Members of the Jupiter Christian School girls soccer and volleyball teams are packing for the longest road trip of their lives.
Eight JCS soccer players and three volleyball players are leaving Saturday for a combined week-long mission trip and sports tour of Costa Rica before returning on July 24.
The girls will play a daily soccer game at different Costa Rican schools and visit an orphanage where they'll give out school supplies. They'll also conduct missionary sessions at the schools they visit.
"I'm really excited about going over there and just seeing a new place and gaining a new soccer experience," said Nikki Miller, who will be a freshman this fall. "I get to play soccer and tell other kids about the Lord."
Miller, a fullback, has been playing soccer at JCS since she was in seventh grade but has been playing soccer since she was in the fifth grade. She's never been out of the country before and her Spanish is "not good.
"I know like one word," she said.
She had to get a passport and shots for the trip.
"I can still feel the shots," she said as she rubbed both shoulders. "I got them in both sides."
JCS sophomore Jamie Loud is also looking forward to the two-fold mission.
"I wanted to play soccer overseas and tell the people there about God," she said.
Loud, is a three-year forward for the Eagles and has been playing soccer since she was 5 years old.
She said she is being realistic about the first part of the adventure.
"We were told we were probably not going to win that many games," she said. "They play soccer all the time."
JCS senior Kali Embick is also excited about the chance to meet new people, share her faith and play soccer.
Although she's been to Mexico before, this will be her first mission trip, Embick said.
"I don't really know what to expect," she said. "Right now, I'm in pretty good shape."
The girls had to buy special indoor soccer shoes for the trip, said Jamie's mother, Nancy, who is the JCS Athletic Department secretary.
"It's the rainy season down there and they said we may play most of the games in gymnasiums," she said.
They told the girls to pack light because they would spend most of their time in uniform.
"They'll play as Team USA," Nancy Loud said. "The uniforms are red, white and blue."
Added Miller, "It's like we're in the Olympics."
The JCS girls will be joined by other players from other East Coast schools to make up full 12-player soccer and eight-player volleyball teams for the trip.
A one-day practice is scheduled at Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach.
The tour was arranged by GOALL Sports Missions from West Palm Beach.
"We have about 40 athletes going," said Bob White, who runs the GOALL program. "Since a quarter of the girls are from Jupiter Christian, they'll be a significant part of the trip but we have players coming from Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia, New York and Tennessee."
"This is pretty unique opportunity," White said. "We get to go right into the public schools. We work with the Costa Rican volleyball federation and Athletes in Action of Costa Rica. We go right into their regular school schedule.
The girls will be accompanied by five adults from the school, said Nancy Loud, who will be one of the adult chaperones. Also going are JCS girls soccer coach Scott Loud, Eagles' volleyball coach Beth Foland and parents Patty Embick and Donna White.
Others making the trip are soccer players Ashley Davis, Casie Moore, Michelle Prevost, Sarah Foster, Deidre Kilduff and volleyball players Lauren Kindig, Christine Kennedy and Holly Erneston.
"They'll have coaches from Palm Beach Atlantic there," said coach Loud. "I'm just going along as a chaperone.
The girls raised about $700 by selling muffins during the school year and most of that will go to buy school supplies for the orphanage, Nancy Loud said.
"We have crayons, paper, pens, pencils, glue -- you name it, we got it," she said.
White said GOALL also brings some sporting goods to give to the schools they visit.
Goall has been arranging sports missions to Costa Rica since 1990. The girls have to pay nearly $1,400 each to make the trip.
"It's a great mission opportunity for the girls," White said. "We work with missionaries while we'll do some evangelistic work when we play the matches but one of the things that always happens is the girls really learn to appreciate the county they were born in.
"They see the difference, it's obvious, between the comforts they have and the things they take for granted when they get into a third-world country like Costa Rica," he said. "Although it's not like Haiti, it's a third world country."
In addition to soccer and schools, the girls will get some sight-seeing opportunities. They'll go to the beach one day, visit a volcano and shop in a market.
"We'll see a part of Costa Rica that most tourists don't see," White said.
