Community in the backcountry: The EMH Hut Course

"Leadership begins with myself. If I can't lead myself, how can I lead others?"

This question formed a key focus of the recent EMH Hut Course. The course gets its nickname from the Sangree Froelicher Hut just north of Leadville. On December 13, nine students, four instructors, and one EMH alumnus trekked the 3.5 miles to the hut on backcountry skis. Designed in part to introduce the students to winter travel and teach them the basics of backcountry skiing, the four-day course also included the annual EMH Leadership Seminar. 

The students worked together in small groups and listened to classroom teaching about leadership, addressing questions like, What is a leader? What is the difference between a natural leader and a spiritual leader? In what ways are we called to lead, in our schools, in our communities, in life?

"We learned that good leadership begins with self leadership," said EMH Director Ben Little. "We also continued discussing the theme of living a good story. One evening we talked about taking risks and stepping out of our comfort zones to pursue God's call. So often fear stands in the way of what God has for us. God has called us to be part of his plan to reach people, and that means facing hard things, challenging things. It takes risk to step out and to reach people."

Students also discussed the idea of leading through excitement and enthusiasm. "People don't want to follow leaders who are pessimistic," said Mr. Little. "If we are excited and passionate about what we do, people are going to be more excited to follow."

As so often happens on course, the physical challenges reinforced the spiritual discussions. Most students had never backcountry skied before, and several students found it to be far more difficult than they had imagined. 

"I learned a lot on this course," said senior Ellen Burdick. "On the way back I got really frustrated and didn't want to ski anymore. I just sat down. But Deanna [an EMH instructor] convinced me to get back on my skis and keep going. I felt so stoked when I made it and kept going when I wanted to give up."

"This was the most challenging course for me physically," junior Hawk White reflected. "Going up the 3.5 miles to the hut was really tough. But being at the hut made it all worth it."

The students enjoyed being able to stay in the beautiful three-story cabin in the midst of the wilderness, which was a change from the two previous courses. "The mattresses were so nice," commented one student. "We had an actual outhouse!" said another. 

The hut also drew the students together into community. "We had some really good times of worship and prayer together," said Mr. Little.

One day the students did a "chalk talk" to deal with conflicts that had arisen within the group. Students were not allowed to speak, but instead wrote comments on paper that others could then read and comment on. Students identified many of the issues and struggles they faced in living and working together, and the chalk talk led to a discussion that helped to resolve those issues. "The students really grew in their ability to handle conflict," Mr. Little said. "We were able to talk about how dealing with these conflicts can transfer to working through conflicts in other areas of life."

A highlight of the course for Mr. Little came during the Leadership Seminar. Becca, Levi, and Ellen, three senior students who had been through the seminar last year, along with 2013 graduate Micah Ritschard, were given the responsibility of leading part of the seminar. "They did such a good job of capturing what they learned last year. It was cool to see how much they had grown as leaders, that they felt comfortable and confident enough to lead their peers and to teach them what they had learned." 

Listening to the students talk, it is clear that this course was a favorite so far. As junior Joel Parker put it, "Getting there was so hard. But it was so worth it once we got there. One evening we went out around 4:30 and did a 1.5 mile ski up to a ridge. We reached the ridge right at sunset, and we could see so far on both sides--it was so beautiful. We had an amazing ski down to the hut just as it was getting dark."

Joel captured the sentiment of the other students when he said, "We all just get along really well. The community we have is so cool."

You can see more photos of the course at our Facebook Page.

Ekklesia Mountain High is a boarding and day-student program for high school juniors and seniors at Darren Patterson Christian Academy, in which approximately forty days of wilderness experience and leadership training is integrated with rigorous academics in DPCA's Biblically-centered environment.  To learn more, please visit the school's website at www.dpcaweb.org, and the EMH program's website at www.emhweb.org.

Becoming a better man: EMH reflections

by EMH student Hawk White

When I first began attending DPCA as a freshman, I was scared to death to sit in a classroom full of strangers and listen to a teacher present material that I would later be tested on. But everyone at this school welcomed me with open arms, teachers and students alike. It made the transition from homeschooling to DPCA so much easer. Everything new that I experienced here excited me, but nothing excited me as much as EMH.

