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A week in the eyes of Eliana Galkin	Saturday: Wow! The weather today was so nice—much warmer than when we were in Florida! The guys all got together in the parking lot where my trailer is parked to wash the vehicles. While they were doing that, Miss Reba and Miss Caroline picked up me, Anna Grace, Lilly, and Ella to take us shoe shopping. We started off with lunch at Panera—I loved getting my peanut butter and jelly sandwich all over Miss Reba. Then we hit about six stores looking for shoes I could wear with my flower girl dress for Uncle Josh’s wedding. It took so much out of us that we just HAD to stop at Miss Reba’s favorite place—Starbucks. Anna and Lilly ordered smoothies, and the nice man working there said there was some left over, so he gave me my own cup. It was a fun day! Sunday: We went to church with Miss Caroline at Hampton Park. I really only got to see the nursery. Mom and Dad said they really enjoyed the preaching and seeing all their friends there! We went back on Sunday night too. That night, we had all the team members, current and future, fiancés, and even Grandma!, come to a pizza party. We prayed through the texts of the songs and heard some of the instrumentals that we’ve never heard before. I got to play with Ella and David in the room next door—we had a screaming competition cause the room echoed so nicely, until Daddy came and said we had to be quieter. Monday: Today Mom and Dad have started something called “recording. . ."{jcomments off}
Week off in Greenville	After driving from Pensacola to Greenville, South Carolina, the team was more than ready for a week of relaxation. The Galkin and Coffey families parked their trailers at Faith Baptist Church where there is plenty of room for the kids to play. The singles all dispersed to different locations, to stay with friends and family in the Greenville area. Elise and Josh especially enjoyed the extra time in Greenville, as they got to see their fiancés. The team also did some shopping, but Reba came away with the big purchase of the week. She bought the team a double bass! It arrived just in time to begin rehearsals for the new recording. The team is thankful for the week off, and will be rested and ready to go after our new recording. -Elise Lafferty
New Comment Section	Have you noticed our new comment section for articles and videos? This is a new feature we created so you can add a comment to the content you read and watch. You will notice the "Add new comment" section on the bottom left of articles and videos. To add a new comment, simply click on the link. This leads you to a window with the article you have chosen to comment about, plus a few boxes of information for you to fill out. Each box is required to be filled out for you to post a comment. After you have filled out your name, e-mail, and comment, please type what you see in the square box (CAPTCHA protection) into the last section then click "send." Try it out on our latest Galkin Digital Short
Island Adventure	It was Friday, and we were going on a boat ride. The morning started off amazing. Why? Because we all got to sleep in. ☺ So with bright faces, we met at church to start our adventure. Our first stop was Subway. You see, we needed sustenance for our adventure. I was so excited! We were going to an island to have a picnic. We arrived at the beach, and the first group piled into the boat, while the rest of us stayed behind. About 20 minutes later, Pastor Gotcher and Jared were back to pick us up. It was cloudy and windy, but the ride to the island was smooth and quite enjoyable. Upon arrival, we noticed something very different about the rest of the team that had been on the first boat ride. They were soaking wet! Apparently, they had taken a different course to the island that had involved a few more waves. But luckily, we had brought extra towels and jackets. We had a great time on the island making a fire, playing bocci ball, getting our feet wet, and enjoying our picnic lunch. We also did some exploring. It was great to get some Florida sand under our toes. As the afternoon wore on, the wind started picking up, and it starting sprinkling. We decided that we should probably start heading back to shore. As we all piled into the boat, the rain began to come. When we stepped foot on the pier, we were all a little wet. Happily, there was time to get ready before the service. Our day was packed full of adventure and fun, and it will never be forgotten under the Florida sun. -Elise Lafferty
Josh and Caroline Engagement	It all started on the road, as most good love stories do. I was traveling for the '08-'09 school year with Bro. Will and his team. I took a year off of school at Bob Jones University, packed up my cello and (rather large) suitcases, and headed on the road with the Galkins, Coffeys, and two other "singles", Reba Snyder and Josh Roland. I learned so much on the road--but second semester, something scary started to happen: I found myself falling for one of the guys that I travelled with. As you can quickly deduce, that person was Josh Roland. I don't know if it was the smile, the guitar playing, or his great impression of Naaman in the children's program--but I was in love! I was able to keep my feelings to myself...well, mostly. The Lord taught me SO much during that time--that He alone can be my hope and satisfaction. By the time May rolled around, I was thankful that God had kindly kept me from spilling my feelings to Josh, and I was definitely ready for a break before camp, if only to get control of my feelings! It took a few days at camp before Josh informed me of a most pleasant surprise! He had also been falling in love with someone on the team over the whole semester--and that person was me!!
