Saturday,
July 5, 2003
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And you thought you had a long drive…
By SARAH ROHRER
Goshen College Saturday, July 5, 2003
Three flat tires, a dying alternator, a missed rendezvous and a wrong turn at an Atlanta exit extended a 14-hour trip into a 24-hour adventure, but the five youth and three adult sponsors from Benton Mennonite Church near Goshen, Ind., are grateful and delighted to have finally arrived at Atlanta ’03. With hopes of arriving in Atlanta in time for the opening worship session, the members from Benton left Thursday at 1 a.m. in two vehicles. Unfortunately for the travelers, a flat tire on the car soon caused both car and minivan passengers a short delay while the tire was fixed. When the same tire went flat a second time, the driver of the car stopped to fix it again, and both drivers – youth sponsor Bruce Nofziger and his wife, Patty – made plans to meet at the first rest area after Nashville. Bruce stopped, but Patty did not recognize Bruce’s minivan and continued driving past the pre-arranged rendezvous point. Soon after the two vehicles became separated, the minivan’s alternator began to fail. Thinking the battery had gone bad, the drivers jump-started the minivan three times before they realized the nature of the problem. Meanwhile, Bruce had turned off the air conditioning for four hours during the drive, increasing the travelers’ discomfort on a hot summer day. Then the minivan had a flat tire – the third for the trip. As the group waited for two hours to replace it, the youth remained positive about their difficult situation. Coming into Atlanta around midnight, with the exhausted travelers anticipating their arrival, Bruce took a wrong exit and headed into an unfamiliar part of downtown. They made a quick correction and finally found their hotel rooms. “It was amazing how great the kids were,” Bruce said. “They were very supportive. They helped make decisions and had a great attitude even with all the messes we kept getting into.” Even though the group missed the opening worship service, they are still excited to participate in the rest of the convention. And they hope to have a much smoother trip home.  |
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