jared & ryan go on trek

This year was the year of pioneer trek for our stake youth, ages 14-18.  Jared & Ryan both went.  The youth were set to leave on buses on Wednesday morning, but the day before we had a lot of rain in the valley and mountain snow.  About 6 inches of snow fell in the part of Wyoming where they were supposed to trek and made it so the vehicles couldn't get in there.  So, trek was postponed a day! Each person was allowed a 5-gallon bucket of personal stuff (i.e. a change of clothes, shoes, scriptures, plate, silverware) and a garbage bag with a winter coat, sleeping bag, and ground cloth. The boys are packed and ready to go:

The youth all met at the church at 7 am on Thursday morning.  The high priests group provided a wonderful breakfast for the kids -- pancakes, hashbrowns, bacon, juice & milk.  Then the kids boarded a bus and headed off to Wyoming.

Once there, everyone was divided into "families". The families had boys and girls of all different ages and from different wards -- lots of mixing!  Jared's "ma & pa" were the Millett's from the Reading Ward.  One of his "brothers" was from our ward. Some of the other family members he knew, and some he didn't.  Here's a picture:

 

Ryan didn't really know any of the kids in his family, except for a couple of the girls from school. His "ma & pa" were the Jones' from the Willow Wood Ward.  Here's their picture:

Both of the boys had great families and got to know them over the course of the next couple days. They trekked a lot of miles of the next couple days -- about 26 in all!  On day two, they were awakened at 4:30 a.m by an "angry mob" and had to move out as soon as they could.  This was also the day that all of the young men and men would be called on missions and have to leave the handcart pulling to the women and girls (for a mile -- uphill).  This was a tender experience for everyone.  They went about 13 miles in total this day because the service missionaries who had mapped the trek course had had to route them differently to make up for the postponed day, and there was a "little" error of about 4 miles!  The good thing was, that when they finally reached camp that day, there was an ice cream machine and scones to greet them! Pretty sure the pioneers didn't have that luxury!

Mark, Jacob, Matthew, & I got to go up to meet them as they finished trek on Saturday.  We had to wait for awhile before they came over the ridge.

 Here they come over the ridge!  The parents and families lined the road to greet the trekkers.

 Here's Ryan pulling his handcart!  So happy to see that smile!

 We couldn't find Jared as the companies came down the hill, but we finally found him helping unload his family handcart at the parking area.  So very happy to find him!  He looks so different in a straw hat and glasses!

 Our happy trekkers -- ready to head home and take a shower!

 So proud of these boys for working hard to help their families make it through trek.  So very glad they both had opportunities to feel the spirit and strengthen their testimonies of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  So glad they had the opportunity to learn about a few of their ancestors.  So grateful to the many men and women of our stake who gave of their time and shared their testimonies to make this a memorable event for the youth, especially our boys.  We are blessed.