By Mike English
Courier sports editor
July 11, 2004
Eight JCS soccer players and three volleyball players are leaving Saturday for a combined week-long mission trip and sports tour of Costa Rica before returning on July 24.
The girls will play a daily soccer game at different Costa Rican schools and visit an orphanage where they'll give out school supplies. They'll also conduct missionary sessions at the schools they visit.
"I'm really excited about going over there and just seeing a new place and gaining a new soccer experience," said Nikki Miller, who will be a freshman this fall. "I get to play soccer and tell other kids about the Lord."
Miller, a fullback, has been playing soccer at JCS since she was in seventh grade but has been playing soccer since she was in the fifth grade. She's never been out of the country before and her Spanish is "not good.
"I know like one word," she said.
She had to get a passport and shots for the trip.
"I can still feel the shots," she said as she rubbed both shoulders. "I got them in both sides."
JCS sophomore Jamie Loud is also looking forward to the two-fold mission.
"I wanted to play soccer overseas and tell the people there about God," she said.
Loud, is a three-year forward for the Eagles and has been playing soccer since she was 5 years old.
She said she is being realistic about the first part of the adventure.
"We were told we were probably not going to win that many games," she said. "They play soccer all the time."
JCS senior Kali Embick is also excited about the chance to meet new people, share her faith and play soccer.
Although she's been to Mexico before, this will be her first mission trip, Embick said.
"I don't really know what to expect," she said. "Right now, I'm in pretty good shape."
The girls had to buy special indoor soccer shoes for the trip, said Jamie's mother, Nancy, who is the JCS Athletic Department secretary.
"It's the rainy season down there and they said we may play most of the games in gymnasiums," she said.
They told the girls to pack light because they would spend most of their time in uniform.
"They'll play as Team USA," Nancy Loud said. "The uniforms are red, white and blue."
Added Miller, "It's like we're in the Olympics."
The JCS girls will be joined by other players from other East Coast schools to make up full 12-player soccer and eight-player volleyball teams for the trip.
A one-day practice is scheduled at Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach.
The tour was arranged by GOALL Sports Missions from West Palm Beach.
"We have about 40 athletes going," said Bob White, who runs the GOALL program. "Since a quarter of the girls are from Jupiter Christian, they'll be a significant part of the trip but we have players coming from Ohio, North Carolina, Georgia, New York and Tennessee."
"This is pretty unique opportunity," White said. "We get to go right into the public schools. We work with the Costa Rican volleyball federation and Athletes in Action of Costa Rica. We go right into their regular school schedule.
The girls will be accompanied by five adults from the school, said Nancy Loud, who will be one of the adult chaperones. Also going are JCS girls soccer coach Scott Loud, Eagles' volleyball coach Beth Foland and parents Patty Embick and Donna White.
Others making the trip are soccer players Ashley Davis, Casie Moore, Michelle Prevost, Sarah Foster, Deidre Kilduff and volleyball players Lauren Kindig, Christine Kennedy and Holly Erneston.
"They'll have coaches from Palm Beach Atlantic there," said coach Loud. "I'm just going along as a chaperone.
The girls raised about $700 by selling muffins during the school year and most of that will go to buy school supplies for the orphanage, Nancy Loud said.
"We have crayons, paper, pens, pencils, glue -- you name it, we got it," she said.
White said GOALL also brings some sporting goods to give to the schools they visit.
Goall has been arranging sports missions to Costa Rica since 1990. The girls have to pay nearly $1,400 each to make the trip.
"It's a great mission opportunity for the girls," White said. "We work with missionaries while we'll do some evangelistic work when we play the matches but one of the things that always happens is the girls really learn to appreciate the county they were born in.
"They see the difference, it's obvious, between the comforts they have and the things they take for granted when they get into a third-world country like Costa Rica," he said. "Although it's not like Haiti, it's a third world country."
In addition to soccer and schools, the girls will get some sight-seeing opportunities. They'll go to the beach one day, visit a volcano and shop in a market.
"We'll see a part of Costa Rica that most tourists don't see," White said.
By Mike English
Courier sports editor
July 11, 2004
