Being only 18, I've had some of the best times that a person could have!!! I'm talking about WABY!!!
WABY is my area youth group. I served on the executive (Which means that I helped to plan all of the fun stuff that we did) for two years, and (besides the planning meetings) the best times at WABY were the retreats. Picture between 50 and 100 teenagers, about ten adults, away from home, camping in cabins for a weekend.
We ran two retreats a year, and while there was educational value and religious reasoning for these retreats, they were a lot of fun.
Some of my best memories include listening to the guys cabin (which was on the other side of the football field) create and bellow their own song all about rotting pears (at 3am), toboganning (I almost broke my foot one year), snow football (I only watched, but it was still great), giant twister (think 30 people at a time), and the list goes on.
The experiences were great, but I owe WABY a lot more than a few weekends of fun. I owe them everything. You see, WABY is more than an organization, it's people. With or without the organization, I see WABY everyday. WABY was my gateway to lifelong friendships. Some of my closest friends were introduced to me at WABY, and we grew close because of WABY. Amanda was the president of WABY in my final year on the executive. (She was the vice pres. the year before that). Crystal served on the cabinet as a representative for her church, as did Nicole, but Nikki continued on in my final year to become a member at large on the exec. When I resigned my position (due to age...I was too old to continue) Nikki took over as the secretary for WABY!
I met Mike through Amanda, so WABY caused me meeting my Mr. Right.
One more person who's very dear to my heart was introduced to me at WABY, a fellow executive, though on the other side of the table. John has been an adult executive (They make sure that the kids execs. don't do something really silly, like take a retreat to Europe or Alaska) ever since I've known of WABY. Even though he should be my elder, I think of him as a friend. He was there when I went through the worst and best times of my life, and he was the first to offer a hug (Be it a happy hug or an "it'll all work out" hug) on every occasion. When i left WABY officially, John made a point of telling me how much I had helped him through the years. I was amazed. I thought he ahd helped me, but it turns out I had helped him too. He gave me a small heart shaped stone to remind me that anytime I needed a friend, he'd be there for me. I was so touched that I actually cried. I never cry because I'm happy, but I did that day.
If I could say anything about WABY and all of the amazing friends that I have made becaus eof it, I don't know what it would be. WABY has been my safety net since I was 14 years old. Every time my life has been hanging in the balance, and every time I've fallen, that net has been there to catch me. Those amazing people have always helped me to be able to focus and start climbing again. I don't know where I'd be today if they hadn't been there to catch me so many times.
For all of the people at WABY who have helped me to be who I am today, thank you. To all of the people who encouraged me to first attend WABY, thank you. And to all of the people from WABY who are still a huge part of my life, CALL ME!!! (or email if it's easier)
What can I say...When you have a group of people like WABY supporting you,
