On the Road with

2011-06-28T13:57:00.001-05:00

News from the road! As of 2pm, the troupe was in Watertown SD for a lunch stop and to tour the Redlin Museum. They should be rolling into Morris between 5:30 and 6:00pm!

2011-06-27T08:54:00.002-05:00

News from the road! Yesterday (Sunday, June 26) went well, with the troupe leading Sunday worship services at First Lutheran Church in Longmont, CO. They began their journey back to Minnesota with a stop in Collins, CO to rollerblade and a performance at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Cheyenne WY where they stayed overnight.

Today (Monday, June 27) the troupe will have a lot of van time, with over 400 miles to travel from Wyoming to South Dakota. They will be stopping Evan's Plunge and a mammoth site in Hot Springs SD and then it's on to Pierre SD where they will spend the night.

They did not have internet access last night in Cheyenne, so we were not able to post any new photos. We are hoping they will be able to send us some tonight!

2011-06-26T06:44:00.002-05:00

News from the road! Things are going well and the troupe is having a great time! The schedule for today (Sunday, June 26).....New Wine Sunday at First Lutheran Church in Longmont, CO and then they will head to Cheyenne WY with a stops along the way at Rollerland in Fort Collins CO and a Dude Ranch in Cheyenne. They will perform at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Cheyenne tonight.

2011-06-26T06:42:00.001-05:00

Rocky Mountain National Park, Estes Park, CO
Saturday, June 25, 2011

2011-06-25T07:22:00.002-05:00

News from the road! Everything is going good and they are having a great time! The troupe enjoyed their time spent with the kids at CCN and have enjoyed the tours around Denver, CO. Today (Saturday, June 25) they will spend the day at Rocky Mountain National Park and perform at First Lutheran Church in Longmont, CO.

2011-06-25T07:17:00.002-05:00

dining at the Old Spaghetti Factory (Friday, June 24, 2011)

Tour of Coors Field with the kids from CCN (Friday, June 24, 2011)

singing for the kids at CCN (Thursday, June 23, 2011)

at Coors Field (Friday, June 24, 2011)

tour of the State Capital Building (June 25 & 26, 2011)
the gold circle in the center of the photo is the 1 mile high marker

2011-06-25T07:09:00.005-05:00

Gold Mine tour (June 22, 2011)

Cripple Creek, CO (June 22, 2011)

Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine Tour (June 22, 2011)

2011-06-24T08:56:00.002-05:00

News from the road! Things are going well. They did not have internet access last night, but are hoping to have access tonight. We are hoping to post some photos of the past couple days late Friday night or Saturday.

Thursday went well with half of the group volunteering at the Colfax Community Network. The Winers loved playing with the kids at CCN, went swimming with them and helped in serving a community meal. They also did a shortened performance at CCN.

Today (Friday, June 24) the second group will volunteer this morning at CCN, while the first group tours the State Capital Building. The afternoon will be spent touring the Coors Field in Denver. Tonight the troupe will dine at the Old Spaghetti Factory and spend some time walking around 16th Street Mall.

2011-06-22T09:03:00.002-05:00

News from the road! At 8:45am this morning (Wednesday, June 22) the troupe was on the road to the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine in Cripple Creek, CO. Following the gold mine tour and lunch in Cripple Creek, they will head to Denver where they will tour the Air Force Academy. Then it's on to St. Mark's Lutheran Church in Aurora for performance #3

2011-06-22T08:47:00.003-05:00

Pike's Peak (Tuesday, June 21, 2011)

the counselors!

lunch at Garden of the Gods

Cog Railroad

Jason R and his "look-a-like" dad

holding rocks up at Garden of the Gods

performance at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs

2011-06-21T09:02:00.002-05:00

A busy day is scheduled for today (Tuesday, June 21). This morning the New Wine troupe will ride the Cog Railroad to Pike's Peak, followed by lunch at Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, and then a tour of the Olympic Training Center in the afternoon. Performance #2 will be tonight at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church.

2011-06-21T08:49:00.007-05:00

Last night's performance (Monday, June 20) went well with about 50 attending. After wards the group enjoyed "Minute to Win It" games.

