Tucson Chronicles #7: MVS National Retreat, Visitors, Car Funeral (+ Zing's Birthday), And Joshua Tree National Park

Hello everyone,

Welcome back to my Tucson Chronicles. I wanted to have this post out sooner, but life got busy. (I checked my last post's publication, and it's actually around a month).

In this post, I'll cover the rest of May up to Mid-June.

Spring National MVS Retreat

At the end of May, all nine MVS volunteers arrived at the Amigo Centre in Sturgis, Michigan for our Spring and final MVS retreat.

I traveled with Schyler, and we ended up at South Bend International Airport, after a laughably short trip between O'Haire and South Bend. (You probably know I like trains, and aside from that, that trip would've been better handled by bus or train).

Schyler and I ate at an Applebee’s in the Chicago O’Haire Airport. The person in the booth behind us (to the left of the photo) seemed embarrassed that he was in our photo, so for his privacy I’ve blocked their faces out).

Anyways, Hannah picked up me and Schyler, plus Josh and Emily from the airport.

Our retreat was very laid back. We had several conversations with Alex and the other Mennonite Mission Network staff. We did visit the MMN office in Elkhart, including the Mennonite Church USA Archives. I also ran into Olivia Krall, the Archives Coordinator, who I went to Goshen College with.

It was nice to reconnect with our MVS counterparts in the Alamosa and San Francisco units. I got to know Conrad in the San Fran unit and Emily from Alamosa better during this trip, which I appreciated. I also relearned to play International Ping Pong.

During our time together, we began to discuss how to tell our story to our friends and family when we return home. For some folks, this will be for visits, and others (myself included), when we return for the foreseeable future.

After a week away from work, it was time to get back to our placements for the end of the year. Back to things as normal…or so I thought.

We played a variety of games during our time at Amigo, as you can see here.

A Quick Work And Injury Update

I noticed shortly after the retreat that my right knee was hurting, more than usual. I didn't think much of it. I had a previous injury while learning to ride a bicycle, and thought it was aggravated by climbing ladders to turn on coolers.

After the injury lasted several months, I realized my knee was swollen. I spent a few weeks in the office out of the field to give my knee time to heal.

I hoped to avoid visiting an Urgent Care, in case of a high medical bill. However, after my knee didn't show improvement, Carrie (alias Carrie Poppins, if you're a regular reader), suggested I should visit one.

I did, and wish I had sooner. My Nurse Practitioner diagnosed my knee injury as a common soccer injury, and gave me an injection of meds to help.

I don't have as many interesting work photos for this time. I do have, however, some new insights into CHRPA.

Being a field volunteer, I've helped fill out paperwork and handed them to the office staff. I knew the papers were needed for our grants to pay us, but didn't think much further about them.

While in the office, I did several "scavenger hunts" to find paperwork needed to file completed jobs. There's a lot of moving parts at any workplace, and CHRPA isn't different. I saw different office members working to finish reports, and I had a chance to help write stories to share with donors about different jobs their money benefited.

I also enjoyed the shared lunch breaks and getting to hear about their lives. Usually in the field, it's just you and your partner(s) eating together, which's also a good way to get to know people. The field and office staff don't always get to interact outside of our SAW (Semi-Annual Workshops) events, and I saw this separation from both sides. While I missed my coworkers in the field, I was glad to gain a new perspective.

As of writing, I'm easing my way back into the field, right as the temperatures start to hit the 100 degree summer heat. I hope to be climbing ladders again soon.

Visitors

We had several visitors come to Tucson, coincidentally around the same time.

Two of Hannah's friends, Lisa Nalliah and Alena, came around the time that Cameron, Schyler's younger sister, visited us. To celebrate Cameron's birthday, we (minus Zing, who had previous plans) visited a restaurant, Leo's. We met the 78 year old founder, still working in his restaurant.

I knew Lisa at Goshen College, and it was nice to reconnect with her, and to meet Alena and Cameron. Be sure to read Schyler and Hannah's blogs to learn more about their visits. (link below in the next section for Hannah’s blog).

Our time at Leo’s Mexican Restaurant. From left are me, Schyler, Cameron (Schyler’s Sister), Hannah, Lisa and Alena.

Car Funeral (and Zing's Birthday)

Shortly after my last post, our house hosted a funeral for Winona the Minivan. Unfortunately, Winona, a 2003 Ford Windstar, had reached the end of her mechanical life (or at least within the MVS budget). We had been going a few weeks without Winona (one of our church families needed a vehicle after an accident).

Hannah and Schyler proposed having a funeral for Winona, so we invited our support committee and MVS alumni. A few people said it was the most fun they had at a funeral. Marty, one of our support committee members, said to me as I ushered "You guys are hilarious!"

Afterwards, we celebrated Zing's birthday with cake and ice cream. A fun time overall.

Ps. Be sure to check out some photos on my housemate Hannah Lehman's Substack Newsletter.

Left: Hannah plays the taps for our cardboard cut out of Winona (our guests lost their minds when we did this!) and at right, Zing poses with her birthday cake, made by Schyler. Photos by Schyler Entz.

Joshua Tree National Park

After our visitors, the four of us made our way to California to visit Joshua Tree National Park. This was my third National Park visit during my MVS year, preceded by Saguaro and the Grand Canyon (fourth including the Indiana Dunes pre-MVS).

Coming from the Sonoran desert, the Mojave desert where Joshua Tree is was underwhelming. Going from one desert to another will probably do that.

That isn't to say I didn't enjoy my time in Joshua Tree. Seeing the Joshua Trees were cool, and the Cholla garden at the park, which to my knowledge is a natural phenomenon.

I'm glad all four of us got to go on this trip. While there were some disappointments (a bit of sickness, and an over glorified "pool" at our fancy camping site) we had a fund time. Soon, Zing will be leaving to deal with some personal business, so this was our “last Hoorah” trip as a full house.

Left: We forgot to bring a hammer, so Zing improvised with a rock for our tent posts. Right: Skull Rock, a very popular photo spot at Joshua Tree, so I was lucky to get an empty one when I did.

Conclusion, Fundraising Appeal

I'm finishing this post on June 20th, which is later than I wanted to publish. My apologies, the heat in Tucson (whether or not is has humidity!) is draining. I'll try to get next month's post out a little sooner. Thank you all for your patience.

And speaking of patience, here is the usual fundraising speel. A thank you again to everyone who has given offline, such as at Silverwood Mennonite Church in Goshen, and to the Griesers (Thanks Kate and Nathan!).

While my service year is wrapping up soon, any funds donated will continue to keeping the MVS program and Tucson Unit operating. If you can, you can donate at JustGiving here.

And for anyone who can't donate, that's okay as well. As I've seen with CHRPA's clients, we're all doing the best we can.

Thanks for reading, I'll see you in the next post.