I love to be in the outdoors more than anything on this earth, especially when I get to be with friends.  EMH offered all of this.  What could be better than spending days at a time out of the normal regime of school, mountain and rock climbing, hiking, rappelling, exploring, and simply enjoying God’s creation?  Spending time with friends while doing all of these things truly makes for some of the best times of my life.  Those are the main reasons I participate in EMH.

Some of the best times I've had thus far this year took place on the Sand Dunes course at the beginning of the year.  It’s always tough when you have to step out of your comfort zone for days at a time with people you don't really know that well.  But somehow this trip was different than ones I've been on before.  Everybody acted like family, even though we had new people from out of state. Nobody complained, people started to stretch their limits to entirely new levels, and everyone was willing to take risks, whether it meant hiking farther or being able to walk on steep terrain and keep pushing forward.  Nobody ever got to the point of saying, “I can't go on”; there was always one more step to take. That was probably the biggest highlight this year for me.

During this course I learned that I'm not very good at dealing with people, nor am I very patient with them. This course forced me to confront these issues, and I’ve slowly seen God change my reaction to people. This is the greatest thing I’ve been able to take away from this program for myself so far.  I'm far from being the man I want to be, but this EMH program has helped me to see the man I need to be, whether it's helping and interacting with my group around meals or taking the initiative to be the bad guy for a moment so that things can get done.  Or even if it’s as simple as being a good listener and following instructions well, even when it’s hard. 

I can't wait to see how the upcoming courses play out.  I know God is working to help me become a better man through this program, and I can’t think of a better way to spend my upperclassman years of high school than to be involved in this school and EMH.

Ekklesia Mountain High is a boarding and day-student program for high school juniors and seniors at Darren Patterson Christian Academy, in which approximately forty days of wilderness experience and leadership training is integrated with rigorous academics in DPCA's Biblically-centered environment.  To learn more, please visit the school's website at www.dpcaweb.org, and the EMH program's website at www.emhweb.org.

How EMH changed my life

by EMH Senior Becca Wade

Nothing teaches bravery like hanging alone, 200 feet above the ground, by a thin yellow and green rope. No challenge teaches patience more quickly than when a sixty-five pound pack is weighing on your back, the sun is burning  your scalp, and you must hike slowly up a mountain to stay with your friends. No experience grows unconditional love like sharing a little tent with three other girls for ten days through sweaty smells, irritation, and rocky beds. And no reward compares to soaking your sore feet in a creek or spotting a shooting star as you share your dreams with a close group of classmates. During the ten-day backpacking trips with Ekklesia Mountain High, I have been challenged to leap out of my comfort zone. EMH is hugely important to my life because it has grown my character and maturity so much more than any high school experience ever could have.

For example, looking at the average high school experience, few situations will drastically push a student out of a comfort zone. High school students usually focus on friends, homework, sports, and performing well in all activities in order to be the person that colleges want to have. Most challenging situations occur within the school walls: public speaking, conflict with friends, competitive sports. The biggest goals presented in these situations are not very big. Although the focus ebbs and flows, above all, students work toward success after high school. Although this is a valid goal, its self-focused nature does not necessarily teach students strength of character.

Ekklesia Mountain High completely changes the focus and goals of high school. Although education is still rigorous and highly valued, the focus is on growing the community and growing leadership within each individual. This outdoor program uses challenging outdoor situations to grow students. Not just simulated challenges within school walls, these challenges draw a student into real life past school. If students don’t take responsibility and properly follow through with taught outdoor techniques, one of their friends could get injured. If students don’t learn how to value each other and work together, they will have no food or shelter. EMH grows high school students to be not only intelligent people with strong educational backgrounds, but participating, others-centered citizens as well.

High school has provided me with many amazing opportunities. I am grateful for all the charts I have memorized and the books I have read. I love the friends that make me laugh. Although much of high school has been fun, I will always be most grateful for my trips with Ekklesia Mountain High because they have created in me a stronger character – a character that strives for patience, bravery, thankfulness, and unconditional love for the people around me. 

Ekklesia Mountain High is a boarding and day-student program for high school juniors and seniors at Darren Patterson Christian Academy, in which approximately forty days of wilderness experience and leadership training is integrated with rigorous academics in DPCA's Biblically-centered environment.  To learn more, please visit the school's website at www.dpcaweb.org, and the EMH program's website at www.emhweb.org.