ICC Masters at Hamlet, North Carolina, 2010

This was our second Masters. Last year's theme, as many of you already know, was Lead the Escape. This year's theme - Awakening. rise up. reach out.

The Institute For Cultural Communicators is headed by Mrs. Teresa Moon.

The "mumsy with a heart."

Mrs. Moon trains the twelve interns, then she and Mr. Moon travel the country with their sons and the interns in a motorhome for 3-4 months presenting conferences all over the United States. 'Communications' being the main point here. They care about today's youth and want our students to be able to communicate for Christ in their everyday life.

Then, in January each year, the new year's theme is the focus of a huge conference called Masters. Students from all over the country are invited to come together to "master their speaking skills for the Master."

It takes a lot of people to make one of these events successful. Kali was one of 29 Recommended Staff Assistants (RSA's) who worked behind the scenes all week long. Preparing meals for 200 people, washing dishes, scrubbing toilets and sinks, setting up and tearing down rooms, running errands, basically any instructions they were given were followed to the last detail. Above is a picture of the RSA's on our last night.

In the center you see a young lady in a red dress. This is Janie, the RSA Coordinator. She is an intern with ICC. A student teacher at the conferences and at this Masters. All the RSA'a reported to her for job assignments.

Getting to be an RSA is a long process. Much studying, presenting in the community, and commitment is required before you can even apply for consideration. These students are truly the cream of the crop in ICC. And they love Janie! As you can very clearly tell from these photos :).

Masters is a time to reconnect with old friends . . .



. . . and to meet some new ones, too.

We had ~ 160 students this year.

The students began with some team building exercises led by the interns and RSA's.

They were a lot of fun!

At Masters we had wonderful assemblies led by the Moons and by the incredible intern team.






The students attended classes geared towards speaking skills and debate, real world apologetics, media, and a number of other topics. All preparing our students to step out into the community and to speak about our hope in Christ.

There was also a track specifically for student leaders.

(I loved this class :)).



Student leaders got to listen to these young ladies discuss the chapter program and ways the student leaders could improve the quality of their chapter times.

Kali spoke specifically about team building and the student leaders' role in it.

ICC has some pretty incredible coaches that lead chapters all around the country.


Many fun things happen at Masters! Including awesome worship . . .

. . . prayer . . .

. . . and singing. Lots of incredible singing! These guys are from Doe River Gorge.
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Food is also an integral part of Masters :). Miss Maggie is the best! She is the Queen of the Kitchen! Seriously, Miss Maggie flew in from out west somewhere and orchestrated the RSA's in the kitchen. They fed approximately 200 people two meals a day. Plus they prepared at least six banquets that week and provided meals on both the first and third floors of the building on more than one occasion. Props to the kitchen crew!





Did I mention banquets? On the first day we had separately - the Ladies Luncheon and the Bro's Bruncheon. The ladies' theme was Sleep Over and I got some great pictures from that.

This is our Chapter Sponsor from here at home. Isn't she lovely? And all ready for that sleep over feast!

I hope Mrs. Mary has a good sense of humor and doesn't mind having this picture shared around the world via the internet - lol! Love you, Mary! You are such a fun leader! I know the students in your chapter love you, too :).


And then Mrs. Moon made her entrance . . .

. . . and I'm still laughing! There is no one like Mrs. Teresa Moon! She is a fantastic blessing! Students love her. They want to be able to command the platform like she does. They want to love God the way she does. What a change her dream for America's students has made in our family this past year! Thank you, Mrs. Moon. We love you!
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As a side note - I didn't get any shots of the Bro's Bruncheon :(. Hey! I'm not a "Bro", so I wasn't allowed.

Model U. N. was my favorite part of Masters. MUN is a simulation that all the students participated in. They represented the various countries making up the United Nations. Prior to the conference they researched and prepared position papers for their countries on the issue of world hunger.


The General Assembly was ran exactly like a United Nations General Assembly would be led, including trying to get other countries to support your resolutions.

Later in the week, they were separated into five councils. Kali represented Somalia on the International Court of Justice.


