Navajo Nation in New Mexico

New Mexico is so beautiful and varied in scenery. We thoroughly enjoyed our time in this desert state and the Navajo Nation.

We stopped first in Gallup and had the opportunity to share in Rehoboth Christian School's senior Bible class about our experiences among the persecuted church. That evening we had the privilege of being half-time entertainment for Rehoboth's home basketball tournament final.

Dustin wowed the crowd on his 10 ft. unicycle then, before dismounting, shared his story and hope of the Gospel to a captivated crowd.

Something about speaking from 10 feet in the air with only one wheel beneath, gives extra credence to one's words. Many people afterward commented on how powerful the message was. In an area where suicide is 3x the national average, it was very special to have this ministry opportunity.

Next we went to Newcomb High School for a morning UniShow Universe assembly. The administrator loved it so much they wanted us to stay and present to the Middle and Elementary schools too. Due to their testing schedule, we weren't able to fit them in this time but will do our best to return in the future.

Inspire School Programs is a ministry that teaches Biblical principles in public schools through mentoring and classes. They hosted a few events for us in schools where they are working in the Four Corners area.

Koogler Middle School in Aztec was one of the Inspire sponsored connections. We did 2 assemblies in a row since the bleachers were too small to fit all 550 students at once. The students were very encouraging and thankful afterward and we even had a few students offer to join us on tour.

Inspire has only been working in Bloomfield Middle School for a few weeks so it was great to partner with them to bring more awareness to their presence on campus during the assembly we did there.

We also returned to Rocinante High School where we presented 2 years ago. It was great to be able to share in this alternative school and challenging students to persevere through life's challenges. Students again said how inspired they were following our presentation. Faculty who saw us 2 years ago expressed amazement at how much the production value of the UniShow has increased with our expanded team.

After each of these Inspire sponsored assemblies, leaders and mentors told us, some with tears in their eyes, how much students needed to hear the important message we shared in this creative way. They said our message tied perfectly into what they are teaching the students.

Before we headed east after a wonderful week based in Farmington, we played tourist and ate Fry Bread from a Navajo Flee Market in Shiprock. Then we stood at the Four Corners Monument where Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Arizona meet.

Launching in California

After a busy 3 weeks in Kenya, we flew the long 22 hours back to San Jose California. While still recovering from jet lag, we had the privilege of performing our first North American UniShow Universe presentation to 700 junior highers at Valley Christian in their beautiful gymnasium.

  

We heard great feedback from students afterward. A mom even told us gratefully the next day that her son came home raving about the UniShow being the best assembly they'd ever had. She said it must have been good since she usually can hardly get a word out of him about anything that happens at school.

Next we moved over to Valley Christian Elementary for our 3rd year in a row presenting on the last Friday before President's Day. Due to the torrential downpour that day, we squeezed the UniShow into their cozy chapel along with 450 students. They didn't seem to mind and were a very enthusiastic audience. The principal told us later that students enjoyed it as much or more than the previous 2 years. He noted that a group of boys really connected with David's dance which helped keep them engaged throughout the whole show and the music students were really inspired by Misun's violin playing.

Just outside of Death Valley we presented at Saint Ann School for a great group of K-8th graders in Ridgecrest California. An impressed student asked Dustin afterward, "Is there anything you can't do?!" Another student thanked Dustin for presenting the Gospel and said she felt so peaceful when he shared. 

We were thankful for the amazing scenery we were able to experience along our travels in Death Valley, Grand Canyon and beyond.

Wild burros in Death Valley.