N o. 2 2014

1. Aloha friends and family! So far, being here is quite the adventure, but it is awesome to see what God is already doing. Leading up to getting to Oahu, I graduated from Slippery Rock University with my degree in Communication for Public Relations and moved all of my belongings to Raleigh, NC. It is surreal that I have completed my undergraduate degree, but I am ready to start my career. Being in Hawaii with the Pacific House team has been amazing so far because of the friendships and bonds we have created, and I haven’t even been here a full week! The other interns here are all awesome in their own way: • Rachel, who has been here the longest, is so enthusiastic about everything and loves analyzing the group with personality tests to figure out how all of us jive together. She also knows how to make people feel special just by talking to them • Jonathonloves to make us laugh and, when in a group of people, always finds a way to make the conversation about them instead of himself. • Hannahis personable. She cares about the whole person and getting to know them and takes time to invest in them. • Rosiealways has a smile on her face and, in turn, always makes us smile. She also is a very good listener when you need someone. Amanda Wielechowski aeski09@aol.com (315) 480-6566 We really make one complete team of creativity and fun-ness. Even though we have only been here for five full days together, you would never be able to notice. “Someone write that down!” has been a common quote used while we are all together. A couple of our funniest quotes include: “Jesus didn’t talk very much in the old testament,” and “ ‘I’m going to need your hat sizes.’ ‘I don’t have that off the top of my head’ ”. We already have made many memories, such as trying to eat sushi with chop sticks and sticking four grown adults into a tiny photo booth, then choosing Spanish as the menu language. We have also taken hundreds of pictures. It seems that we have known each other forever. We are definitely in for a great summer filled with surprises and blessings! Even though I have spent most of my first week here on the island with the other interns, I have had the opportunity to meet a student named Ivy. I tagged along to a graduation at the Aloha Stadium with Damien and Alika (two full time staff members of PHM), and along the way we picked up Ivy. Before we did, I was told that she was an awesome student and that I should try to get to know her, so of course being me, I did! Ivy and her friend Kat hanging out at club! Newsletter No. 2 2014 More on the mission…

2. She was full of questions and enthusiasm throughout the whole graduation, which made it interesting. We were able to see six graduates from the Pacific Club including Eli and one of our intern’s sister, Meg. Eli received a standing ovation from his graduating class as he crossed the stage. Two years ago, he was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and it has since become very aggressive. Ivy was elated to see her friends reach this milestone in their lives. She intently watched as each of her friends crossed the stage and cheered loudly when each name was called that was familiar to her, which was great to see. Graduation from high school here is unlike any graduation I have ever seen. Like I said, it was at the Aloha Stadium, so it was HUGE, but there was also a huge celebration in the parking lot of the stadium after, where the graduates were organized alphabetically. After dropping Ivy off, I was told more of her story and realized that even though she has gone through a lot of trying times for someone just finishing ninth grade, our pasts aren’t so different, so please pray that our friendship grows while I am here. Vacation Bible Schools start next week on AMR (Aliamanu Military Reservation) and Schofield Barracks and we are very excited. This week we will be training our crew members/ volunteers that are helping out with VBS. We have also completed some training of our own, including how we should be building relationships, and relaying messages to students by PHM standards. Catching up with old friends while working in God’s will is a good feeling. Thank you for your continued prayers and support. I cannot wait to share with you what is in store for the rest of the summer with the Pacific House of Mission. If you would like to hear more about what we are doing on a weekly basis, please follow along with my blog at www.amandaellen.weebly.com. You will find it under the blog tab. You can also check out my photos at this website! Mahalo, Amanda Wielechowski The summer PHM ohana!