Evidence was presented in regards to an invasion and massive human rights violations by the Government of Uganda against the people of the Republic of Congo. (Something like that. Kali's at work so I can't ask her the exact wording.) Two environmental agencies were represented by the students and were able to explain their stance on the topic. Then the panel of judges each recommended disciplinary actions against Uganda based on what their research showed their country's stance would be. Then the Court voted, found Uganda at fault, and announced sentencing-so-to-speak. MUN was a very educational simulation that all 160 students participated in and enjoyed. Thanks to Josh and Hannah who planned this event and to the other interns that helped facilitate it! Whoo Hoo!

On one evening, the intern team presented a drama based on C. S. Lewis' The Great Divorce. What a powerful program. What a powerful drama. If you haven't read it before, you should go get it right now and correct that oversight.





I had a specific request for shoe photos from Masters. I didn't get the request until the last day, so I didn't get that many photos. I am throwing those in here.

Next year, this will be a priority :).

On the last night, we held a formal banquet. This gives the students an opportunity to dress up, we eat some marvelous-Miss-Maggie-food, and awards are handed out.

The RSA's and Alumni Interns went all out on decorating and the facility was beautiful!

Then everyone showed up.


Certificates were handed out to the charter group of students being inducted into the Young Speakers Guild. Next year at Masters, Kali will be inducted.

Mrs. Moon also awards a $1000.00 educational scholarship in memory of a young man named Raudy Beardon. This young lady was the recipient this year.

Wendell is Mrs. Moon's oldest son. He MC'ed many of the assemblies and activities. In this collage you see him doing an interpretive piece that everyone finds hilarious - every time we hear it! Especially the young man and red-faced woman you see here - lol! I thought she was going to fall on the floor - she was laughing so hard!

And before we knew it - it was time to say good-bye and head back to our individual states.

Many tears were shed!

What you see in these photos is actually one huge family! Seriously! This is our speech and debate family.

Yes, we are scattered out across the nation, but we are still family!

You can't stop this steamship that is ICC. God has big plans in store for the students and leaders and coaches of ICC. We WILL follow His lead. We WILL be ready to command the platform and speak in His behalf. Anywhere. At any time. To any audience. We CAN and we WILL!

From the Apolojax contingency to Mrs. Moon - thank you for stepping out in faith and boldly declaring that we WILL make a difference for Christ in this country. Thank you for the training and opportunities you provide young Christian students across the United States. And thank you, interns, for the sacrifices you have each made to be able to make a difference in the life of another student. You are so loved!

Thanks, Interns! It's Been Incredible!

This past conference season was fun, educational, inspiring, faith-building, and eye-opening. Communicators For Christ, part of the Institute For Cultural Communicators, held conferences all over the United States to teach our students how to take the platform and share their faith. With anyone. At any time. Under any circumstance. In a caring and winsome manner.

The conferences were taught by a team of twelve teenagers working as interns for CFC/ICC. Students who love God more than anything. Students who came up through the ranks of CFC. Students hand-picked following an intense application process. Students who have commanded the platform hundreds of times between them, all over the United States.

Kali desires to be an intern. She has prayed and prayed about this decision. She has asked many, many people to pray with her about this decision. Kali just wants to follow God's will for her life and to be used however He wants to use her. Kali has a heart for the teens in our country. She believes every teen should be able to articulate their faith and what they believe. This year's team was incredible! Great role models for the hundreds of students that went through the conferences. Great role models for my Kali!

I am always impressed with their heart for God and for the students. I am always impressed with their obedience and unrelenting devotion to the heart of Communicators For Christ. I am always impressed with who they are and the way they exemplify what a prepared and confident young speaker for God can be.

And then there are the goofy glasses. And the disguises. The funny hair-do's. And the costumes. The funny faces. And the props. See, you can have fun representing Christ! And, you can have fun speaking for Him and sharing the Word.

So, Mrs. Moon and Interns - thank you for another great year! Thank you for taking the time to love my child and teach her. Thank you for sacrificing time with your own family to travel and teach and share with all our kids. You will never know the difference you make in our lives. You will never know the difference you have made for the kingdom. You will never know how much we love you!

