Local students participate in ski trip
By Kathy Thomson
Twenty-eight local youth and five adult leaders traveled to Taos, New Mexico during the Albany Youth Ministry Winter Ski Trip and Christian Adventure last week.
This year, the group left Albany early on Wednesday, Jan. 1, checked in at Snakedance Condos at the base of Taos Ski Valley later that same afternoon, and skied on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, before returning home on Sunday, Jan. 5.
“We had a great ski trip and a great week with the kids,” said Feed Store director Kathryn Hamilton.
Twenty-one inches of new snow the previous week had boosted the base at Taos Ski Valley to just over 50 inches, and two additional inches of snow fell on Friday, Jan. 3, giving the local skiers a little fresh powder.
One student suffered a collarbone injury on Friday, but the trip was deemed a success.
“They were able to treat the injury on site in the medic tent, so there were no trips to the hospital,” said Matthews Memorial Presbyterian youth minister Spencer Newsom. “It was a really good trip. The kids had a lot of fun and enjoyed it.”
The temperatures remained below freezing most of the trip, even dipping down to negative 25 degrees on Friday night, but then warmed up to 43 on Saturday afternoon.
“Some of the junior high and high school boys went skiing in shorts on Saturday,” said Newsom. “But that was a little too extreme for me.”
The Christmas break ski trip has been a tradition for several years, and gives local youth a chance to ski while spending time with God and Christian friends.
According to Hamilton, morning devotionals and quiet time were followed by skiing.
“After dinner every day we had a program that included worship and a message, followed by small group Bible study,” she said. “The main purpose of the trip is to present students with a chance to encounter Jesus Christ.”
Newsom said that he had some really good talks with students after the evening programs.
Hamilton added that they had a “Storybook” theme this year.
“We highlighted the fact that most stories have a beginning, middle, and end, and we compared that to having a progressive relationship with Jesus,” Hamilton said.
Leaders for the trip included Hamilton, Newsom, Albany High School 2016 graduate Michael Cotter, AHS 2018 graduate Rylie Scott, and Texas A&M University college student Meagan Banner.
