Another one bites the dust...

Surprise... but not really. I'm engaged!!!

Here is the part of the story that I couldn't tell you...

Mike's family just finished up the settlement with the government over Sonja's (Mike's mom) Hep. C case (she got an infected blood transfusion when she had cancer). The timing was so from God, because Mike got a large sum of money from the government which has allowed us to get engaged!! CRAZY!!! He makes money appear from no where!

Anyways, here is our engagement story, complete with pictures (the rest of the pictures are on facebook)

So, for those of you who don’t know, I will give you a bit of the back story. My mom and Mike’s mom were best friends growing up. Our parents went to youth group together, and even went on double dates.

Although Mike and Dan were born in Calgary, they moved back to Germany shortly after. The summer before grade seven, the Delamonts moved back to Calgary from Ontario. It was then that I first got to know them, and Mike, Dan, and I soon became good friends. Mike has been one of my best friends since grade seven. We have had a ton of fun together, but have also gone through a lot of hard stuff together, including his mom’s death, and me being in the earthquake in Haiti.

We started dating January of 2008. About two weeks in, we had a conversation that went something like this:

Kendall “So, I need to know if you think that there is a good chance of us getting married. If not, we need to break up right now. I don’t want to ruin the good friendship we have.”

(a pause… apparently he was contemplating about messing with me…)

Mike: “It’s more than a distinct possibility”

So, two weeks into our relationship, we knew that we would be getting married. It was now a question of when.

Something that we had been praying about so that we could get married the summer of 2011 was money because we would still both be students, but we felt that it was the right time. God provided that money in some crazy ways, so in June we chose a date and started booking the big things. I was threatened (in a loving sort of way) that I was not allowed to tell anyone, nor was I allowed to plan anything else.

Much to my delight and frustration, Mike told me everything – when he had coffee with my dad, when he made an ‘expensive purchase’ and that the jewellers had told him it would take 6-8 weeks to get the ring back. This had me counting the weeks on a regular basis, so I knew that on Friday September 17th would be 7 weeks. I started becoming suspicious of everything that Mike said, did, and planned. On that Friday, I told him about my suspicions, which he quickly down played, telling me that I would be suspicious of everything, and that I just needed to relax. His explanations seemed legitimate, but I still held onto my suspicions.

Meanwhile, while Mike was in class on Thursday, he got a phone call. When he checked it, he realized it was the jewellers. He lost all focus, and ended up packing up his stuff fifteen minutes before class, and telling his prof that he had to leave because he just couldn’t focus anymore. She told him not to make a habit of it. I am amazed he stayed so cool on Friday because we hung out all day, and he had picked up the ring that morning.

Saturday at church, one of the staff came up to me and said that she had noticed I had made a special booking… in June. I told her it was a secret… and that she couldn’t tell anyone! I didn’t know when we were getting engaged, but it couldn’t come out until then. I went to find Mike, to tell him the story. As I told him what had just happened, he began apologizing saying, “I’m doing everything I can. I’m so sorry it is taking so long! I’m just waiting on the ring. I’m so sorry…” I started feeling so badly for him, because I wasn’t trying to make him feel badly!

The plan for Sunday was for me to meet him at his house for lunch with his parents, and then go back to my house before my family get-together. All of Saturday night and Sunday morning I was trying to convince myself that it wasn’t happening today. He had homework to do that morning, he would have acted oddly over the weekend, and he wouldn’t have apologized so profusely the night before.

As I was getting ready, I got a text from Mike asking me if I was on my way because he was bored. I asked him if he had done his homework, to which he replied that he had done some of it, but that he was now bored, and I should hurry up.

I drove over to his house, and as I drove up Dar, Mike’s step mom, was upstairs giving a detailed report of my progress. “She is driving by. She is turning around. She is parking her car… getting out… putting her purse over her shoulder…”

When I knocked on the door, Mike answered, but was in his suit. Apparently, I spent a few seconds just standing there processing in my head, “I knew he was up to something! So this is happening now hey…” until he told me that I should come in. It took me forever to take my stuff off, because I was so flustered.



Mike took me upstairs, where he had lit candles all over the house. He had pictures of us ranging from grade seven to the present spread out on the island. He pulled me close and said that he wanted to spend some time looking at pictures, remembering how cool it is that he have known each other for so long, that we have been through the good stuff and the bad stuff together, and how much fun we have had since we started dating.