Loading up the trailers in Morris, MN

Van time

Gavin's Point Dam in Yankton, SD

Minute to Win It games

2011-06-20T08:33:00.002-05:00

News from the road! Everything is going well. They are currently on Interstate 80 heading for North Sterling State Park in Sterling, CO for a lunch stop. They are hoping to have internet access tonight when they reach Ascension Lutheran Church so photos can be posted.

Posted below is their itinerary. Be sure to check back later for more updates!

Monday, June 20:
Grand Island, NE to Colorado Springs, CO
a stop at North Sterling State Park for lunch and a 7pm performance at Ascension Lutheran Church in Colorado Springs

Tuesday, June 21:
Colorado Springs, Co
sight-seeing at Cog Railroad, Pike's Peak, Garden of the Gods and the Olympic Training Center and a 7pm performance at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Colorado Springs

Wednesday, June 22:
Aurora, Co
sight-seeing at Cripple Creek, Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine and the Air Force Academy with a 7pm performance at St. Mark's Lutheran Church. Staying overnight at Holy Love Lutheran Church in Aurora

Thursday, June 23:
Aurora, CO
Splitting into two groups....group 1 volunteering at Colfax Community Network (CCN) while group 2 takes a tour of the Colorado State Capital Building; swimming afterwards with the kids from CCN. 6pm performance at CCN. Overnight at Holy Love Lutheran Church.

Friday, June 24:
Aurora, CO
Group 2 volunteering at CCN while group 1 tours the Colorado State Capital Building; both groups tour Coors Field in the afternoon. Supper at the Old Spaghetti Factory. Overnight at Holy Love Lutheran Church.

Saturday, June 25:
Denver, Co to Longmont, CO
sight-seeing at Rocky Mountain National Park. 5:30pm performance at First Lutheran Church in Longmont

Sunday, June 26:
Longmont, CO to Cheyenne, WY
New Wine Sunday at First Lutheran Church in Longmont. Sight-seeing at Rollerland in Fort Collins, CO and a dude ranch in Cheyenne WY and a 7pm performance at St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Cheyenne

Monday, June 27:
Cheyenne, WY to Pierre, SD
sight-seeing at Evan's Plunge and a mammoth site in Hot Springs CO; drive by view of Mt. Rushmore. Overnight at Lutheran Memorial Church in Pierre, SD

Tuesday, June 28:
Pierre, SD to Morris, MN
sight-seeing at the Redlin Museum in Watertown, SD
7pm Homecoming performance at First Lutheran Church, Morris, MN

2011-05-26T13:37:00.003-05:00

New Wine's Dessert Theatre was a huge success! Thank you to all that attended the performances and to all the parents for their help and support.

On Sunday, June 19th, the New Wine troupe (33 youth and 7 adults) will leave for a 10 day tour to Colorado (and points in between) where they will do some service projects, perform "A Funny Thing Happened" at numerous churches along the way, and do a lot of sightseeing! They will return to Morris on Tuesday, June 28th for their final performance of "A Funny Thing Happened."

Be sure to follow along with New Wine Tour by visiting our blog!

New Wine Troupe 2011

2011-03-29T15:31:00.003-05:00

New Wine's newest production is getting reading for its opening night in May. A FUNNY THING HAPPENED.....is a musical and humorous journey through the Bible. Using characters we know and some we don't know, we hear the stories of the Bible in ways we may have never imagined. With humor and music, A FUNNY THING HAPPENED brings the Bible to life for all ages.

2010-06-30T15:49:00.001-05:00

News from the road! At 3:45pm the troupe was in Brookings, SD. Still planning on rolling into Morris around 6:30pm.

2010-06-30T14:04:00.002-05:00

News from the road! At 1:30pm this afternoon New Wine was 30 miles out of Sioux City, IA. With a stop for gas and a bathroom break, they are hoping to roll into Morris around 6:30pm.

2010-06-29T21:42:00.001-05:00

2010-06-29T13:22:00.001-05:00

Pirate's Cove in Branson, MO (Tuesday, June 29, 2010)

2010-06-29T11:48:00.001-05:00

Pirate's Cove in Branson, MO (Tuesday, June 29, 2010)

2010-06-29T11:33:00.003-05:00

News from the road (Tuesday, June 29, 2010). At 11:30am this morning, New Wine had arrived in Branson, MO and were playing some miniature golf at Pirates Cove. They'll have some lunch and then go see "Buckets and Boards" at the Clay Cooper Theatre. They hope to stop by the Shepherd of the Hills Hatchery and then spend the night at Advent Lutheran Church in Olathe, KS.

