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I liked how we had to write on essay about what we think about true father’s vision for ocean providence. This helped us set the right value system of not just coming to have fun fishing and enjoying scenery but also, more importantly, to understand God’s providence behind the ocean and TF’s vision of Ocean Church. Setting internal and external goals for the program and publicly stating them helped me take ownership of my experience and especially to not just passively participate but to challenge myself externally and internally. It also helped me to check my value system to seek for God rather than just external excitement. I like the three-day trip to Chiniak because we could see TF’s vision for a training program for people from all over the world. The Divine Principle lectures were great and I liked how I was given ways to practice the principle during fishing and in everyday life. I was glad we had an award ceremony at the end to recognize leaders and especially these who made extraordinary effort and standard during the program. I feel this helps raise the standard of the group as a whole and to recognize good role models in hopes that others will emulate them. I like how the second generation team captains were given responsibility and guided by the elder first generation members. It was great that by the end of the program, three captains were raised that could each lead a crew on their own. It was good we did daily reflections. I hope that we can add more internal reflection s, either in a group sharing or on a reflection sheet, asking about how I could practice my internal goal in fishing or in daily life. This way, participants can meet God and experience spirit would more through fishing, which I think is the main goal.
Uncle Greg Odlin’s lectures were good because they encouraged us to challenge our selves not only to our external limitations but to our internal limitations as well. It is important to challenge us internally, so that throughout the day how much can we not just be happy if we catch fish or unhappy if we don’t catch fish, but rather remember that God’s love is never changing and try to think about God more and more than the day before. I believe that though our movement is moving away from restoration era activities like fundraising and street witnessing our 2nd generation still need to develop the internal value system and life of faith components of 1st generation and surpass them though external activities are not as extreme. I feel the Ocean Challenge program is providentially significant to bring all our life of faith educational components into a completion era activity. After all, we cannot fundraise and witness in Cheon Il Guk, so this program is a model training program for a Cheon Il Guk nation. If we can successfully inherit these internal components, this program can expend greatly. I think we should deep exactly the same schedule next year but focus on raising the internal standard of the program so we get more testimonies of meeting God and True Parents on the ocean and improving the culture in the boat and a the center as well. Next year, we should raise admission fee. Announce early and people can fundraise for it. I will definitely come next year. Thanks! Also, I liked having some free time to visit the downtown. I suggest we also do a service project with local indigenous peoples. It is good to have option for people that want to do hunting or other activities to stay longer after the program. Also, for testimonies, it is good to have an M.C. We should keep DP lectures. The fishing competition was good because the team captains were not just motivated to win but wanted everyone to meet God & have a good experience. It is good we had daily team captain meetings and discussed and reflected with staff and team mothers. I wish we had more consistent experience in filleting and preparing fish. The talk from the professor was good but should have been more extensive. I think if he talked extensively about fish farming and fish processing it would be good. We should have him spak about how we can realize Tur Father’s vision for fish farming and fish powder. Nathan Breland ............................................
Although the schedule was challenging, it helped us challenge ourselves and I feel that now we can be very proud of that. I felt an important component that should not be lost in the future is the quantity and quality of staff. I feel that because there were a number of leaders, they balanced each other out, and expressed God’s love to the group in different ways. Please do not try to put all of the responsibility on a small number of people in the future, because I know sometime interest can dwindle through the years. Although this Ocean Challenge is focused and centered upon fishing and Father’s fishing legacy, I think as staff we should not underestimate the power in God’s love through all experiences in nature. Therefore the river fishing experiences and the short hike near that lake in Chiniak were priceless to me. I know that others also felt God’s love in the woods, as well as the ocean and it’s a good chance to see the different dimensions of God’s character. So, I was not aware of the team mother role at all when I came and was unsure what kind of experience that would become. But I have to clearly say that, for me, being in that role was central to at least 50% of the lessons god gave me. I feel my heart stretch and develop and I felt I could support everyone through giving love. Thank you for giving me the chance to have that experience. Small point for next year: sports! We need a central staff to take initiative for that because it is a crucial part of team interaction and being able to run around and have fun. Please a lot time for this at least every other day. p.s. Cohomato Rocks! Love, Arielle Arielle Caron Webmaster's note: Cohomato was Arielle's team during the Ocean Challenge ...........................................
