Hey Friends! I have been at training camp for three weeks now, and it has been an incredible experience so far! I’ve seen God perform miracles, break chains, and free people from strongholds like I’ve never seen before. My squad is full of incredible young people who are after the Lord’s heart. The leaders and staff love us incredibly well and we’ve heard some pretty powerful testimonies and teachings. While I wish you all could be here with me, I wanted to give you an inside scoop on what training camp looks like so you can see why I’ve taken so long to answer my phone! There are a lot of terms from the World Race dictionary that I’ll break down, plus some pictures and schedules!
Trip Structure:
Squad:
A “squad” is a team of people who are all traveling the same route on the world race. This can be anywhere from 15-45 people, depending on the nature of your trip! Squads are differentiated by an assigned letter and a color. I’m on Gap W or W squad, and we’re the blue team!
Team:
Within your squad, racers are broken down into teams of 6-7 with an alumni leader guiding them along the way. For gap year trips, the teams are same gender, and stay the same over the course of the trip! Teams will do ministry together, travel together, and work to love one another well and hold each other accountable! Teams pray over and choose a name that they feel defines them as a team! I am on team Nissi, which means God our banner. My next post will have the backstory of our name and introduce you to the incredible ladies on my team, so make sure to check it out!
Squad Mentors:
Each team has a full time world race staff member who helps to plan and oversee the trip and support the squad however they can! Typically, squad mentors spend a few months on the field with their squad, and facilitate the rest from back in the states! My squad has the coolest exception! My squad mentors, Bill and Katie, plus their three kids, Maxi, Ruby, and Violet are headed on the field with us for the whole trip! Bill and Katie are INCREDIBLE leaders, and their kids are so clever and so much fun to be around!
Route:
Your route is where your team is headed and when! My team got the most amazing surprise the other day, and we found out we’re getting a bonus country on our trip! Gap W is spending December in Vietnam, and we are all so excited! Our route is:
Guatemala (mid October-beginning of December) -> Vietnam (December- beginning of January) -> Cambodia (January-February) -> Eswatini (March-April) -> South Africa (April-May)
We leave October 14th, and we will return mid May!
Training Camp Specifics
Lodging:
For training camp we get close with God through his creation!
We stay in tents during our time here in Gainesville, and it’s honestly been a blast! We have a big squad campsite that’s fun to hang out in, and living with your best friends is so special.
Some people choose to sleep in their hammocks as well!
Showers:
We have two options for getting clean here at training camp! There are shower units that squads can use on a rotational basis. They’re your typical shower with a few sinks, and sometimes hot water. One unit even has a mirror!
If it’s not your squad’s turn to shower, there’s always a bucket shower! Racers just fill up a bucket with water using the hose, then step into a wooden stall and using a measuring cup to get clean! They are honestly a blast, and are super refreshing. Many dance parties or karaoke nights have happened during bucket showers!
For restrooms here at training camp, we use porta-potties! The units are serviced every few days, and they’re given a good wipe down and toilet paper is replenished every night. Not the most glamorous part of training camp, but they get the job done for sure!
Laundry:
Here at training camp, we hand wash our clothes! On laundry day, I typically wake up around 6:30 and head to the clotheslines! I fill one bucket with water detergent, and the other I fill with water to rinse! From there it’s a lot of scrubbing and wringing out, and then clothes are left to dry! I’ve had some rotten luck with laundry the past few times where it’s rained for days and my clothes never dry, but thankfully there was some this past week and I was able to have dry clothes by the middle of the day!
Food:
Our food is prepared by our lovely serve team! Meals are portioned out per squad, so we all take care to be mindful of our squad mates when we’re grabbing something to eat. Meals can be typical favorites like sandwiches or sloppy joes, or a traditional dish from around the world to prepare us for the cultures we’ll be encountering. We eat on the dining deck with our squads, and if you’re with Gap W there will always be lively conversation to keep you entertained.
Campus Clean Up:
Every night after dinner, squads work together to keep our home beautiful and tidy. There is a rotation of chores that everyone works together to complete. We clean showers, porta-potties, the dining deck, and the training center. After each meal, squads work together to clean dishes, four members heading to the kitchen to wash the larger dishes, with the rest of the squad working together on dishes and utensils. Squads are also responsible for keeping campsites tidy, taking out trash, and refilling water coolers.
Training Camp Schedule:
They keep us pretty busy here at training camp! Every morning, 8:15-9:00 is carved out for personal quiet times and devotionals. Racers scatter across campus to be alone with the Lord and prepare for the day. At 9:00 breakfast starts! Here is an example of what a day of training camp may look like! This changes all the time based on sessions, outreach projects, trips, etc!
9:30- Clean Up/Dishes
10:00-Worship
11:00- Session
1:30- Lunch
2:00- Clean Up/Dishes
2:00-3:30: Personal Time
3:30: Session
4:30: Break
5:00: Team Time
7:00: Dinner
7:30: Clean Up/Dishes
8:00: Chores
8:30: Personal Time
10:30: Quiet Hours
11:00: Lights Out!
Phones: Phones are collected during breakfast and are returned after the last session/group activity of the day. This is to help us be present and engaged during our busy days!
Session: During Sessions, we typically learn about one of three things: God’s character and heart for his people, tools for evangelism/understanding culture, practical trainings on travel, logistics, etc.
Team Time: Time to fellowship with our teams to discuss sessions, give feedback, and grow closer as a team!
Personal Time: Time for racers to go on walks, take naps, call home, write blogs, spend time with the Lord, etc.
Sabbath: One of my favorite things about the race so far is Sabbath! They have taught us how to sabbath well and rest in the Lord! On Sundays we have a squad church, then the day is ours to get in the world, take naps, go on walks, whatever we find restful and feel led to do! It’s such an important practice that we have all quickly fallen in love with!
Training Camp is action packed but so much fun! I’m so thankful for the ways I’ve already grown, and cannot wait to see who I’ll become!
Kailey! I loved reading all about how your time has been spent thus far. So proud of you for the Kingdom work that you and your squad are doing! I will be praying for you daily. Love you so much!
Kailey this was so helpful and informative and answers so many of my questions! So happy and thankful for this update, please keep them coming..,Love you!! 🥰😘
This update = awesome. Thought I had posted before, but just so you know I loved this overview of the precious, joyful, and transformative days of training. Thanking God with you for such a wonderful foundation on which to build the next several months together and for all of the prayers He has already answered, above and beyond. He’s the greatest!