Little Glennallen update

The days are getting shorter and nights longer but Winter solstice is just around the corner! It really is beautiful here even in the dark. When the skies are clear everything just glows! I still have not seen the Northern Lights but I hoping soon! The holidays are keeping things busy around here and tomorrow I am taking the Biola nursing students down to Anchorage so that they can catch their plane home to California. They have been here about 6 weeks and have been a great help here at Cross Roads and a lot of fun. They will be missed especially on Poker Night : ). Although now I might win some.

Last week I got to teach first-aid to the homeschool kids in the area. We learned about germs, antibiotic cream, band-aids, and very importantly hand washing. It was lots of fun the kids had some great stories about their various scars and everybody got to make a mini-first-aid kit.

Poker Nights

I have found a few kindered spirits up here in Alaska and they have been kind enough to beat me quite a few times a poker. (Don't worry Mom we're playing for pride not money.) The really amazing thing is that it seems to be the newbees who have been winning! That Annie is a real card shark.

Lefsa Making

No Joke this is at like 7 am on Thanksgiving day we are dedicated Lefsa chefs! Hope you enjoy these instructional videos. They are definitely worth watching!

Thanksgiving up north

The Tuesday before Thanksgiving we had a bit of a Thanksgiving party up north in the village along with Good News club and it was a blast! The kids are great and we are having so much fun teaching them Gods word. They are learning bible verses, stories and songs and we have been so blessed to be able to go up there every week. This coming week is our last for the year and we are going to have a Christmas party celebrating Christ birth : ). Please pray for us as we teach these wonderful kids!

Just a Great Story

It's not to often that I get to pull off pranks completely and totally but I was blessed enough to have such an experience about a month ago.
It all starts with a challenge. My friend told me that they were going to have a fire and light off fireworks that night. I was like "Sweet, what time?". I was then informed only boys were invited. Unbelievable!
Anne a friend and fellow prankster was kind enough to let me know that she knew were the fire would be and most importantly she would be in on any prank I could devise. Always good news : ) So I told her to give me a call when they left.
At about 9pm Anne called to let me know the guys had left. I told her to get her snow gear on and I would meet her in about 15 minutes. I figured what we could do was steal their fireworks and light them off a safe distance away.
We took the car to Simms hill and then made our way through the trees to the Copper river over look. Their fire was on the edge of the cliff down on a ledge what I did not anticipate was the 50 ft clearing surrounding their fire. The only option was to army crawl as close as I could with the hope that they wouldn't see me.
I made my way through the snow on my belly closer and closer 50ft then 40ft, 30ft, 20ft finally 6ft. There were about 15 guys right there and they didn't see me! I could believe it but there was no time to contemplate my good fortune. I had to make my move. I jumped up and then down onto the ledge and into the firelight. They just looked at me. I saw a bag and asked if it had fire works in it. One of the guys said yes and that's all I needed. I grabbed the bag and jumped up over the ledge and fled across the clearing and towards the car.
Nothing happened! I made it all the way to the car.
Meanwhile back in the woods Anne was watching the boys. They had no idea what had just taken place it took them a good couple minutes to figure out I had been there then another few minutes to figure out I had taken their fireworks by the time they got it together I was already back to Anne in the woods. It couldn't have gone more perfect.
So we had the fireworks the next step was obviously to light them. Anne had heard the boys discussing which fireworks I had and apparently I had a mortar. She thought that you put it down the tube and then light the fuse and let her go. So I did.
It was perfect right as I lite the fuse the guys saw us but it was to late. The mortar went off and it was just beautiful. After enjoying the moment I ran into the woods and was shortly tackled and whitewashed but it was worth it. We gave back the rest of the fireworks warmed up by the fire and went on our way.
Moral of the story is girls like fires and firework too.

Caribou Hunting

We didn't see a thing. True deal. Our post master Terry and his wife Sally took Anne, Je'nelle, Annie and I up north about an hour and we got to trek through the woods in search of caribou and like I said although we search high and low we didn't see a thing.

We did however find lots of snow! In Glennallen we haven't gotten much snow yet! Although it is plenty cold! Yesterday it was -10! I run with a friend in the morning and I guess the cut off for running outside is -20 so I'm good for a few more weeks then I'm going to have to start using the treadmill.

I'm all done with orientation! Work is going well. I'm learning so much and the people I work with are amazing they have such a heart for the people of the community and for God! Everyday I am at CRMC (Cross Road Medical Center) I am challenged both as a nurse and as a Christian! Prayer is an integral part of how things run around here and I am blessed to be able to pray at work not only twice a day at shift changes but also at the start of clinic and with patients.

Some exciting things going on around here are: We are getting our new radiology equipment and we have a provider coming in for a few weeks to give our providers here a bit of a break. Keep us in your prayers there have been quiet a few employees at Cross Roads with major health issues this past week.

In Christ
Kari

Valdez

Soon after hiking up the mountain. I was in need of another adventure. So, I called my friend Ann to see if she wanted to take a trek to Valdez before the weather got to bad.

