy Jack Goes to Washington. Winner.

All jokes aside, the trip was great and I was so thankful to have a co-pilot. We made it to Pine Ridge around 6:45 PM, stopped at the Pizza Hut for pepperoni pizza and took it the Wings of Eagles School. When all was said and done, we sat down to eat under the tent at 7:30 PM. Long trip.

We thought perhaps that night would end there. Our Next Step friends were in Rapid City and wouldn't be getting back until late. Bill, the property manager was scoping us out - he didn't recognize us, so he wanted to make sure we were legit. We were - duh! Thank God Bill realized we were legit. The sky changed so quickly and it was very obvious that a big storm was moving in. Bill opened up the school so we wouldn't have to sit in my car and wait out the storm.

By this point the wind was picking up A LOT! We grabbed everything out of my car - including the teams laundry that was line-drying and settled in to wait out the storm. We were all set up, Karrah was watching the Grey's Anatomy season finale (it's CRAZY) and we lost power. We moved into the basement - there was so much lightening and thunder and wind - we were kinda worried my Kia would blow away.

We kept ourselves busy folding laundry, singing songs, reading Bible verses about storms and just watching the storm. We didn't realize how bad the damage from the storm was until it calmed down and the NS team came back from Rapid.

The tent was basically collapsed. Trees were down all over the property. Some skylights from the barn were taken by the winds and there was water damage all over the worship barn. We did what we could and then called it a night. In the morning we came to learn that a tornado actually came through Pine Ridge. Some of the residents (including some our kids worked for) lost their homes. It's incredibly sad, but as far as we know, everyone is safe! Please pray for everyone affected!

Sunday night brought lots of families! Some of from Oregon, Wisconsin - it's so fun to see all kinds of Badger and Packer love when I'm no where near that great state!

To sum up Saturday and Sunday here is:

Meg and Karrah's Top Ten Winning Moments

10. Barrique's Coffee. Seriously delicious.

9. The Amish swarm at McDonald's.

8. Jason Mraz and I Won't Give Up.

7. Getting off the Interstate

6. Crossing the Missouri River - so gorgeous.

5. Basement sing along (we're great at The Wizard and I)

4. The landscape.

3. Bill letting us into the school.

2. Hugging/meeting the Next Step Team.

1. Winner.