We Made the iheartfaces Logo Collage!

A couple weeks ago, iheartfaces celebrated their first birthday with a logo photo challenge. Kali and I headed out to the park and shot a series of photos using the iheartfaces logo. You can see those photos and our entry here. Thanks goes to celebrity judge Dana Suggs who chose our lead photo to become part of her chosen collage. Our shot is the third one from the left on the top row. Kali is bouncing alphabet blocks into the air spelling out the logo. Yay!!! To see the whole post on iheartfaces, just click here. Thanks, Dana!

ICC Masters Comes to Hamlet, North Carolina, 2010

Welcome to Hamlet, North Carolina. This is where ICC Masters is being held.

We knew it would be a smallish town once we found out there were no hotels in the town.

On Saturday, while the kids were setting up at the church - getting ready for Masters - I walked around the downtown area, to see what Hamlet was all about.

What I found was a quaint little town with very friendly people.

Downtown Hamlet literally fits into a two-block area. Strange, but in that two blocks they have two drugstores. They also have a train station, which you see a couple shots above this. It is located behind the buildings on the left-hand side of the street.

These are the doors to a now defunct movie theatre.

This was the only movie poster visible.

They do have this one awesome sandwich shop. It has a soda fountain and an ice cream counter . . . .

. . . . where I was able to get the best chicken sandwich ever! Plus a soda and a bag of chips . . . .

. . . . and this delicious chunk of Rocky Road Mud Pie cake!

This cake was sooooo amazing it deserves two pictures :). And, I got all this for just under $7.00!

It's been freezing here in Hamlet - up until today. Seriously, when we arrived last week it was in the 40's during the day and the 30's at nighttime. And this is what the flowers still look like in the planters! Amazing!

I found all the signs on this wall interesting.

As I was walking back over to the church where we are holding Masters, I noticed that a train had pulled into the station :). Progress had come to Hamlet.

Seriously, Hamlet reminds me so much of the town my grandparents lived in when I was young. Just a few shops and everyone knew everyone else. You spoke to people on the street, you asked how they were, and you actually waited and listened as they answered. This is what I saw in Hamlet. People that care about each other. And even about me. A complete stranger. And this is where we have brought our approximately 200 students to learn communication skills. I could not think of a better place!

Masters, 2010, in Hamlet, North Carolina

Welcome to Masters, 2010, taught by the Institute For Cultural Communicators Intern Team. During the course of the week, we will also hear from Mrs. Teresa Moon and several of the intern alumni, as well as guest speakers from around the country.

This year's theme is: Awakening. rise up. reach out. One comment in the Masters' video really stood out to me: everything exposed by the light becomes visible. More about that as the week goes on.

Let's look at the first day of set-up.

This was nice to see as we pulled into the parking lot. And what a beautiful sanctuary they have. My friend Stephanie will love these next three pictures :).




Most of you know that Kali has been involved in the student leadership program with ICC this past year. We attended several conferences in the fall where Kali was able to assist with some of the classes and had specific duties as an apprentice. Kali is now old enough to be an RSA at Masters this year. That would a Recommended Staff Assistant. They are literally the arms and legs, the grunt-force behind Masters. They do all the detail work so the intern staff can be free to teach. Fun stuff like cooking, serving, cleaning tables, cleaning floors, cleaning toilets, cleaning sinks, sweeping, mopping, running errands, making posters, making signs, doing anything and everything they are instructed to - with a true servant's heart. It's amazing how much all these students want to be here - serving the interns and the conference attendants. What a blessing it is to me to see how excited all 29 of the RSA's are to be here in North Carolina.


Working on their first meal. I enjoyed listening as the process of arranging and cutting asparagas was explained to this young man :). He did a great job!

That would be Miss Maggie. She is the best cook! Ever! I was so excited when I heard she was going to be here this year!

That would be a tray of baked potatoes sitting on the sidewalk :). It was sooooo hot in the kitchen and they needed the potatoes to cool off quickly. I think it was like 50 degrees outside, so that is where the potatoes went to cool off. Good thinking, team!