2010-06-29T11:31:00.002-05:00

Notice the very different milk jugs that they have in Arkansas.

2010-06-29T11:30:00.000-05:00

Sleeping arrangements at Good Shepherd in Fayetteville, AR (Monday, June 28, 2010)

2010-06-29T11:29:00.002-05:00

Supper after singing at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Fayetteville, AR (Monday, June 29, 2010)

2010-06-28T21:23:00.003-05:00

Better late than never getting to Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Fayetteville, AR!

So we are a little late....construction, heavy rain, 600+ miles....but we are here! We did some songs to a small group of people who waited. The kids did SUPER, and had amazing energy after a long day! (Monday, June 28, 2010)

2010-06-28T13:12:00.007-05:00

Lunchtime! (Monday, June 28, 2010)

2010-06-28T13:12:00.002-05:00

2010-06-28T13:10:00.001-05:00

Visiting the Minnesota monument at Vicksburg (Monday, June 28, 2010)

2010-06-28T11:51:00.001-05:00

Vicksburg Battleground (Monday, June 28, 2010)

2010-06-27T17:37:00.003-05:00

Beach time! (Sunday, June 27, 2010)

2010-06-27T17:35:00.004-05:00

New Wine Sunday at Peace Lutheran Church in Slidell, LA went great! (Sunday, June 27, 2010)

2010-06-26T20:34:00.008-05:00

Fine dining at Ralph & Kacoos (Saturday, June 26, 2010)

2010-06-26T18:07:00.004-05:00

The houses that New Wine mucked 5 years ago!

2010-06-26T18:05:00.002-05:00

Sleeping arrangements....wall to wall air mattresses!

2010-06-25T14:49:00.002-05:00

2010-06-25T14:41:00.004-05:00

Group #2 getting the orientation talk and removing recalled Spaghettios at the Second Harvest Food Bank (Friday, June 25, 2010)

2010-06-25T13:17:00.002-05:00

Lunch at the French Quarter

2010-06-25T11:44:00.002-05:00

Counselors Steve & Jill found some cookies!

2010-06-25T09:44:00.001-05:00

First group for the morning shift at the food bank.

2010-06-25T09:12:00.004-05:00

Back at church after staying overnight in homes....all refreshed!!

2010-06-25T09:06:00.005-05:00

On the agenda for today (Friday, June 25, 2010) Service work, tour the French Quarter and perform at Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Chalmette, LA.

2010-06-25T08:56:00.003-05:00

Thursday, June 24, 2010...Performance at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Kenner, LA. They did an excellent job and received a standing ovation! Looking forward to staying in homes tonight! The weather hasn't been too hot, but is extremely humid. The locals consider the weather "not bad" and say it is rare for it to cool down at night like it has been doing.

2010-06-25T08:53:00.009-05:00

2010-06-25T08:38:00.002-05:00

Gathering outside of Christ the King Lutheran Church in Kenner, LA before the performance (Thursday, June 24, 2010)

2010-06-25T08:37:00.003-05:00

Van Life!

2010-06-24T08:33:00.003-05:00

On the agenda for today (Thursday, June 24, 2010) Travel from San Antonio, TX to Kenner, LA stopping for lunch and some beach time at Sea Rim State Park in Beaumont, TX.

2010-06-24T08:26:00.006-05:00

Supper and ice cream at Abiding Presence Lutheran Church in San Antonio, TX after a busy, hot day (Wed., June 23, 2010). Service projects, sight-seeing at The Alamo and the River Walk and a performance of "Steeples" completed the day.

2010-06-23T14:06:00.006-05:00

Service group projects in San Antonio, Texas (Wed., June 23, 2010)

2010-06-22T11:06:00.005-05:00

New Wine toured the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial Tuesday morning (June 22, 2010) and signed a New Wine bandanna to leave on the fence at the memorial.

2010-06-21T22:08:00.005-05:00

St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Oklahoma City feed New Wine a delicious meal after the performance. (Monday, June 21, 2010)

2010-06-21T21:42:00.002-05:00

A happy bunch! They did an awesome job tonight!

