Hebron NH, Sarah Tenney

Hey there! It's Sarah Tenney. I just got home from the New Hampshire trip! Mechelle, Jess, Sara FK, Roby, Ms. Young, and I went to Hebron where we organized a trip through the church. Reverend Ficher helped us set up a week where we did several different things: helping elderly members of the community with chores and yard work they were unable to do, working at the church soup kitchen, helping at the local elementary school, painting the church, and fixing up a camp- The Circle Program for at risk girls- before they arrived for the summer. Although I had a lot of fun at each different place we worked, I had the most fun when we were able to interact directly with the people we were helping. Mr. Wayland was one of the elderly people we helped out. He had an amazing garden in his back yard. He had some back problems and couldn't bend down to plant the seed this year so we were able to do it for him. We also got to learn a lot about the different vegetables he grew and his techniques for planting them. He said he had grown up on a farm and had always kept a garden. I even got to drive his tractor! Another aspect of this trip was that we had no Internet or TV for the entire week. This turned out to be one of the greatest parts of the trip, we all brought along our favorite games and played Settlers, Pit, Uno, cards, and Sorry each week. The trip turned into a great bonding experience and a lot like summer camp! Although we only spent a week, I think our work had a lasting impression on those we helped, not only did we help with yard work or cleaning, but we also brought the people we helped laughs and had a great time no matter what we were doing. For example, Jane was a woman we helped- she needed us to do some yard work and help her drain her pool. When we were draining the pool there wasn't much to do but to sit and wait for the water to lower so we could clean it and while we were waiting I decided that we should race dandelions down the stream of water. Jane was laughing the whole time and we all had a lot of fun. She lived alone and I think she enjoyed our company more than anything. Later Reverend Ficher told us that everyone in town we had either helped or had herd the stories from our adventures. I think our time in Hebron showed that Lincoln girls can really make a difference in people's lives and that we can have fun doing it.