He then took me over to the living room where he had candles, roses, a picture of us, and another frame, laid out on the coffee table. He took a piece of paper out of his pocket, because he didn’t want to forget anything. He read me a letter which talked about how perfect we are for each other, and affirming all I am to him. He then got down on one knee and proposed to me. I was crying at this point, so I couldn’t actually see the ring as he was holding out the box. He put the ring on my finger, and then showed me that he had framed his letter for me to take home!





One of the coolest things, is that the centre diamond was Mike's mom's engagement diamond. I got to meet her before she passed away, and my mom's connection is so cool too.

Here is the ring!



Anyways, that is what is up! June 18th 2011!!!

Love you guys!

Kendall

ParaKaleo Program

Hey, check out the info on the opportunity to come alongside a Kaleo Eight student this year! Click here for all the details. We miss you, and would love to have you still involved in the ministry of Kaleo. Here is a way to do it! We hope to hear from you soon.

An Intriguing Journey

I am intrigued with what God is doing in Kaléo right now. A number of people have identified this coming year of Kaléo as “a year of grace.” I have a couple of news items for you, in which God’s grace will continue to show itself. First, this is the statement that was made to the Qwanoes staff team on Monday morning:

A decision was made by Qwanoes, and accepted by Jim Badke, Kaléo Leader, that Jim will continue to serve as the Kaleo Leader until the end of May, and he has agreed to train a new person during the year who will become the Kaleo Leader after that point.

Jim and Qwanoes hope to maintain a close relationship in the future, which could include working in cooperation for possible new opportunities.

This current Kaleo year will look similar and be run similar to past Kaleo years. One difference will be that Qwanoes will be seeking to hire a potential new Kaleo leader as soon as possible. The plan would be for that person to observe and learn, and gradually become more involved as the year progresses.

Both Jim and all the Qwanoes leadership look forward to this new Kaleo year and are excited about how God will work in the lives of these new students. Jim and the Qwanoes leadership see this year as an opportunity to model a good transition for all involved.

Just to clarify, it means that I will walk through this year with you as your Kaléo Leader, beginning to end. Someone, yet to be identified, will join us at some point and learn the role over the year, taking it up fully in the Summer of 2011. I will conclude my time at Qwanoes at the end of May, and move into whatever it is that God has next for me after a break this summer.

At the same time, we are currently without a Student Life Leader at this point. As you may have heard, the decision was made not to have Kristie Voth step back into the role this fall. We will start this year with two interns and myself, along with assistance from Jay Kennedy, the Assistant Director, and we will trust that a Student Life Leader will be found soon. Your prayers are appreciated in this year of grace.

Ahem

FYI

some of you know already but for those who don't...

I'm engaged.

:D

Learning to live and be me...

It’s been a while since I’ve posted, I figured that since tons is happening now and tonz has happened, it would be a good time to post before I forget it all. It’s a doozy, but I’ve added pictures to help you through it ;)

This year has been the hardest and yet most rewarding year of my life…thus far. It’s actually been since last summer..when it all started. I had mentioned a bit in a blog way back that last summer I was realizing that there were some things in my life that I needed to deal with. Last Fall those things hit me right in the face and I had no time to think about what it was and what was happening. (I’m still recovering from it). Things with my grandpa were finally brought into the light and it turns out that I’m not alone in my story. This past year God did some huge things and a lot of it was started by my mom listening to the Lord and speaking out in truth. I praise the Lord over and over for her strength in speaking up. By Christmas time, there had been many, MANY meetings with my parents and I, a counselor, my cousins, with the uncles and aunts, pretty much the fall semester was made up of getting together with different people from my family to discuss things. The hard part was that every time (which was much more often than other years) I went back to Winkler there was a tough, awkward and hard conversation to be had. The good part is that I got to know some of my relatives on a much deeper level, getting to hear their heart and learn more about their lives and why they tick the way they do. The best parts of it all were no longer feeling like I was in hiding and having to keep a secret from everyone; and talking things through with my grandpa and a counselor and having my grandpa understand why I was hurt and why things can’t be “normal” ever again.

In October my uncle paid for me to bus out to Calgary. There I met three amazing women from his church who I got to pray with for a few days. During this time the Lord opened my eyes to many of the lies in my life that were hindering me from living in freedom and from growing in the Lord. The Lord showed us what was truth and it was like I left the room seeing more clearly and thinking in a different way than I had before. This week also played a large role in preparing me for continuing to deal with all that was going on and would be going on with my family in the next months.