This program is one of the best programs for second gen out there, and without a doubt the best of its kind. I had an amazing internal and external experience both while on the ocean and learning. I did in fact accomplish my internal goal and my external goal, which was my main challenge. The experience of fishing with my family was amazing. I wish we could have had more time to do this. One thing that would make this program is the addition of sports. Other than that, this program is amazing and extremely recommendable. David Brunkhorst
Myoyeon Yu
Alaska is an amazing place. Having a workshop here that took place largely on the ocean was a dream come true. Being able to fish every day was the best. It really gives a person the chance to experience a bit of father’s heart. So, thank you for organizing everything, and I hope you do it again. Anonymous .......................................... This time in Kodiak has been very precious. I am glad I could be here for the program. I was able to learn a lot about the ocean, ocean providence, and True Father’s heart towards the ocean I am glad I learned how to, and did catch King, Coho, Halibut. The 3 weeks was a good time length, and we did and assortment of things. I liked Chiniak, although it could use a lot of renovation to be a proper facility. Marka Bay was sweet. The teams were all very unique and the captains tried their best. I suggest we keep an age limit though, or some kind of criteria. Either 16 years old, or a serious desire to attend the program. Many simple things were made difficult because of unmotivated people. Beds would have been nice, also more sleep could have been beneficial, like going to sleep earlier. Otherwise, it was pretty sweet. I felt God and spirit world deeply at some points. Anonymous ............................................
I ended up gaining so much from this program about boating and fishing and much more. To learn about the ocean, how to fish, use equipment and how to drive the boat are great and useful skills that we can use. What was most beneficial to me was being able to read True Father’s words about Ocean Providence and having the opportunity to go out on the ocean on the very same day and try to practice and reflect about those words. At first it was hard to see how Father saw the ocean as a great learning environment, but after a few days I began to see how the actions of the waves, the experience fishing (whether we caught something or not), the scenery and weather could teach us something about life and reflect a more internal side of things. Kodiak is such a beautiful place and I loved all the places we went to for fishing. I learned a lot more than just things about fishing through the places we visited and people I met. Surprisingly, I met challenges I didn’t’ expect to encounter, but because I had never really faced challenges such as the ones I had during Ocean Challenge it helped me grow and learn more. This program would be a great experience for all youths and I feel it is especially important for BC’s because it is a chance to experience True Father’s heart and the things he has experienced I have many interests and believe I’m capable of doing anything when I put my mind to it. A lot of opportunities have been presented and opened up to me here. I have interest in architecture so visiting and learning at the Alutiq museum peeked my interest in studying native and traditional homesteads. Aunt Lesa re-lit my passion for horses and I got to learn more about UPF from Uncle Clint. I’m not sure if I’ll go into the fishing business, but I want to be serious about what True Father wants to create centering on the Ocean Providence so I’m willing to drop my other interests if becoming a fish farmer or charter boat captain will help God’s providence come about more quickly. At the moment I don’t know what my calling is. In my mind I can imagine what kind of person I want to be and I believe God is putting me through many experiences and difficulties (even if I struggle and don’t appreciate it at first) so that I can overcome, improve and become closer in developing into the kind of person I want to be and ultimately the kind of person God wants me to be. I still have a long ways to go. Naria McGee ..........................................