Elise's Engagement	With team travels being finished for the holidays, I was looking forward to spending time with my family and my boyfriend. I went home for a week, and then was flying out to Chicago for Thanksgiving (Kristopher was going to be there visiting with relatives.). I finally told Kristopher of my plans a week before I was supposed to meet him in Chicago. I knew something was up. There were little things that were not quite making sense. Like my Mom offering to go get a manicure/pedicure with me the day I was leaving for Chicago, or how Kristopher's phone died Tuesday morning and could not talk to me (and he has 2 phones!!!). I was pretty sure that Kristopher knew about my journey to the Windy City long before I told him. I was excited/anxious of what would take place. Tuesday morning, the day of my flight, I received a bouquet of 11 red roses at my door. Eleven..... strange. Something was really up. About 4:30 p.m., Kristopher showed up on my doorstep with a single red rose. I was not going to Chicago after all. I was thrilled to see him. It had been 3 months! He told me to get dressed up because we were going out. After getting ready, we got into the car and drove to the Hyatt in downtown Denver. We ate at a restaurant on the 27th floor. Kristopher had dropped off pictures and a candle earlier in the day, and the view was gorgeous! We enjoyed some amazing food that night! But there was another stop to be made. We started driving to Flagstaff Mountain in Boulder. On the way, Kristopher popped in a CD of some of our favorite songs. By the time we reached our viewpoint on the mountain, our favorite song began to play. It was the John Rutter arrangement of For the Beauty of the Earth. After the song was finished, Kristopher began his "engagement speech". Soon afterwards he got on one knee and pulled out a beautiful engagement ring. The rest is history. Kristopher and I are planning to be married in my hometown of Fort Collins, CO on June 4th. -Elise Lafferty
Harvest Party 2009	Fall is a time of carving pumpkins, racing through corn mazes, and raking colorful leaves. For the Galkin Team, Fall is a time for a mad candy hunt, Buffalo Wild Wings, and a little game we call “Pop it, Do it, Win it.” On Tuesday night we gathered together in the trailer for our annual harvest party. Joining our team for the week was Matt Reid, who fit right in, especially during our crazy game. The rules of “Pop it, Do it, Win it” are simple: choose a balloon with a piece of paper inside, pop the balloon, do what is written on the paper, win a prize! We all laughed till we cried at some of the embarrassing requests on the papers, but (sorry to say), what happens during Harvest Party in the trailer, stays in the trailer. -Laura Kennedy
Ladies Fellowship	We had the opportunity to join in on the weekly events with Red Rocks Baptist Church this past week. The team performed some folk and sacred music at the ladies fellowship, and Will was able to wrap it up with a gospel message. In this new episode of Galkin Digital Shorts, Christy Galkin gives a wrap up of the ladies fellowship; how "it gave the ladies a chance to bring their friends and have another way to share the gospel with their friends, and [how] it also was an encouragment to the ladies that were saved so they could fellowship together." Click on the picture to view the video of the ladies fellowship.
