The Story - Long Version: Chapter 3

Chapter 3: An uncanny connection

Champaign, Illinois...Had you asked me 5 years ago where I would be today, I never, NEVER would have guessed that I would be here. The Midwest. Not that I have anything against the Midwest, I had just never really even given any thought to moving here. But in late August of 2008, I packed up my belongings, put them in a moving truck, loaded my car with the essentials, Birdie (my parakeet), and myself and headed northwest. I arrived, settled in as much as I could having none of my belongings yest (they finally showed up 2 months later) and started work with the Army Corps of Engineers the following week. 

Before leaving Orlando, I had already begun to look up churches in the area and put together a list of churches that I would like to visit in my search for a new church home. I think I had something like twelve churches on my list. Of course, I didn't want to spend twelve weeks visiting different churches. By the time I got to the last one, chances are I wouldn't even remember the first. So started the scheduling puzzle. I looked up service times and geographic locations for all of the churches and, based on these data, began developing what would be my whirlwind, church-filled first 4 weekends in Champaign. It worked out that I could make it to 3 services each Sunday if I timed it right and stayed with churches in the same general vicinity each week. So starting at an early in service in the southwestern most corner of Champaign, First Christian Church received the honor of hosting my first church visit. Little did I know, this visit would not only begin but also end my search for a new church home.

Within the first five minutes of being at FCC, I felt welcomed. I arrived about 10 minutes before the start of the service and made my way to the Connection Point to introduce myself and get some info about the church. I was promptly given a visitor's bag, taken on a quick tour of the facility and comfortably seated just in time for the service to begin. Though I don't remember what the theme of the service was that day, I know that I very much enjoyed the overall feel as well as JP's preaching style. I left in a great mood, ready to head to Windsor Road Christian Church for my next service of the day, but it was pouring rain. I mean torrential downpour. And so by the time I got to my car, I was completely soaked...like the drowned rat, saturated to the bone, just got shoved in the swimming pool kinda soaked. Yeah, I didn't make it to Windsor Road that day.

After I got home, got dried off and changed, I sat down with my visitor's goody bag from FCC and started go through everything. There was info on all of the different ministries that they offer - early childhood, elementary, junior high, high school, adult men, adult women, etc - a pen, a magnet, a water bottle, and... 

a coupon for FREE COFFEE AND DONUT at Common Grounds (the little cafe area just outside the worship center) during my next visit! Having just finished grad school and thus still being in a grad student mindset, I knew good and well that I had to go back. One cannot pass up free food! Please...so the following Sunday, you'd better believe I was back again for my free coffee and donut (and spiritual food as well, of course). As I sat at Common Grounds before the service, very much enjoying my FREE coffee and bagel, a very nice older woman, Ruth, came and sat with me, introduced herself, started chatting, asked if I had signed up for the Lady's Night Out event that was taking place that Friday and made sure I got signed up before the service began. So come Friday night, I was back at FCC, again chatting with Ruth and many other wonderful ladies, doing arts and crafts, eating good food, and generally just enjoying my time. Let me mention that this is a church with around 1500 people in attendance each Sunday. I had been to big churches before and had always felt overlooked and unnoticed. At FCC, it was as though people were looking for newcomers specifically to make sure they felt welcome. That or I just looked funny...that wouldn't surprise me. Whatever the case, I definitely felt welcomed, a part of the family, and I knew I was home.

Not long after I began attending, I got plugged in with the lovely and most wonderful Erin Fenelon and the Elementary Children's Department. I started aiding weekly in a first grade Sunday School class, and I quickly learned that the kids in the Elementary department sponsored two children from Ecuador, Jeremy and Eva, through Compassion International with their weekly offering money. I thought that was a neat way to use the kids' tithes, but my thoughts didn't really go much past that until I met Andres. Andres was an Ecuadorian exchange student at the University of Illinois that I met through a mutual friend while playing racquetball one cold January day (there's another fun story of more "happenstance" behind this, but as this post is already long enough, if you really want to know about it, let me know and I'll fill in that detail later). We started getting together quite often to play racquetball, have dinner, or just hang out and fairly quickly found ourselves dating. It must have been the first time that Andres accompanied me to church and back to help with the kids that I recognized that it was a bit interesting that the sponsored kids were from Ecuador as was this guy I was now dating. And through Andres, I met quite a few other Ecuadorians in Champaign. I also noticed that little Issac, one of the 1st graders at the time, would sometimes wear an Ecuadorian soccer jersey. Then there was the announcement in the church bulletin of an upcoming mission trip to Ecuador. Then there was my first trip to Ecuador, in August of 2009, when Andres was going back home, 

In Mindo with Andres, his two great aunts, Fabiola and Susana, and firend Diego.

In the historic center of downtown Quito with Andres and his mom, Jenny.

After climbing to the second refuge on Chimborazo with Andres' parents, Fausto and Jenny, and Diego.

and a second trip to visit his family over the Christmas and New Year's holidays. 

With Susi, Fabi and Andres in Bahía (beach) at New Year's.

Then the Ecuadorian president, Rafael Correa, came to the U of I to give a seminar in the Spring of 2010. Turns out that he did his PhD here. Then the Elementary Department at FCC began sponsoring a 3rd child, Eric, from Ecuador because their tithing level had increased enough to allow it. Then in June of 2010, I began sponsoring my own child, Dilan, from Ecuador. Then there was another announcement about another mission trip to Ecuador, scheduled for September 2010, and I had the privilege of being one of the team members on that trip (and as it was a trip through Compassion International, I also had the amazing opportunity to meet Dilan!). 

With Dilan, the child that I sponsor through Compassion International.

I don't know at what point it hit me, but somewhere along the way, I began to realize that there was a very strange connection between me, Champaign and Ecuador developing. I had never had any connection to Ecuador whatsoever other than to have at some point learned it's location and capital city for a Spanish geography test. Yet, I move to Champaign, Illinois, and find myself surrounded with Ecuadorian people, culture, history, trips, children, missions work. It was as though I had moved to the Midwest to be introduced to one of the most beautiful little countries that South America has to offer. Seems a bit crazy, if you ask me. Or maybe it's not so much crazy as it is amazing...