Young Life Gets an Office!

It’s always exciting here at Rockport Young Life. As we enter our tenth year of ministry we marvel at what God is doing with the students of this community. We are planning a year of celebration and want you to celebrate with us.

We start our 10th year by moving into our own space. St. Peter’s Episcopal Church has been so gracious by offering Young Life office space. Having a permanent space to conduct the daily administrative responsibilities of a ministry such as Young Life is a monumental answer to prayer. The committee and staff would like to extend a sincere thank you to Father Friedal and the members of St. Peter’s for their generous gift.

I wanted to again thank you for your diligence to our mission. We want you to know that we live by the motto:

Every Kid, Everywhere, for Eternity!

Community Table

The Community Table is a place where people in Rockport can get a hot meal every Tuesday evening at the First Presbyterian Church. Local churches rotate each week by serving as hosts for the evening.

Young Life kids and the local YL committee join ranks one Tuesday to cook for and serve people at the Community Table. Right at 90 people were served.

Our menu included: lasagna, bread, salad, cupcakes and tea.

Clean up was a breeze!

As a way of showing our appreciation, the Young Life committee delivered poinsettias to all the people who hosted tables at our Young Life fish fry.

People would light up like we were walking in with roses. Poinsettias are pretty and they have the power to make people happy; or more accurately it should be said that showing gratitude has the power to make people happy.

Thank you to our 2007 Fish Fry table hosts:

Mike and Diane Probst
Garry and Deidra Cate
Ron and Bobbi Wagoner
Herb and Patti Jahn
Al and Sue Karcher
Melodee and Robert Fields
John and Debbie Jackson
Nicole Soto
Bootsie and Lesa Larsen
Rick and Sandy Stanley
Wayne Johnson
Ted and Bonnie Williams
Fred and Marion Beeler
Dana and George Taggart
Cheryl and Bill Wilson
Sharon McKinney
Tom and Donna Pazera
De and Suzan McLallen
Julie Lynch/Cat
Van and Pat Johnson
Dina & Cody Hill

Fish Fry Fundraiser 2007

For the second year in a row Rockport Young Life has opted for a Fish Fry fundraiser instead of the traditional dessert or banquet fundraiser. Local men and women begin fishing months in advance to fed as many as 175 guests. Committee members and friends of Young Life rally to fry fish for the hungry crowd.

Young Life students act as parking attendants, ushers, waiters and waitresses all in an effort to serve those community members who generously support this mission.

Waiting here for their assignments.

A Word From Shane About Camp

Hey Folks,

As you know, June 1st Cyndea and I loaded up on a bus with 18 high school students and headed for “the best week of our lives” in the rolling hills and mountains of Northern Georgia. SharpTop Cove is one of Young Life’s premiere camps but after a LONG 22 hour bus ride some sleeping bags on a patch of grass would have been just fine. We were ready to get off that bus and have some fun.

The week started off immediately with fun days filled with swimming, blobbing, zip lines and warm sunny afternoons. Every night we attended “club” where all the kids come together to sing songs and watch skits. At the end of every club the Gospel was presented in small doses and before the week was over the kids heard about God’s love for them from Creation to Calvary.

The man assigned the task of telling the beautiful story of God’s love was an ex New York City police detective. “Uncle Bill” as he likes to be called drew on his fascinating life experiences to share the exciting news of Jesus in a way our kids could identify.

Our nights ended in cabin where we sat and talk about the Jesus they had heard about in club. The questions our students asked this year were great. It was so rewarding for me to have high schools students on this trip who already knew Jesus and were eager to help lead thier friends to the foot of the cross.

Of the 18 attending this summer, we had 5 appropriate what Christ had done for them on the cross and determine to live as a believer.
It was an amazing trip.

Thank you for all your support and prayer,
Shane Sampson
512-665-7450

YL Yard Sale Update

Rockport Young Life donors and friends really stepped up to the plate when it came to donating items for our yard sale. The response was so overwhelming that there was no room to contain it all, and for that we are truly grateful.

Committee members, community volunteers and high school kids worked the Thursday and Friday night before the sale pricing and setting up.

Friday night presented a problem in that we had to set up for the next day and leave it out all night ready to go. To prevent pillaging, Shane and 4 Young Life kids "camped" out on mattress (donated to the sale) guarding the stuff all night.

Saturday morning came very early and barrage of buyers bought enough from our yard sale to earn us a remarkable $2,500.00. What a great day!

WORK STILL NEEDED

Rockport high school students are still working hard to earn their way to camp. If you, or a friend, need any assistance in your home or yard consider hiring out our motivated crew. Contact Shane Sampson to work out the details.

December Ministry Update 2006

Wrapping up 2006 has been action packed for Rockport Young Life to say the least. We had our annual fundraising event on November 13th, I got married to Cyndea Peacock on December 2nd and less than 24 hours after returning from our honeymoon in Beaver Creek, Colorado, we loaded up on a bus with 48 high school kids for Polar Bear Weekend on the Frio River. All these events happened in just one month’s time.

The Honeymooners

This year’s fundraising event was a Fish Fry and we had approximately 175 people in attendance. It was so successful that we would like to make the “Fish Fry” an annual event. The night was filled with laughter, songs, and touching testimonies from high school students who have been impacted by Young Life in Rockport.

December 2nd was the day Cyndea and I got married in San Antonio. Over the past 2-½ years here in Rockport I have been blessed in forging relationships with some special kids. I was honored to ask three students, Kyler McNew, Justin Nesloney and Austin Nesloney, as well as Daniel Barnard (a RFHS graduate) to be in our wedding party. The evening was made even more special when over 20 Rockport students and parents drove up for the ceremony.

Polar Bear Weekend 2006

Like I said in the first of this update, less than 24 hours after Cyndea and I returned from our honeymoon we were loading up on a bus for our Polar Bear weekend retreat. It started off a little nerve racking when some bad weather threatened to close everything down. Polar Bear weekend is a time we join other Young Life areas at the H.E.B. Foundation Camp in Echo Valley for fun and a little more intense ministry. After every club there was a “club talk” where the Gospel was presented to all the kids. During cabin time the leaders get to dig in deeper by applying what was said in the club talk to the issues the students are dealing with everyday. Polar Bear weekend always culminates in a river jump. It is amazing to see 350 kids jump into the Frio River in December all at one time. And it’s comical to see how fast they get out.

Shane and Guys at Polar Bear

Cyndea and I are so blessed to be here in this community and we thank all of you for joining us in the noble cause of sharing Christ with kids in Rockport.

Have a Merry Christmas!

Shane and Cyndea Sampson