Echo Spring 2023 - 24

By Christina Coder ('24)
E
This May, Dr. Bob Dodson and
Dr. Ling Dinse led a Journey
Team trip to the Navajo and
Zuni Reservations in New
Mexico. With the mission of
" traveling to the farthest corners
of the world to live out the
gospel message by bringing
hope to the hopeless, " LBC
partners with various mission
organizations and churches
in the area and comes
alongside them to advance the
gospel to those living on the
reservation. This year, the New
Mexico team helped feed the
homeless, prepared a camp
for summer and worked with
Christian school staff to share
the love of Christ to the Native
American communities.
Students had the chance
to witness what life on
the reservation looks like
and experienced the stark
differences in the Navajo and
Zuni way of life. These cultural
experiences helped students
become more grateful for
things like running water and
access to food, which had
previously been taken for
granted.
If you are interested in joining
one of LBC's future Journey
Team trips or giving toward a
trip, visit lbc.edu/journey-teams.
ven though the last of the
controversial Indian boarding
schools closed their doors over 30
years ago, their devastating impact
is still felt across Native American culture.
For Lancaster Bible College graduates
Kellie Wright ('15) and Angelyn " Joy "
Trumbull ('20), LBC Journey Team
trips to the Navajo Reservation in New
Mexico played a significant role in their
growing desire to help the Indigenous
community recover from the past failures
of American education.
After falling in love with the Diné people
during a 2014 Journey Team trip, Kellie
decided to return and now teaches at
Rehoboth Christian School. The school
was founded in 1903 by missionaries
from the Christian Reformed Church
who came to the Southwest in 1896
to bring the gospel to the Navajo and
Zuni people. Over 400 similar schools at
the time were opened, in part, to fulfill
Gen. Richard Henry Pratt's philosophy to
" Kill the Indian. Save the Man. " This was
accomplished by forcing children to give
up traditional clothing, language, names,
long hair and family ties. Indigenous
children were often abused and made
to work long hours of physical labor.
While Rehoboth has not been a boarding
school since the 1980s, and has worked
to make restitution for its mistakes, the
effects of its history are still a reality.
Kellie and Joy have had the pleasure
of meeting twice, with Joy residing
about an hour northwest of Kellie in a
town coincidentally called Navajo. First
introduced to the culture while in high
school, Joy was thrilled to learn that LBC
also offered trips to the Southwest. " I was
so excited that God was providing me
a way to go back, " she said of her 2017
Journey Team trip.
Joy now works as a second-grade
teacher in a public school, where she
also recognizes the scars left by the
boarding schools. " Look at the history
of education in the Navajo tribes, "
she pointed out. " It's terrible. My kids'
grandparents were abused in Catholic
boarding schools. Because of that,
education is untrusted here. We don't
get a lot of parental support. "
For both Joy and Kellie, teaching on the
Navajo Reservation opened their eyes
to true history and transformed their
worldviews. " How have I not experienced
these people before? " Kellie asked,
remembering her impression of the
community during her initial trip. The
two alumnae credit LBC for deepening
their faith and empowering them to
share the gospel. Kellie shared that " LBC
was building my confidence to say, 'You
can do this job, you can be someone
in this profession who understands the
mission and helps children.' "
24 ECHO
http://www.lbc.edu/journey-teams
Echo Spring 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Echo Spring 2023