Fellowship with the Clarks	This week the team had a sweet reunion with Aaron Coffey! He and his wife, Stephanie were out this semester taking care of their new baby, Asher. Aaron had no problem adjusting to the new team. He got right back into the swing of things by squashing the team men in a tough game of Ticket to Ride at our pizza fellowship with Pastor Clark’s family. The Galkin kids were excited that the Clark’s Wii was the main feature of the night. The kids and the team got to play Mario Cart, bowling, and other fun games on the Wii. It was a great night of competition! -Laura Kennedy
Galkin Tournaments	Back when Will Galkin traveled with the Pettit Team, one game brought Stephen Pettit and Will to the tight bond they are at today. Fifa Soccer. Since we had a half-week in Grand Junction, we decided to have some team bonding time equipped with two tournaments: Ticket to Ride, and Fifa Soccer. The girls played Ticket to Ride (a board game in which the object of the game is to conquer as much land as you can with specific train routes), and Laura came out victorious, scoring nearly three points under the highest score on the US map, which is held by Josh Roland. The boys played Fifa Soccer on the PC in the Galkin trailer. The victor of this game was disputed by a few goals between Will and Stephen, but in the end, the one with the most hours of practice (700 hours?) won the tournament. Stephen Pettit. -Laura Kennedy
Colorado National Monument	This past weekend, we drove from Elko, NV to Grand Junction, CO. Because we left Elko on Friday, we were able to take a whole day of rest on Saturday. We didn’t schedule any specific activities, but most of the team ended up at the Colorado National Monument. The monument is a red rocks canyon with many buttes and drop-offs. We enjoyed hiking along the ridge and climbing the canyon walls. The view was breathtaking. We could see the whole valley of Grand Junction. We could also see the Colorado River flowing amidst the fall-changing yellow trees. Check out our pictures!
Trailer Wash	After 8 weeks on the road traveling over 2500 miles, it was time to scrub down the Galkin Trailer. Watch this video to get a glimpse into team life and to see just how big this trailer really is. Also view our first Galkin Digital Short video, Arctic Circle Concert, on the same page! (click image to link to video page)
Birthday Celebrations	This last week we were able to celebrate the birthdays of Reba, Laura, and Stephen. Birthday parties are always a special time on the Galkin Team. They always involve three things: crazy games, tons of presents, and Buffalo Wild Wings. However, there was a small glitch in the plan this time around. There was not a Buffalo Wild Wings anywhere near Idaho Falls! But the party must go on. So we decided to try the wings from Wing Street. We had a great time voicing our opinions over whose wings were better. After much deliberation, it was decided that Buffalo Wild Wings would remain king. We also had a great time dressing up in costumes while playing charades. Then the competition really started to heat up as the girls and guys vied for domination in the game four on a couch. The party came to a culmination as we thanked God for the lives of Reba, Laura, and Stephen. We look forward to the many birthday celebrations to come! -Elise Lafferty
An Abundant Entrance	This summer has been one filled with sorrow, joy and whole mixture of emotions. The Lord in his goodness allowed Dr. Roland, (Christy and Josh’s father) to be diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer in January of this year. It was a battle and a rough one at that, but the Lord gave much grace to Dr. Roland to remain faithful to the end. On June 30, he went home to be with his Heavenly Father. He has entered into a place of eternal joy and rest. He has no more need for faith, all is now sight! As the Bible promises, “to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord,” and “in Thy presence is fullness of joy and at Thy right hand are pleasures forever more.” Our hope and prayer is that he has received an abundant entrance into the Heavenly Kingdom! The funeral was held on Wednesday August 5, and nearly 800 people came to the service. The Gospel was clearly presented at the funeral and many who were unsaved heard the good news of Jesus Christ. There is a video memorial of Dr. Roland posted on Facebook that may be of interest to you.
The New Trailer - by Caroline	Last week, we had the opportunity to share with the Galkins in an exciting time--the arrival of their new trailer! I hope this article will answer many questions that people have about the trailer...I couldn't even fully comprehend it until I saw it, but it is amazing! The trailer and semi together are about the same length and height as a regular tractor-trailer. The trailer is a beautiful white with navy and sky blue detailing, which matches the semi perfectly! (an added bonus for those of us on the team who prefer color-coordination. :) When you walk through the front door, it is arranged much like the previous trailer. The kitchen is straight in front of you and goes to the left. The master bedroom and bathroom is up two stairs to the right. With seven slide-outs, this trailer is much more spacious than the previous one (which is a blessing for a family of seven).
