RE Log - Fall 2020

FALL 2020 Ransom Everglades LOG 35 Jason Burris P’26 wrote: “We are doing good considering all that is happening. REmote RE was very smooth for our daughter, Zoe Burris ’26 , and we were grateful that we had a device and home for her to thrive in. However the social aspect was deeply missed and desired by Zoe. As a sixth grader, that’s such an important part of her life and development. Zoe wants to go back to school ASAP! She wants to do something with RE people now and not wait till the fall. We are very grateful to be part of the RE family which also has opened up various opportunities to serve the community. This is not new to us as my wife, Jenise, and I are currently stateside missionaries but we enjoyed getting out and helping and being the hands and feet of God’s grace to others. The last four weeks have been tough emotionally as a black family who spends times in three different cultural contexts. It’s been challenging to navigate the relationships we have that are new and don’t have much depth because there is an awkwardness and tension to the racial, political and pandemic realities. So while Zoe and her nine-year-old brother have grown up in Miami, as parents we have grown up with these realities and experiences. Some of the worst things are having to remind our kids that it’s still an uphill battle while teaching them what’s right. Unfortunately many times what we teach is only taught at home because the world we live in teaches differently. Lastly, I’m interested in what RE’s response is and how to move forward. I’m very new to this community and this is the one area that I’m hesitant about in the RE family. Though we have loved our experience at RE we hope there continues to be openness and a continued posture to learn, include, and celebrate racial diversity and oneness.” Kathryn Serra ’23 wrote: “COVID-19 and the resulting quarantine have resulted in a lot more time at home where our family has had many more meals together and opportunities to do things that we don’t usually have time to do. Over the holiday weekend we have sat down each afternoon to read the Bible and recall what events took place on each day of Holy Week. This experience has made us all reflect on our lives, feel more grateful for what we have, and keep our hope and faith that things will improve. On Friday we gathered up a bunch of clothes and took them to the Miami Rescue Mission so that the people living there would know they are in people’s thoughts this holiday weekend.” The Pandemic by Veronica Luzine ’26 This horrible pandemic Was once an epidemic. It’s called COVID-19 And we all wish we could go back to 2019! This big, bright, beautiful world doesn’t need another virus The nation has become a patient but there is a plus We’re all united and helping each other. Isolation, Privation, Indignation Before we all know it we’ve become a coronavirus nation. This horrible pandemic Was once an epidemic. It’s called COVID-19 And we all wish we could go back to 2019!