While one team was cooking and preparing an eating area, another team was setting up classrooms for the conference. What an undertaking this is! At the end of the week, everything has to go back to where it was beforehand. This same team will be re-setting the facility. Speaking of 'facility', Kali is on the facility team. That's her in the picture carrying the chairs closest to the camera. She is sooo excited to be here!

The Masters Conference is open to students from all over the United States. It's a time to see friends you only get to see a couple times a year. Time for catching up and working hard!

I seriously want her jacket :)! And, yes, she is always smiling like that. Isn't she beautiful!

Some of the RSA's were working on a video/documentary film referencing what the theme means to them. The film will be used at this week's Masters conference.


When you are dealing with a team of 29 students, it is vital to have a way to communicate. Check out their messaging system. This wraps around the post - all 4 sides - and every RSA has a mail box slot. Cool!

Now, just because it's important, I need to show you my new shoes :).


This would be my first ever pair of converse! Kali and I had the priviledge to bring two of the other RSA's with us to North Carolina. The girls convinced me to go into a shoe outlet store somewhere in Georgia. This is what I picked out :). They are soooo comfortable. I wore them to yesterday's set-up and got so many compliments on them. Can't wear them today, though, because it's raining and I might get them dirty :).

That's it for Day One. I don't know if I'll be able to do this everyday because starting tomorrow our schedule is 9 AM - 9 PM. That doesn't leave much time for editing pictures and posting. As you have time, please say a prayer for the RSA's. They will be working so hard all week long. They will need to be here long before the others arrive each day, and still be here long after we all leave at night. Pray for endurance, patience, and love. And pray that they will be a blessing to others for having such a servant's heart and wanting desperately to serve!

Masters, Here We Come!

It's 1:25 AM and I have just (almost) finished packing for Masters. We are leaving tomorrow. In the morning. And we still have things to accomplish before we leave.

I'm taking Kali and two other speech and debate friends with us - heading up to North Carolina. This will be a working trip for Kali and her friends. They are going to be serving the students while we are there - literally. They are in a student leadership program - RSA's - Recommended Staff Assistants, and they will be cooking, preparing food for cooking, service food that they have cooked - two meals a day, washing dishes, cleaning bathrooms, toilets and floors, running errands, and joyfully doing anything the interns or Mrs. Moon asks them to do. This is something Kali has been looking forward to for a long time. Since last year's Masters.

All the RSA's will be staying in host housing. I get to stay in a hotel room all alone for eight days.

And, of course, I'll be taking pictures of everyone and everything that happens at Masters. And, guess what! You will get to share in their fun as soon as I get pictures posted :). Communicators For Christ, and the Institute For Cultural Communicators, is a Christian organization that teaches students around the country how to present on the platform in a Christlike, winsome manner. Being able to explain your faith and why you believe - to anyone, at anytime, under any circumstance - that's Communicators For Christ. Talk with you again real soon. Please pray for us to be safe on our trip and to have an awesome, wonderful time serving the students in North Carolina.

Best Face Photo at i ♥ faces

It's a new year at i ♥ faces and the theme to kick the year off is Best Face.

This shot of Noah was my first thought when I read about the week's challenge. The picture was taken on December 22nd, 2009. Noah's grandmother has a picture of Noah's dad at this age, wearing a santa hat. I'm told they look identical, so we decided to try to duplicate the photo. This was our best result. I just love his little happy face! This particular photo made the rounds on Christmas morning - lol!

Happy birthday, i ♥ faces, Angie and Amy! I'm looking forward to another great year! To check out all the wonderful face shots, head on over to i ♥ faces.

Introducing the Humorous Llamas :)

This would be the best shot I got of our small group for speech.

Appropriately named the Humorous Llamas.

Don't ask me why because I do not know :).

I got one good picture, then it started disintegrating from there.
(I love the expression on the fellow's face on the far right :).








Actually, I love all these students. We have a great group. They work well together. They listen to each other and help each other improve their speaking skills. They love each other - as you can obviously tell from these photos - lol! And I'm thinking, one or two them might resemble some funny llamas - lol! What do you think?