Day Four - MHC to Raleigh NC

Day Four began with a very short drive to Beaufort NC for a two hour kayak tour.  Beaufort is a beautiful little historical town on the waterfront.  We floated for a bit and stopped off at an island where wild ponies run free.  We also saw horseshoe crab and sea urchin.  Everyone got a bit wet but no one fell out although we did suffer the tragic loss of an iphone full of pictures.  Actually the phone is sitting inside a bag of kitty litter now, so who knows, maybe it will recover.

We arrived at Highland United Methodist Church in time for more rehearsal and to enjoy a wonderful pot luck dinner.  Our first true pot luck - we love those.  Ahead of the concert the church held a prayer and communion service in honor and memory of the victims in the Orlando shooting.  We were blessed to be able to participate with the congregation in worship.

The choir made good use of the extra rehearsal time and responded by playing their best concert yet.  Magnificent.  Jenn's friend Aaron from college came and took some professional quality pictures for us. All the chaperones are getting along great, almost like "brothers" and "sisters".  Gina was visited by her brother and his family (Jeff, Jennifer and Connor White), and Harold, Sue, and Sue and Susan Salmon.  (Chuck's uncle and family.)  Uncle Harold is a visiting pastor at Highland and helped lead the earlier service.

Four days in I thought it was time to tell you more about life on the bus.  Every day we have a devotional that Ed has prepared.  The theme this year is Star Tales and the Heavenly Zoo, stories of animals we see in the stars.  This is followed by a related prayer read by Katie.

The bank opens and anyone who needs spending money for the day comes up to make a withdrawal. There is also an ongoing craft - a heart and bell cross stitch many of the kids are working on.  Vitamins are passed out to everyone.  This is all followed up by quiet time, when generally everyone catches up on some sleep.

Here are some pics of day four: