Cali Bound - Day 2-3

It was a great weekend. We spent Saturday with my sister, Anna, shopping and visiting the Gateway Arch in St. Louis. I may hate shopping but I love spending time with my sister.

On Sunday afternoon we drove to Columbia, MO to visit my aunt and uncle. We even got to spend some time with my cousin and her kids.

Cali Bound - Day 1

Gessica and I in front of the old 5824!

It has certainly been a long day. Packing was pretty stressful trying to get the few things I still own to fit in Little Gray Car. Fortunately, my parents came to help with the moving out craziness.

We all had lunch together and then Gess and I were on the road west. The first leg of the drive was to Quincy, IL to spend the weekend with my sister, Anna Lee. We arrived safely but not without some fun along the way. There are a few things we are trying to do in every state to add some excitement to hours of driving.

1. Take a picture of the state sign.
2. Take a picture of something that represents the state's nickname.
3. Meet someone new.

Our time in Indiana was very limited and we were wondering how we could find something to represent the Hoosier state in such limited time. We stopped for a cup of coffee a little disappointed with the situation. I grabbed my cup of coffee and simply asked God to help us find something. (Silly I know, but I did it.) Literally as I was praying a man walked in with a Hoosiers shirt. Gess and I started laughing out loud. I'm sure the man thought we were crazy. Gess briefly told him the story and asked if we could take a picture with him. He loved the idea and said, "Sure. My shirt will make history!" We made a new friend and got a picture of something about Indiana.

Meet our new friend, Thomas!

I'm hoping to blog each night on this trip and share some of our stories with you. In the mean time, you can follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Use the hashtag #caliskoutz to send us messages, ask questions or give us a picture challenge.

Thank you for all of your prayers on this great adventure.

California or Bust

The time is finally here and tomorrow starts the big road trip. My roommate, Gessica, will be traveling across the country with me. We are planning to visit family, friends, supporters, potential supporters, and fellow Impact staff along the way. Here is our itinerary; we would appreciate your prayers during our adventure.

• August 23rd - 24th: Quincy, IL
• August 25th: Columbia, MO
• August 26th: Sidney, NE
• August 27th- 28th: Salt Lake City, UT with stops in Ft. Collins, CO and Rawlins, WY
• August 29th: Las Vegas, NV
• August 30th: New home in Thousand Oaks, CA

Gessica and our Impact students have created a hashtag (#caliskoutz) for those of you who are on Facebook or Twitter.  You can follow this hashtag to get updates on our adventures or send us messages along the way.  

Many thanks to all of you who have been praying, sending words of encouragements, given special financial gifts and cooked wonderful meals for me this last week. I am incredibly grateful to be partnering with you to Impact the U. Impact the World.

FAQ about California

I've heard a handful of questions several times so I thought I would share some Frequently Asked Questions and their answers with you. Impact's Development Team released this letter that may answer some questions as well.

Q: Why California?
A: A majority of America's college students are in the states of California, Texas, Florida and New York. Impact currently has a presence in Florida and New York and has been praying about expanding into California and Texas. We believe God has answered these prayers in huge ways by bringing us this opportunity to partner with the Christian Church in Thousand Oaks (CCTO).

Q: Why California Lutheran University (CLU)?
A: CCTO is located a few blocks from CLU and has a huge heart for reaching college students. CLU has a large population of international students, which is exciting as we think about our vision. (Impact the U. Impact the World.) As we've discovered from our ministry in South Bend, even at private Christian colleges there are many students who have not experienced the love of Christ.

Q: When are you leaving? When do you start in the new position?
A: If all goes as planned, I'll be leaving South Bend, IN on August 23rd and arriving in Thousand Oak, CA on August 30th. The new position officially starts on September 1st, but I've already started preparing and training for it.

Q: What about South Bend? Will ministry continue at St. Mary's?
A: Absolutely ministry will continue at St. Mary's! The student leader team we put together for the 2013-2014 school year is incredible and we are already planning for the fall. Tom Neyhart, a fellow Associate Campus Minister on our South Bend team, recently finished his support raising and will be joining the team full-time. The team has hired an intern who is raising support to be on campus this fall and talking with an individual who is considering an official volunteer position. The staff is committed to sharing Christ with the St. Mary's campus.

Q: Do you have to raise more support?
A: Yes! The cost of living in California is very different than South Bend and additional funds will need to be raised both for personal and ministry budgets.

Q: Can I see you again before you leave?
A: I hope so! The South Bend team is planning a party on August 16th at 6:30 PM at the campus house. (850 Lincolnway East, Mishawaka, IN 46544) It would be great to have you join us then. Please RSVP HERE or e-mail Lowell Kosak at lowell.kosak@impacttheu.com.

Q: This is exciting! How can I be a part of it?
A: Thank you for your willingness to join the journey. Here are some ways you can get involved.

• Pray! Change always comes with challenges. Here are some specific ways you can pray.
• Pray for the transition to California, saying goodbye well, the moving details, and an openness to the Spirit in the process.
• Pray for housing in Thousand Oaks. 
• Pray for the additional support needed. 
• Pray for my car to survive the long drive. There are a few minor repairs that may need to be tended to before I leave if funds become available. 
• Pray for the following trips I have scheduled.
• July 17-21: Support raising in the Detroit and Lansing, MI area. 
• July 26-28: Family trip to Indianapolis, IN
• August 23-30: MOVING WEEK stopping to visit with supporters and potential supporters along the way.

• Donate items for the "Sarah is Moving" yard sale on August 2 & 3. All the money from this sale will go towards moving and launching the new ministry. If you have items you would like to donate, contact Lowell Kosak at 574-245-0142 or lowell.kosak@impacttheu.com.
• Become a financial partner by giving a monthly gift of any amount. You can give online HERE.
• Give a special one-time gift towards the start up costs of the ministry. You can give your special gift HERE and invite friends to do the same. 

If you have a question that isn't so frequent and would like to ask, please do not hesitate to contact me at sarah.koutz@impacttheu.com. 

Kenya 2013 - Food

Back in March I had the privilege to have meet with several missionaries who worked or are working in Kenya. They had warned me that the food was rather bland and not anything amazing. While this was true, I didn't expect to be eating so many other types of foods. During the course of our trip I had Kenyan, Ethiopian, Indian, Italian, Lebanese, Mexican, Thai and American food.

Kenyans eat a lot of rice and ugali, which is like a super thick cornmeal porridge similar to the consistency of mash potatoes. Each meal usually had some sort of greens as well, usually kale, and a meat such as chicken, goat or beef. The meat is fixed different ways but you almost always eat it with the ugali and a thin bread. I can't tell you much about what the bread tastes like since I can't eat it, but our team seemed to enjoy it.

And because I know there are some of you who love food pictures, here you go! (Thank you Jeff for most of these pictures!)

The ugali is the white stuff on the top plate.

This was the wonderful meal we had at Erus' house, goat and rice.

Yes that is two pieces of goat and massive plates of fries.

Indian food

Ethiopian Food is my personal favorite! The bread is gluten free and the flavors are amazing.