Page 16 — SUSQUEHANNA TIMES August 30, 1978
Youths learn rappelling on Chiques Rock
It’s part of the summer program sponsored by
the Congregational Bible Church
Ror Miller, Larry Wilkinson, and Don Lamb watch as above the railroad tracks below. This technique is called
Bob Bowers backs off the edge of Chiques Rock, far ‘“‘Rappelling.”’
by Ron Miller,
outdoor activities instructor
Duane had nervously
backed up to the edge of
the cliff. ‘I'm scared, man.
I don’t know about this.”
“Just do exactly as I say
and you'll do fine,” count-
ered his instructor. It was
Duane’s first attempt at
rappelling. Looking down
that 80 foot drop on
Chiques Rock he was
facing a very difficult
decision: to give in to his
fear and quit, or to trust
the instructor’s experience
and words and rappel.
What would he do? ‘‘Lean
back. Lean back.” ‘1 am,
man. I'm scared!’ ‘‘Lean
back a bit more; don’t
move your feet yet.”” All of
a sudden in a fit of fear,
Duane moved too quickly.
His feet slipped as he
frantically tried to stop his
progress, ignoring the in-
structor’s words. ‘‘I
can’t...,”” backwards he
went, ‘I'm falling!’ he
screamed. But he didn’t
fall. A safety line tied
around his waist and
controlled by his instructor
held him suspended in the
air just below the edge of
the cliff. There he hung,
upside down but safe!
“Get me up, I'm falling,”
he managed to gasp, ‘‘just
get me up!” “If you will
work with me I can help
you regain your correct
position,” urged the in-
structor, ‘‘but I can’t do a
thing without your helping
yourself, too.’’ For five
minutes a battle of the
wills ensued. Finally Duane
managed a little control
over his fear, realizing he
actually was safe and was
not going to fall. He
worked his feet back into
proper position as directed
by the instructor and gently
inched his way down the
cliff. “Way to go, buddy!”’
Encouraged the instructor.
“You can do it!’ Duane
even tried a few small hops
on the way down. As he
touched the ground at the
bottom of the cliff, the
tension broke. Yet his
feeling of accomplishment
was announced by a shaky
smile. ‘You did it! I knew
you could!’’ Later Duane
was heard to mention
‘‘once 1 started going
down, it was fun. But that
top part - Whew!”’
Rappelling, rock climb-
ing, canoeing, caving,
camping, backpacking,
fishing...what do these
activities have to do with a
local church’s influence on
its community? For ten
weeks this summer, these
activities, along with day
trips, traditional camps,
and corn roasts have been
a major part of Congrega-
tional Bible Church’s at-
tempt to affect mental,
social, and spiritual change
in the lives of those youth
with whom it has come in
contact.
Eight counselors, aged
17-26, guided by trained
instructors and financially
and prayerfully supported
by the people of CBC, have
been spending their full
time in these activities
building close relationships
with many of the youth. As
friendships strengthen
these counselors also have
been working towards shar-
ing their faith in Jesus
Christ’s ability to positively
change lives through spiri-
tual rnewal and Biblical
standards for moral, ethical
and social life.
The program is the
brainchild of Congregation-
al Bible Church’s education
director Mr. Gary Newton.
Newton’s philosophy of
education proposes that
positive interpersonal rela-’
tionships build better peo-
ple, open in roads to
teaching from personal
experience, and provide the
strongest base for sharing
a personal faith in Jesus
Christ. he views the pro-
gram as the practical
outworking of his philoso-
phy: a philosophy devel-
oped from study of the life
and teachings of Jesus
Christ. There have been
low points as well as high
points throughout the sum-
mer. But in the long run,
Newton feels that the rela-
tionships and experiences
of this summer will leave a
long lasting effect on the
youth and counselors who
have been involved.
For those interested,
Congregational Bible
Church plans to continue
its youth outreach thru the
school year. There will be
evening activities at its
youth center on Front St. in
Marietta and special youth
programs on Wednesday
evenings at the church,
located on Route 441,
Marietta.
Jeff Caldwell rappels.
Author Ron Miller checks the knots before a descent.