Sorry but this isn’t the place to tell this, but since I didn’t get to tell this testimony on the day I had experienced that God was with me. I’ll just say it on paper, don’t need to read but I felt like telling my testimony right now before I may forget. Well I’ll start. On the fifth day of fishing on the ocean, I didn’t catch anything at all, just a few rocks and a pink. And I think I know why I wasn’t catching any fish. The next day at Hoondokae, one of Gather’s words was “fishing is not for yourself, it’s for everyone.” When I heard this I knew that on the fifth day I was only thinking of myself trying to catch a big salmon. So, missing the sixth day for school supplies, I haven’t done anything for them I decided to make everyone blueberry muffins. It took a while but I was truly happy being able to do something for everyone. On the last day of ocean fishing, the 7th day, I brought my muffins for my team. So as I was fishing, I thought “Come fish for everyone.” As I thought that the first fish I caught for the team was a big king salmon! I was truly happy. I thanked God so much. I understood why I caught the fish. And later my team also reminded me of Rev. Hu’s testimony about serving people. I now believe in what he said now. Everything is for everyone. If you read this thank you so much! ..........................................
At first the well organized system, and strictness of the schedule here shocked me. I am not used to that after being on the River Trip for so many years. I thought that it was good but at the same time, it bothered me. Out on the river, it would be a big group of people just being together, and working together constantly. We would really become like a family. I think that on Ocean Challenge, it is a little harder to develop relationships with people. This program would be perfect if there was a way to bring everybody together even if it means something like cooking our own meals, as we did at Chiniak. We were all I the kitchen making enchiladas and had a good time. I’ve very grateful to the first generation for putting on this program. I know that they worked very hard and I want them to know that this experience has been something I will never forget. I really feel like I can go back home again, to college, with confidence. I have done some things here that I never would have expected. You have n o idea how much that means to me. All I want to do is to go home and tell my parents everything that happened. Alaska is a beautiful place and has so much to offer to the future, to the children of our movement. Kiyomi Todd
I’m glad I was part of the team I was put on. Not knowing anyone there (except my sister, who was on another team,) I normally would have been a little slow opening up, but I feel my team’s enthusiasm and positivity really helped me open up faster. I feel I was more involved with the team, and we had gotten so close, it was sad to see everyone leave at the end of the program. I never liked eating fish, I didn’t know what a halibut looked like, and I never took much interest in salmon (maybe its shape is a universal fish symbol; I like things that are a little more different.) When I came to Ocean Challenge, I ate more fish than I ever did in my life, I learned the halibut was the bizarre looking fish I saw when breezing though the fish section of our field-guide, and I gained a deep appreciation, and found beauty in the seemingly plain-looking salmon. The excitement of fighting and catching a king salmon is very rewarding. Though I think fish like the ling cod look cool, the king salmon has my utmost respect. I feel I’ve gained much from this program. I’ve learned a lot, and I now know I love to fish. Ocean Challenge has been awesome! If there will bean Ocean Challenge next year, I’d love to come! Thank you so much for this amazing summer!
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Thank
God, True Parent, and all staff for putting together this program. I
appreciated Sugiyama-san’s lectures that not only gave us basic boating
instructions but mostly gave me deep and personal experiences of True
Father’s attitude and mindset in the ocean providence. This testimony
set the tone for our actual fishing experience. HDH content was good
but the method could be improved. From next year, we should emphasize
the team structure and the importance of terms. Teams should do HDH
together and discuss content. Teams should have morning and evening
sharing times consistently on a daily basis. Though some participants
commented that they would have preferred less ocean fishing and more
camping trips, I liked the schedule we had and think we should keep
basically the same schedule. The time period of daily ocean fishing was
very valuable to me in terns of being able to challenge my limitations
through fishing and with my relationship with team members. River
fishing was also valuable because I could see the life cycle of the
incredible salmon. I personally had the chance to walk further upstream
to see the salmon spawning and then dying to feed their offspring.
Recalling Father’s words about the exemplary life of true love that
salmon exhibit, this was moving experience. I hope we can make this a
part of next year’s program. The service project allowed us to interact
with the local community more personally and was very successful.
Listening to the anthropologist speaking and visiting local museums was
a valuable experience. Visiting the local Orthodox Church was very
insightful. 
