This morning as we started our trip we partnered with One Hope Fellowship church here in Portland to host an outdoor church service in a local park. The team all worked together to bring over all the supplies needed and unload and set up everything to help church run smoothly!
Church at the Gates
Serving In Pacific Northwest
June 24, 2023
Community: Portland
Partner: One HOPE Fellowship
Staff: Justin Jones, Ben Rhodes
Worship for all to hear! 
by Ben Rhodes | June 25, 2023 3:46 PM
Church in the park was amazing! So many people from the community stopped by while out on a walk or while playing at the park with kids. Some beautiful music was sang and a message in Mark 4 was delivered. Thank you to One Hope Fellowship for hosting a great event for the community!
Lunch for everyone! 
by Ben Rhodes | June 25, 2023 3:47 PM
After an amazing service the team cooked and served hot dogs and hamburgers to all those who attended and even some others from the community! The food was great and the team served graciously with smiles all around!
Canon Beach!
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:34 PM
After a fun time at church and after helping to clean up the park it was not time for some fun sight seeing. The team made their way over to Cannon Beach on the coast of Oregon. For most of the team this was their first time seeing the Pacific Ocean! It sure was cold but it was also extremely gorgeous and worth the chill.
Polar Plunge!
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:36 PM
While at Cannon Beach some brave souls took a polar plunge and went swimming in the cold water. They sure are wanting the full experience!
Orientation in the Parking Lot
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:37 PM
After a fun afternoon of swimming, enjoying the view and freezing a bit, we now had to get to the plan and rules for the week. It was time for orientation. We gathered the team together and explained to them who PPM was and the expectations for the week as we head into a full week of serving in Jesus’ name. Everyone agreed upon our rules and is ready for a great week of fun and work!
Pizza Pizza!
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:38 PM
After a great day of church and fun it was time for some delicious pizza for dinner. We made our way out to Seaside Oregon to go enjoy some scrumptious pizza to close out our evening. Thank you God for giving us delicious food like pizza!
God Sightings
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:38 PM
On our way back to the church late at night the team wanted to stop by the grocery store to pick up some snacks and left behind essentials. While at the store we met a gentleman whom we shared our mission with and the reasoning for our teams being here in Portland this week. After sharing with him, he then asked if he could pray over the team. What an absolute blessing it was to be able to meet and pray with a local from the area where we’ll be serving this week.
The Work Begins
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:42 PM
As we start the work for the week this team starts by going over to an elderly member of the church’ house to help her with some work. The big job we’ve been asked to help with this week is repainting her front porch, bathroom and hallway. Before we can get to any painting we need to do the prep work. Here we can see one of the students power washing the entire front porch to prepare it for tomorrows painting.
Inside Prep
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:44 PM
Along with doing prep outside we also need to prepare the inside to be painted. This was a big job because we had to scrape off the old wall paper and paint as well as taping the bathroom so we don’t make a mess with all of our paint. The team did such great work to prepare the area for tomorrows painting job.
Plumbing Job
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:45 PM
Another special project we’ve been asked to help with this week is doing some plumbing work at this church members house. We had our most skilled hands work on this project and get all the plumbing done in just a few hours. Great job guys!
Packing Door Hangers
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:47 PM
While we had a team at the house doing a bunch of paint prep we also had a few team members back at the church packing hundreds of bags to go hang on doors in the community. These bags have coloring books and crayons, Gospel tracts, and invites to the upcoming VBS hosted by the church. After we pack 1000 bags we then get to go out one on every door in the neighborhoods surrounding the church.
Sports Camp Time
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:57 PM
After the day of paint prep at the house it was now time to join the other team for our first day of sports camp with the students at the school. We took all the kids down to a local park where we divided them into groups then taught them how to play a select few sports. What a great opportunity this was to play some fun games and have a great time in the sun with these kids.
Basketball Drills
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:58 PM
One of the sports we were wanting to coach the kids in is basketball. We decided who would be the coaches and planned on coaching them in the fundamentals of basketball.
Pickle-ball. Records Being Set
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 3:59 PM
Another one of the games for the sports camp was pickle-ball. We taught the kids how to pass the ball to each other and then even held a competition to see who could hit it against their own paddle the most times. The record is 225! That’s insane!
Parking Lot Clean Up
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 4:02 PM
After a full day of paint prep and then an afternoon of sports camp with the students we said goodbye to the students as they went home for the day. But our work isn’t quite done yet. Now we’re onto doing some projects around the church. One of the big projects the church has asked us to help with us cleaning then re-striping the parking lot. Here we have some team members leaf blowing the parking lot to get it clean before a deep wash then re-stripe.
So Many Pine Needles!
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 4:03 PM
Here we can see a team of students cleaning up the tree beds from all the pine needles and pine cones. Lots of clean up to be done. Great work!
Hedge Trimming of Champions!
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 4:06 PM
Along with cleaning up the parking lot and the tree beds we’ve also been asked to trim some of the hedges on the churches property to help beautify it. These boys did great using those hedge trimmers to clean it up and make them look superb.
Day Two of Work
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 4:09 PM
Onto day two! As we start day two we’re now ready to start painting. We’ve prepped the area and it’s ready for the first coat of paint. The team did so great to not only get the first coat of paint on the porch but also the second coat as well. Such great work.
This Looks Great!!
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 4:11 PM
Wow! The team inside did such a great job at all their prep that they were able to paint the entire bathroom as well as the entire hallway. They’ve set tomorrows team up perfectly to come in and finish the job.
Prayers Over the Home Owner
by Ben Rhodes | June 28, 2023 4:15 PM
As the team was taking off for the day knowing they wouldn't be returning to see our home owner tomorrow they said their goodbyes. After talking with her for a bit the girls asked if they could pray for her. What a blessing it was for the girls to be able to pray with her and bless her with all the amazing work they did these past two days. Thank you to Mrs.Frazier for welcoming us into her home this week and allowing us to serve her in a beautiful way.
Multnomah Falls!
by Ben Rhodes | June 29, 2023 3:04 PM
The team worked so hard today. With first the painting project then the sports camp, it was time for a little bit of a break. To explore the beauty of Oregon the team went on a trip to Multnomah Falls just outside of Portland. This waterfall is over 500ft tall! Some of the team even hiked over 2 miles to the top of the waterfall to see the beauty from a different angle. How crazy is it that God created something so beautiful and amazing for us to see!
Back to School!
by Ben Rhodes | June 29, 2023 3:12 PM
As we jump into day three of our work it was time for our two teams to switch job sites. Now it was our time to be the teachers assistants at the school that the church was putting on for the local kids. As the TA’s we got the opportunity to teach, hang out with and educate these kids as they come to learn some new things during their summer. We divided every class into their respective grades with a TA or two in each classroom.
In Depth Education 
by Ben Rhodes | June 29, 2023 3:15 PM
Along with teaching the students the basic math, English, history, and writing, we also had speciality classes for science, gardening, financial education, and cooking! What an awesome opportunity this is for all these kids to learn lots of awesome skills during the summer.
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