FAQ's - by Caroline	Traveling on the road, I meet lots of people, and many of them wonder the same things I used to about these "evangelistic teams". Now, I can't speak for all evangelistic teams, but as far as the Galkin team goes, here are a couple answers to "FAQ's" that I get on a regular basis...
Family, Fun, Friends, and Food - by Reba	Family, fun, friends, and food. These four things have characterized our last couple weeks in Denver. Family – Denver is where Josh and Christy grew up. It’s been fun to be able to spend extra time with Dr. and Mrs. Roland and a few of the brothers, Dan and Ben Roland. Dan, his wife Audrey, and their son Ezra were able to come out to a couple of services. We enjoyed a chilly night sitting outside Starbucks while we caught up and laughed at old college stories. Just this last weekend, Josh’s younger brother Ben flew in from college and our whole team and the Roland family feasted on pizza from a local place called BeauJo’s Pizza. We took up a large portion of the restaurant seating and were quite a spectacle while we cheered on our teams playing in a March Madness basketball game.
A First Time for Everything - by Caroline	This semester has been a series of first time experiences for me, including (but not limited to) four-wheeling, seeing the Grand Canyon, paint-balling in Utah, and most recently, snowboarding. It just seems like the right thing to do - go snowboarding while you're in Colorado. So, this past Saturday, Josh, Aaron, and I headed to Eldora--armed with passes (which were generously loaned to us by Tri-City Baptist Church), our snow clothes, and high hopes. Over the past two weeks, I received many comments from people on how I would respond to my first time on a snowboard. Most were pessimistic (or honest) and told me I'd fall all day, hate it, and would be sore for a week. Others were more kind, yet maybe not quite as truthful, in telling me I might actually enjoy it. I just had to find out for myself.
Happy Birthday, Josh!	This past Tuesday, we enjoyed a fun night of wings, games, presents, and cake to celebrate Josh’s 25th birthday! The actual day was this past Friday, but we never mind making the celebration last as long as possible. We were especially thankful that Josh’s parents, Dr. and Mrs. Roland, his brother Jonathan, and his brother Daniel, his wife Audrey, and their baby Ezra, could join us for the special occasion. We enjoyed a Galkin-original game called “Pop It, Do It, Win It”. To play the game, one must type out different embarrassing or hard tasks to accomplish, place each one in a balloon, blow the balloons up, and tape them around the room. The first person picks a balloon, pops it by sitting on it, and then has to do whatever the paper requires. When they complete the task, they are able to pick one of the prizes, and choose a person to go next. The Coffeys were in charge of the papers, which included singing “Old McDonald” in an opera style, feeding cake to someone while both people are blindfolded, and in my opinion, the most disgusting one (which I, of course, got stuck with)—serving the birthday boy a drink of his choice, kneeling down, and kissing his big toe. Despite that moment of terror, a fun time was had by all. Along with the normal wings, dips, and veggies, we enjoyed a wonderful German chocolate cake made by Mrs. Roland. In the middle of the evening, we took some time to tell Josh how grateful we are for him, and for how God’s been growing him and using him in our lives. Happy Birthday, Josh—we are thankful for you!
One Fateful Night - By Reba	As a fourth year traveler on evangelistic teams, I’ve often wondered what it would be like to live in a trailer. Several weeks ago, in Phoenix, Caroline and I were able to stay in our very own trailer. We were both very excited to finally get a taste of trailer living! In a back lot of Westside Baptist Church, our team parked three trailers. Our trailer was a very spacious toy-hauler. In the back was a set of bunk beds (where Caroline slept), a kitchen, bathroom, and then the bedroom in the front of the trailer (where I slept). The biggest adjustment we had to make was in the realm of shower taking. To preserve the hot water, we had to grow accustomed to taking 5 min. or less showers. The good thing about quick showers was we got to get a little extra sleep! We learned to make the most of small spaces and lifted the back bunk beds so we could stick our 75lb. suitcases underneath the bottom bunk. We also ran in an extra extension cord so we wouldn’t blow any fuses while running our hair dryers in the morning. Caroline and I quickly made this space our home and enjoyed trailer living…until one fateful night.