2010-06-21T20:59:00.003-05:00

2010-06-21T20:45:00.002-05:00

New Wine performed "Steeples" in Oklahoma City Monday evening (June 21, 2010) to a very responsive crowd. They will be staying in homes tonight and are anticipating showers!

2010-06-21T20:41:00.003-05:00

2010-06-21T20:37:00.001-05:00

New Wine Troupe (Sunday, June 20, 2010)

2010-06-21T09:54:00.003-05:00

New Wine reached their first destination of First Lutheran Church in Fremont, NE on Sunday evening where they performed "Steeples" to a crowd of about 50. Today (Monday, June 21), they are heading for Oklahoma City, OK with plans to stop at Rock City, Kansas for some sight-seeing.

2010 New Orleans Tour

2010-06-02T14:28:00.002-05:00

On June 20th, New Wine will begin their 10-day tour to San Antonio, Texas and New Orleans, Louisiana. Along the way they will do some sight seeing, do some service projects and perform their musical Steeples. Be sure to check back during their tour for updates!

News from the Road!

2009-06-24T09:44:00.002-05:00

Heavens to Betsy! It's 5 a.m. here in Prince Rupert, BC and we've just had everyone wake up, roll up, and pack up in order to get us all prepared for our 15 hour ferry ride to Victoria, British Columbia today! It's so exciting (a sentiment I'm sure the barely awake Winers share with me)!

We arrived in Ketchikan on Saturday afternoon after a pleasant ferry ride (free showers, whale watching, and a sleeping/traveling combination for our drivers!). We had a tour around Totem Bight National Park and then had hot dogs, beans and s'mores right on the beach. It was truly amazing.

The following morning we performed New Wine Sunday for the good folk of Ketchikan and then went for a picnic on Lake Ward where we received some disappointing news that the ferry we were to catch out of Ketchikan on Tuesday was in disrepair and therefore un-ridable. Our only option was to take a ferry a day early and spend two days in Prince Rupert, rather than three in Ketchikan. The community was really wonderful about aiding us in our attempt to bump the time of the show from Monday at 7 p.m. to Sunday at 5 p.m. The kids of course performed spectacularly and afterwards were rewarded with a tasty meal at Steamers, a restaurant with great seafood and beautiful a beautiful view overlooking the Pacific.

We arrived in Prince Rupert on Monday afternoon, did a quick hike to some awesome rapids (Butze Rapids) and then the kids had the chance to do some laundry. We split into two groups and the group I happened to be in flooded the laundromat (twice!)!
Yesterday we got a chance to sing at the Prince Rupert nursing home and then take a quick tour around a historic fishing village. Then of course we were greeted with an amazing potluck dinner (fresh smoked salmon!) and a performance where the lights went out about 10 minutes in. All in all, it was a really wonderful day.

I hear the vans starting and head counting happening, which means I must take my cue and head out. As always, keep our group in your prayers as we begin our journey back. God bless!

A Post from Pastor Ali

2009-06-23T14:32:00.013-05:00

Greetings! New Wine made it safely to Ketchikan, Alaska on Saturday afternoon. The tour is going really well! A schedule change with the ferry company required them to leave Ketchikan a day earlier than scheduled, but I am sure that they all made the best of it. Tonight they will perform in Prince Rupert, BC and tomorrow they group will be on a ferry for 15 hours to Port Hardy, BC as they begin their treck back towards the US and home.

And we received some pictures! Enjoy!

From the Road

2009-06-19T08:51:00.003-05:00

Greetings from British Columbia! We arrived safely (and relatively on time)to our fourth stop on this tour, Our Savior's Lutheran in Prince George,British Columbia. What a trip it's been! Today alone we encountered NINE black bears along the sides of the highway and even a moose (or an elk,depending on which van you happen to believe)! In the 1,700-some miles we've traveled so far we've had a lot of fun and excitement. From the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center to the Canadian Rockies' highest peak, Mt.Robson, we've shared a lot of laughs and smiles.

