{"id":4479,"date":"2025-08-21T11:44:59","date_gmt":"2025-08-21T16:44:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/?p=4479"},"modified":"2025-08-26T11:14:13","modified_gmt":"2025-08-26T16:14:13","slug":"nothing-like-an-alaskan-summer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/2025\/08\/21\/nothing-like-an-alaskan-summer\/","title":{"rendered":"Nothing Like An Alaskan Summer"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">by Heather Hansen, AFLC Home Missions Missionary to Alaska<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-2e1eb6a29609fbaa3cdf44ab461849d6 wp-block-paragraph\">Summer in Naknek is a summer like none other. The sun \u201csets\u201d at 11:45 p.m. with dusk and dawn blending together. The population of less than 1,000 goes to over 10,000. From the mission side we have two additional ministries going on to help minister to both the increase in population but also the surrounding villages. These ministries are the coffee hospitality ministry called The Net and Vacation Bible School.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-5.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-5-1024x768.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4480\" style=\"width:500px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-5-1024x768.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-5-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-5-768x576.png 768w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-5-100x75.png 100w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-5-846x635.png 846w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-5-1184x888.png 1184w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-5.png 1280w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d19c2fbb07edb91817a743e2bae4f431 wp-block-paragraph\">Since 2016 if there was a VBS team going out to villages I was on it. This year was the first year that I got to step into a newer role. I\u2019m the person that isn\u2019t into official titles and I don\u2019t think Awesome Superstar would fit into that category but let me explain a little bit of how I served the Lord this summer with my gifts and talents.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-2-768x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4481\" style=\"width:374px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-2-768x1024.png 768w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-2-225x300.png 225w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-2-1152x1536.png 1152w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-2-100x133.png 100w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-2-846x1128.png 846w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-2-1184x1579.png 1184w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-2.png 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-fb2c4df1f98d828d0fc3a298250b5ac1 wp-block-paragraph\">In ten weeks we had over 50 people come up to help with The Net, VBS, or projects. That\u2019s an average of five new people per week. To help make sure everyone was on the same page, I had a schedule of the week that included arrivals and departures of people. Double checking and triple checking my calendars to make certain we didn\u2019t leave anyone behind. The spreadsheet was color coordinated to make sure I had enough beds for the volunteers we had. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-1-1024x768.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4483\" style=\"width:508px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-1-1024x768.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-1-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-1-768x576.png 768w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-1-1536x1152.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-1-100x75.png 100w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-1-846x635.png 846w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-1-1184x888.png 1184w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-1.png 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-c01061fff739d9f8f743cd4874da1675 wp-block-paragraph\">I made community meals in the evening because after a day of ministering you don\u2019t really feel like cooking. The aroma of a freshly cooked meal greeted them at the door no matter what kind of day they had at The Net. From a head count of seven to 27 there was always food for everyone and a place at the table. Grateful for all the produce they brought up to be able to make some delicious meals!&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-baad06ba4a975bd206a338025b541924 wp-block-paragraph\">Vacation Bible School was still a part of my summer too. I was able to coordinate with villages to allow the VBS team to come in. Having nine people come up to do VBS, some for two weeks, some for four and some the whole summer. Thankful for the Lord\u2019s wisdom in helping me plan where to send the team when. Getting to host evenings for the team in Maggie\u2019s and my apartment to watch movies, play games, or drink tea filled our living room most nights.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-4.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-4-1024x768.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4484\" style=\"width:519px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-4-1024x768.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-4-300x225.png 300w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-4-768x576.png 768w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-4-1536x1152.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-4-100x75.png 100w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-4-846x635.png 846w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-4-1184x888.png 1184w, https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-content\/uploads\/thumbnail_image-4.png 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-bece57431977aa1220cf49e4d367205d wp-block-paragraph\">I would be remiss if I didn\u2019t mention the women in my life this summer that made so much possible too! For Lacey Crowell who ordered food, added things to the registry and took a week to come help with summer prep. To my roommate Maggie who helped keep me balanced this summer. To Susanna and Katelynn who taught my Sunday School class when I was gone or needed a recovery day from traveling. For Claire who cared and walked alongside my youth. For Margaret for letting her home be available for meals even in the midst of her move. And for all the prayers of the WMF that made this marathon of a summer not only possible but worth it.\u00a0Thank you!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by Heather Hansen, AFLC Home Missions Missionary to Alaska Summer in Naknek is a summer like none other. The sun \u201csets\u201d at 11:45 p.m. with dusk and dawn blending together. The population of less than 1,000 goes to over 10,000. From the mission side we have two additional ministries going on to help minister to both the increase in population &#8230; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/2025\/08\/21\/nothing-like-an-alaskan-summer\/\" class=\"more-link\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","no-post-thumbnail"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4479","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4479"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4479\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4479"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4479"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.aflc.org\/women\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4479"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}