Fun in the Wild, WILD West! - by Caroline	Let me emphasize the word “wild”, for that is what I found it to be this past week as we experienced some of the fun things to do in St. George, UT. I have moved around quite a bit in my life, but I’ve never lived out West. From the first morning we were there, I got a taste of what it truly means to have fun. Saturday morning, Pastor Wright and Pastor Hargis took some adults, teens, and our team to a canyon to play paintball. Granted, Reba and I were somewhat timid about this whole experience—I had only been once, and there had been referees and boundaries. Here, there was just you, your gun, and the other team. However, it was a blast! We played several different rounds of paintball—some single elimination rounds, capture-the-flag, and a pastors vs. others game. I didn’t get too many of the dreaded bruises, thanks to somewhat of a heavy trigger finger that would leave me without any paintballs in the middle of the game. As I ran from boulder to boulder, every scene from every spy or war book I’d read seemed to influence me, as I envisioned myself dodging paintballs like some sort of Rambo-character. I’m sure the others felt the same during my attacks—until I ran out of ammo, of course.
San Diego - by Reba	Once or twice every semester, the Galkin team takes a week off to rest, have fun, and refresh ourselves spiritually. This last week was our first week off after a long stretch of meetings. The Galkin family left Phoenix and drove to St. George, Utah where we would have our next week of meetings. While Christy and the kids enjoyed some fun in this mountain city, Will preached a few days in Sacramento, CA. The Coffey family left their truck and trailer behind and flew to Seattle, WA to visit Aaron’s sister and her husband. This left Josh, Caroline, and I to create some fun for ourselves.
Happy Birthday!	This week was Christy's birthday. We had a splendid birthday party complete with the tradition of buffalo wings. We tried some of the hottest wings - Reba unknowingly and others intentionally. To our shock, they were quite hot and we found the only thing that helped speed up the cooling process was to rub carrots on our lips. We spent some time playing a game of 3-on-a-couch, in which the guys were quite outnumbered. However, they still came through and won the first round of the game. We won't mention the other rounds. Christy received some gifts from all the team members--predominately candy and new clothes. We spent some time telling Christy what we appreciated about her and we were all blessed because of it. It was neat to see how God has used her in each of the team members lives. God has truly given us a gift in Christy. The night was a wonderful night of fun and reflection. Special thanks to Caroline and Reba for handling all the details of the evening.
Game Time?! - by Reba Snyder	This last week at Wichita Falls, TX, we enjoyed some extra special fellowship with close friends Lucus and Liesl Counterman. Liesl traveled with Christy on the Steve Pettit team when they were still single. Liesl played the accordion and piano on the team. Stephanie, Liesl, and I would have loved to play an accordion trio but there was a shortage of accordions in Texas at the time. When we meet up with past Pettit team members on the road there’s always a sweet fellowship involved as a result of our common experiences. We enjoyed a night of food and fun with the team and Counterman family. One of our favorite things to do is play special games as a team. Our recent purchase has been the game Ticket to Ride. The game involves building train connections between certain points of destination, and whoever builds the most trains and completes the most destinations wins! We played Ticket to Ride with the Counterman’s and Josh took the win by...