The events of these months played a big role in my choosing to fly to the Island during Christmas break for 2 weeks. I needed to get away from the drama in Winkler and wanted to be in a place where I knew I could rest and be with good friends. This also was a break before I started as RA in my dorm at Briercrest. This year I had switched dorms and moved into Sundbo (mature student housing) which posed a tough situation for spending time with friends as we seemed to see each other less and less. In this time God truly kept the connections there that were supposed to remain and removed the ones that were only meant for a time.

Throughout the year, the Lord kept bringing women into my life that had similar experiences as I did. We were able to walk together as we learnt to let the Lord lead and teach us as we learnt more about what living a life of freedom from the past looks like. Half way through the year I met Nancy, who quickly became a mentor and friend. It was very meaningful to sit over a up of tea and learn from someone who has done life longer than I. As always, God’s timing is best.

As graduation was fast approaching I had no idea of what was next. I was hoping to be back at camp for one last summer before cracking down and paying off loans, but had no idea of what “cracking down and paying off loans” would or could look like. The week before grad I constantly found myself on my knees before the Lord often just silent or, for the first time in a long time weeping. I was so scared of what was coming, but I knew in my head that I could trust Him, I was just afraid of what was going to happen. Grad came and went like a snowflake in the palm of a hand. It was a blur and very lonely. Mom, dad and Jordan came out which was great. Mom told me about a job opening at MCI, a Christian boarding school 45mins away from Winkler. When I got back to Winkler, in the two weeks before going back to Qwanoes, I applied for the job and met with the principle of the school where he told me there was no available position but that I was perfect for the job. A few weeks into camp, I got an email from the principle saying that a position opened and that he could interview me the next day if I wanted. Four days later, I was offered the job. A week later I took it.

Working at camp this summer was both wonderful and super hard. I ended up leaving camp a lot earlier than I had planed because I was physically, spiritually, and emotionally exhausted. I hadn’t really thought about the toll the past year had taken on me. While at camp the Lord taught me so many things. I was so blessed to have 3 weeks of amazing campers and an amazing village of counselors to pray with and serve along side. Even amidst all the mice. I was also blessed with an amazing crew of friends I never expected. I wish it didn’t take me so long to realize that these brothers and sisters love me for who I am and they like me best when I’m just ME. The staff team at camp this summer are amazing God loving people. You know some of them, you know this is true. I was blessed to spend 4 days in Ucluelet, Tofino, and Parksville with the group I hung out with most at camp. It was so sweet to “just be” for a while and be away from the pressures of camp. After being away from these friends for 3 weeks now, I’ve come to realize that these people have awakened something in me. It’s like my vision has become more clear and I’ve seen more life…or something, I don’t know yet how to put it into words or what it is, but I miss it and notice that it’s missing. I ache for it, and yet am a little unsure at the same time. Does that make sense?

Staff training at MCI started yesterday. There’s a staff team of about 30 including teachers, EA’s, custodians, principles, deans (that’s me!), reception and everyone! It’s tiny! And it’s a surprisingly young group of staff too. We have about 150 students with about 65 of them are in dorms. Whoot for a small community! As Darryl our principle was beginning our first meeting, he introduced each of us new staff by “commending us to the others like Paul did for Timothy”. He shared a bit of what he knew about us so far and why he believed we were a strong part of the team. It was such a blessing to hear from my boss what he saw in me to cause him to hire me. There are 6 of us in the team of Deans and we are being PAID to love on these high schoolers. The hours are crazy at times ( till 4am!) and I know that it’s not going to be easy…most of the time, but it’s going to be worth it. I am so thankful for the people who took the time to pour into me and I’m stoked to be pouring into these students. I am pared up with two grade 12 girls as their “Intentional Mentor”. These girls are called RA’s in the dorms and are in charge of keeping a “Mod” of 8 girls somewhat organized. I get to work with these girls who have a desire to lead and to mentor! This excites me. Also, I’ve just found a place to live until November…for FREE! An older couple who live in Gretna (where MCI is) are leaving from Sept 16^th until November some time and need someone to house sit, my boss volunteered me knowing I was looking for a place. We've made plans to meet tomorrow. Praise the Lord! He keeps providing! I’m not sure where I’ll be living after that, but there have been some offers to fall back on. It’s been a rough past while, but it’s all been worth it. God is continually growing me and showing me more of who He is and glimpses of how much He loves me.

If you think of me I’d love your prayers for love for the kids and staff I work with and the hours I work, health as I’ve gotten 2 concussions this summer one of them the day after I arrived back in MB and I’m still feeling a little woozy from it, and the Lord’s continued provision.

I love you all.

Keerst, learning to live and be me.