Overall,
the educational component of the program could have been simplified,
focused, and improved. I felt the main education components were Ocean
Providence through testimonies and HDH and DP through lectures. Rev. Hu
gave a nice presentation on true father’s intention for ocean
providence. I think this simple content could have been the central
education. He stated TF’s education motto for 2nd
generation, “Love God, love people, love nation. These refer to the
Three Great Blessings. He said what is important is to first love God,
then love people, then love all things. He said ocean providence is
related mostly to the 3rd Blessing (Feeding world population
energy resources) but first we must work on loving God which is
mind-body unity. The ocean is a great place to set good conditions and
love God. I think it is exactly parallel to fundraising training except
that fundraising has a more restoration background while fishing is
better suited for the completion age. For the 2nd Blessing,
the ocean fishing boat is very much a family setting where you cannot
get more than 26 feet from other people, so it is a great place to
practice teamwork and love people centered on God. The 3rd
Blessing is accomplished by dominating the creation through the fish we
catch and love by offering the 1st fish, filleting fish,
cleaning the boat. I think it is important to have this kind of central
education theme. Putting these three Blessing in the right order is
good training to develop the right value system.
I
fell very grateful to have had the opportunity to be a part of this
inaugural Ocean Challenge. I didn’t bring many expectations when I came,
but I’m going away with a lot of lessons and experiences, so much so
that I know I am a richer and better person for being here at this time.
These
past 21 days was really good experience. I think that being on the ocean
really helps someone realize many things. My team during this whole
experience was so positive and united it was so much fun just being with
them. And with that said I would really like to come back next year and
experience it again. At the beginning of this whole program I expected a
lot of things out of the program but now that it’s over I realized that
they really went over the edge. This was just an incredible experience.
Mainly because all these things was just a challenge for me but I
actually accomplished it. That part really amazes me. With that said a
couple of things I think you guys might want to change or improve are;
personally I think a couple of other people might agree is that the
workshop could be a little earlier. A lot of school activities or
preparations for school was overlapping with the things and I missed out
on things when I really wanted to join in. Also I’ve told people in
other states about this workshop but they couldn’t come because it’s too
close to when school starts. But other than that I had a great time and
I can’t wait for next year.
When
I signed up for this program I wasn’t sure what I would gain lesson wise
internally from it since I had just finished NLTP training, but I was
looking forward to being on a boat on the ocean for the first time.
This
program, Ocean Challenge is an amazing program. During the program I was
able to change, change to a stronger person spiritually and physically.
Ocean Challenge gave everyone the chance to experience a new challenge.
Everyone was able to do new things. For me some challenges were to fish
for 7 days on the ocean, waking up at 4:30 AM for Hoondokae and talking
to new friends. From this program I learned so much more about fishing,
boat safety and the ocean. I now know the true meaning to fish. During
the 7 days of fishing truly changed me. I became more closer to my team,
connect more with God and gained knowledge. So overall, I would say that
Ocean Challenge is a program need for all youths. It’s a place to
understand more about God and True Father, learn more about fishing and
meet new friends. I now agree with True Father, the ocean is the place
to strengthen a youth’s spirits. I’m glad I participated in this
program. Thank you so much.
Overall,
this trip has been worth fundraising for two months for. I did not know
what to expect in the beginning. However, from the minute I arrived, I
knew that Kodiak would be a place I would love. Because of this program,
the ocean has become another part of myself. Everyday when we went out.
I felt a little nervous, but at the same time, eager to be out again on
the wide-open sea. Catching those beautiful fish, every one of them, is
an offering to father’s vision.
I
recently had wanted to try fishing, because it’s something True Father
really loves to do and I wanted to see if I would enjoy it myself. Also,
I’ve always wanted to come to Alaska since my dad always talked about
how beautiful it was. So when I heard about the Ocean Challenge program
being in Kodiak Alaska, I really wanted to come; I could experience
ocean fishing and Alaska at the same time!