Recent Activities	Everyone enjoyed our week in Huntsville, AL--but I think the Galkin kids enjoyed one particular night the most. Since the church was kind enough to let us stay in their missionary apartments, Josh, Reba, and I decided it would be fun to have a sleep over with the kids! So, with the anticipation building up through the week, we brought the kids over after the service on Thursday night for the best sleep over of their lives. Not only did we stock up on tons of junk food, but we also watched a fun movie (projected onto the wall, thanks to Josh!) and some competition on the Wii. When the boys and girls split ways for the night, we went to bed tired, and looking forward to the breakfast the guys would cook in the morning. We discovered many things through this experience--first, that Anna Grace is quite good at Wii bowling, while William takes after his dad in dominating the WiiPlay Tanks game. Second, Lilly and David are very affected by sugar late at night, and that if left to his own devices, David can and will eat a whole bag of M&Ms. Third, Josh can make some great french toast! Posted by Caroline
Christmas Break	The Coffey’s are back from the Islands of Hawaii, where they had meetings in 5 different churches and 2 Christian schools. Several received Christ as their Savior including children, teens, and adults. The Galkins have been in Colorado for the last several weeks. The birth of their baby girl went well and the adjustments are taking place. Hopefully she will start sleeping through the night. Josh just got back from his missions trip with the Steve Pettit Evangelistic Team to the southern Pacific – Guam, Australia, and the Philippines. He helped minister in 4 local churches and 2 Christian schools and saw the Lord do some wonderful things. Many people came to know Christ on the missions trip. Caroline has been enjoying spending some time with her family in Atlanta and visiting friends and schoolmates in Greenville, SC. She is participating in her church’s cantata, and has been able to use her cello in some educational venues in Atlanta. Reba has been at home spending time with her family as well. This last week she was able to go on a missions trip to Peru with the Frazors and the Chapmans. The majority of the trip was spent in Lima, Peru where she was able to minister alongside fellow believers for the cause of the Gospel. Right now, all the team is with their families getting ready for a wonderful Christmas. We start back up in the beginning of January. Stay in touch for more updates from the team members various travels.
Eliana Truth has arrived!	Praise the Lord for the safe delivery of little Eliana. Her name means "The Lord has answered." We are thankful that we are the children of a good God who hears our prayers. Please click here to see more pictures of the baby and the rest of the children's reactions. For those of you that are needing all the details. . . she weighed in at 8lbs. 9oz and measured in a 20.3". She came at 1:40 a.m., and the labor was a little difficult. We are currently staying with Grandma and Grandpa Roland and looking forward to Grandma and Grandpa Galkin joining us for Thanksgiving. Thanks for the prayers and may we all live for the Gospel.
Wedding Time	Last week we split off from the team to go back to our home in Rocky Mount, North Carolina for Aaron’s sister’s wedding. We have been praying for Lori to find a man for a while, and the Lord brought about the perfect match for her! Since her husband Jeremy is a helicopter pilot for the US Army and had been deployed in Iraq for much of their relationship, we had not been able to spend time with him at all.
Fall Harvest Party	Every year, the tradition on the Galkin team is to have a fall party. This party is looked forward to with great anticipation. For months, team members plan ideas for their costumes and take great precautions to keep that idea a secret.
Chicken Pox!?!	So, what is it like getting chicken pox on the road? You guessed it. Our five year old William came down with them on Monday morning. The first question Anna Grace asked him when she got out of bed was "What is it like?"
Pettit Reunion	It seems only in Michigan can seventeen adults and six children meet in a parking lot and have the biggest reunion of the semester. But, it happened last Friday—our team drove about an hour to meet our dear friends on the Pettit team for lunch. The anticipation was high as we drove, with all of us in one way or another connected to people on that team. For the Coffeys, Galkins, and Reba, seeing the team means connecting with people they count as family, having traveled with them for at least three years. For Josh and me, it meant visiting with people we’ve been friends with throughout college and camp ministry.
Fall Fun	Fall is definitely my favorite time of year. Leaves are changing, the air is crisp, and there are lots of pumpkin and apple desserts—my favorite! On Monday, the whole team got to partake in the wonderful season as we packed up the trucks and headed to an apple orchard...
The Kids are Growing!	The Kid's sure are growing. Check out some of the new pictures , you'll be amazed.
Family Fall Fun	While ministering at East Delavan Bapitst Church our families visited a farm that was selling pumpkins and had a fort made of hay bales. Continue on to see a couple of cute picture of the Galkin children loving on "Baby Ella".
Enjoying the Fall Colors	The Galkin trailer has been parked at Five Mile Baptist Church for the past 2 weeks as Will has been recovering from his appendectomy. Notice the beautiful autumn colors. Click on the read more link for a few more photos.
Baby Ella is Here!!!	Praise the Lord! We would like to announce the arrival of Isabella Mercy Coffey.

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