It was a phenomenal drive! Just beautiful! We climbed up the side of a glacier and saw a few waterfalls and even got to walk around in the black sand! Valdez is beautiful as well! There really aren't words to describe the beauty, wildness, and variety of landscapes in Alaska.

The people are just as wild, beautiful and varied as well! I'm having fun going to Mantasta on Tuesday nights and helping with the Good news club! The kids are great! Pray that they understand the lessons that we are trying to convey from the bible.

Willow Mt

Hey everybody! Just thought I would send out a couple pictures of the scenery around here! Every time I go outside I am amazed by our creative God!

A couple weeks ago I got to go hiking at Willow Mt. Its only about 20 minutes away and an easy couple hour hike. Our Emergency Medical Service Radio tower is located at the top as well which is kind of fun to see. From the top you can see three of the mountain ranges so its worth the hike!

A week after this trip I decided to go up again this time with our nursing students and me in the lead! Well the trail isn't super obvious when you start and we ended up "bush whacking" our way through! Still had lots of fun! Also it was like an entirely new hike!

Thankfully we made it through ok! I mean it can't be that hard. Right? Just go up and down!

Those Beaudin Girls

When I first got up to AK I had the privilege of staying with my good friends Todd and Penny Beaudin and their girls Emily and Kelsey. They took great care of me and we also had a lot of fun!
I miss them a bunch already!

Pictures of Glennallen

These pictures show the Urgent Care center, "Down town" Glennallen, the "4-plex" and the mountains! We are surrounded by mountains on all sides. Its amazing to watch the changes they go through depending on weather, visibility, and time of day. I'm also very close to a couple volcanoes! Mt. Wrangell is the closest and I hear that you can see smoke rising from it on clear days but hasn't erupted since around 1900.

In Alaska even the gas stations are beautiful

I'm actually here in Alaska! Unbelievable! It is so incredibly beautiful! The Aspens are changing here and the drive from Anchorage to Soldotna is amazing!

I discovered yesterday that Alaska even has its own smell. A combination of evergreens, mountains, ocean, and cold.

It is so exciting to finally be here. In order to get here I have been on planes, buses, cars, and even a scooter! All without difficulty or incident. Praise God. I have seen many of my favorite people which is always a blessing! Right now I am on the Kenai peninsula and I will be heading up to Glennallen this next week. So my travels are coming to an end.

I am staying with friends here and had the great fun of babysitting last night. We had a picnic on the kitchen floor and I got my makeup and nails done by Kelsey (she's four)! I've never looked better : )

Thank you all for your continued prayers.

Always

Kari

In Colorado

Hello everyone! I am writing from beautiful Colorado! I have been so blessed to be here for a few days! It’s been full of great friends and beautiful weather! Yesterday I got to go hiking up near Nederland. The aspens are changing and let me tell you. You definitely wish you were there to see it!

These past few days have been great! I’ve been able to see some amazing people and I will get to see a few more before I go! I am so blessed to have so many wonderful friends and family. I love you all and I miss you more that you know!

Today at church I heard a wonderful message about the greatness of God. He truly is amazing! So far the details of my trip are working out well. I finally have a coat! All of my nursing licensure information is in. I’m just waiting on my license. Still have not determined if I am going to get a car or not. So please keep praying for me about this.

Always

Kari

Let me tell you what the deal is : )

Dear Friends and Family!

How exciting to be writing you all again! It feels like a long time since I have had the opportunity to catch up with everyone! Many of you have heard I am headed on another adventure! After spending a wonderful year in Minnesota getting to know my roots and sharpening my nursing skills God has opened up an opportunity to work in Alaska at Cross Roads Medical Center for the winter.

Cross Road Medical Center (CRMC) is a not-for-profit Christian Community Health Center serving the residents of South Central Alaska. For over 50 years, CRMC has been the only MD level provider of health care for an area that is roughly the size of Ohio. CRMC began as Faith Hospital in 1956 as the medical ministry of Central Alaska Missions, later to become SEND International of Alaska. They provide Family Practice, Emergent care, Extended Stay, and Community Outreach services. If you want to know more there is information on their website http://www.crossroadmc.org/.

Please pray for me as I head up to Alaska! Wherever God is at work so is our enemy. Pray that I will adjust well to living and working there. They will be training me in trauma nursing pray that I will remember my training and respond quickly and effectively to medical emergencies. Pray that I will be a compassionate and effective minister to the people. Pray that God will prepare people to be ministered to. Pray that I will be able to get involved in the community and make friends that I would be protected from homesickness.

I am going to start an email list to update people on prayer needs. Please let me know if you want to be included in the email list. I will also try to send out a letter with my parents prayer letters to keep everybody updated on “news” and prayer needs.

Thank you for all your support! God Bless!

Kari

Just starting

Well I'm trying out the blog for the first time. Just to figure out how it works.