Quick introduction: This is Kristin Zust, one of the counselors on this great New Wine Tour, and I will be your eyes and ears into the happenings and goings-on for this trip. My apologies for this coming a few days later than expected, but we're dealing with a computer that seems to repel any sort of wi-fi connection and are therefore left to rely on the kindness of church offices and their ethernet cords.

With that being said...On Monday we drove nearly 700 miles through North Dakota all the way up to Regina, Saskatchewan. The vans got their names: Eh?, Vanzibar Buck Buck,Frolicking Inuits [which is in no way a stereotype], White Gravy, and Floppy. We stopped for lunch at Fort Mandan where explorers Lewis and Clark hunkered down in the winter of 1804-1805. It was pretty exciting despite the tour guide who was terrified we were going to trample over him in a mad stampede to get to the famous explorers' bunks. After the Fort, we headed towards Canada where the only snag we encountered was the missing of one's passport! After twenty minutes of frantic searching (going through the list of names and passports and manually crossing off, and counting and recounting) we figured out the problem--- Todd's was "lost" in his front pocket.

Tuesday morning began with a drive-by of the Saskatchewan Parliament building in Regina. It was very beautiful and we were all envious that it was situated on a river. We had a long day in the vans as we headed towards Calgary. Unfortunately time didn't allow for us to get to Dinosaur Provincial Park, but luckily we did get to our church in Calgary on time and ready for a performance which knocked the socks off of our Calgary crowd!

On Wednesday we had an absolutely amazing day--- we saw the Olympic park in Calgary, the town of Banff, Lake Moraine, Lake Louise and the Colombian Ice fields! At Lake Louise we encountered a less-than-thrilled bus driver who threatened to call the Mounties on our group for parking one of the van/trailers in a bus's spot. Fortunately for him we were in and out of the area in fifteen minutes! We arrived in Jasper, Alberta a little before ten p.m. and got some pizza at a local restaurant. We stayed in an activity center where not only did we get mattresses but we also got SHOWERS!

Today we woke up early and headed towards the Miette Hot Springs which featured two hot pools, two cool pools and the promise of a relaxing and body-rejuvenating experience. Literally, I heard every single New Winer say"I feel SO refreshed" after our dunk in the Hot Springs. From there we hit the open Canadian road where the wildlife was abundant! Seriously, NINE bears! Three of which were cubs! And now that brings us to this evening. We're all settled into a cozy church in Prince George. The kids just finished their performance which was (as expected) a smash hit! We've been blessed with pretty big crowds so far and we're hoping that the good luck of large audiences will continue as we head further west. We're about to settle down for the night, do some singing and just enjoy being together as one big group. We're having a great time and miss you all! Continue to pray for our safe journey to Alaska and I look forward to sending you all more news from the open road. God Bless!

How this blog works . . .

2009-06-18T11:54:00.002-05:00

Hello all! I think there has been a little bit of a misunderstanding of how this blog works. New Wine will be sending me (Pastor Ali) updates from the road and I will be posting them on the blog. No one in New Wine is checking the blog from the road. I will forward comments to Todd's email, but I cannot guarantee that the kids will actually receive them. Internet access is hit and miss while on tour.

As of today, I have not received any blog updates, but I have talked with Todd a couple of times. Things are going well . . . last I heard they were on their way to Jasper, Alberta. The rule of the thumb with New Wine is always --- no news is good news!

New Wine Tour 2009

2009-06-05T11:52:00.010-05:00

Follow along with New Wine on their tour through the Pacific Northwest all the way to Ketchikan, Alaska. Along the way, they will perform the musical, "The Ark," go sightseeing and participate in service work.

The following is their tour itinerary:

June 15--Regina, Saskatchewan
June 16--Calgary, Alberta
June 17--Jasper, Alberta
June 18--Prince George, British Columbia
June 19--Prince Rupert, British Columbia
June 20--Ketchikan, Alaska
June 23--Prince Rupert, British Columbia
June 24--Port Hardy, British Columbia
June 25--Victoria, British Columbia
June 26--Port Angeles, Washington
June 27--Seattle, Washington
June 28--Butte, Montana
June 29--Moorcroft, Wyoming
June 30--Morris, Minnesota

Homecoming performance at 7:30

The group leaves bright and early on June 15th. Check back to follow along with New Wine "On the Road." We will post updates and pictures periodically throughout the tour.