GVCA’s Day by the Bay
By Grace Valley Christian Center on Nov 3rd, 2014 04:49
There are some special days you know you’ll remember for the rest of your life. The day Grace Valley Christian Academy fifth through ninth grade students visited San Francisco was one of those. Within those special days are moments, images, you will never forget. This field trip was chock-full of those moments.
It all began with an early arrival at school on a crisp fall morning. Sightings of the large tour bus, ready to go, brought squeals of delight from many of the students. However, we knew for certain that it was going to be a special day when president and founder of GVCA, Pastor Mathew, began the morning with prayer for the group. The excitement in the air was nearly palpable.
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The very first stop in San Francisco was at the awe-inspiring Fort Point, an imposing Civil-War era brick fort nestled directly under the Golden Gate Bridge. After students eagerly participated in a cannon demonstration, and explored various levels of the fort, the entire group watched portions of the Fleet Week processional from the rooftop of Fort Point. Student, JonPaul Mathew, noted, “It was fun to see the mist of morning covering the bridge. The bay was beautiful with Navy ships coming in.”
Lead teacher Heather Bodine summed it up well: “It was fascinating to learn about Civil War-era defense and to view modern-day naval warships from the rooftop of Fort Point – with the Golden Gate in the background! Despite the chill in the air, the history, the patriotism, and the beauty of that moment made it totally worth it.”
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The fog lifted during a picnic lunch at Aquatic Park, overlooking the Bay, and students spent the sunny
afternoon at the San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park, touring a fleet of historic vessels and
perusing the Maritime Museum. The beautifully-restored ships and boats were a highlight of the trip for many students and a fabulous learning experience, as they explored the different boats, trying to get the “best” fact possible for their notebooks. According to student Grace Shin, “My favorite part of the field trip was touring the Balclutha ship. I learned that the crew’s quarters were a lot worse than the gorgeous quarters of the captain.”
perusing the Maritime Museum. The beautifully-restored ships and boats were a highlight of the trip for many students and a fabulous learning experience, as they explored the different boats, trying to get the “best” fact possible for their notebooks. According to student Grace Shin, “My favorite part of the field trip was touring the Balclutha ship. I learned that the crew’s quarters were a lot worse than the gorgeous quarters of the captain.”
Adding to the afternoon excitement were several stunt planes flying overhead for Fleet Week festivities. Seeing the expressions of some of the children as they were watching the acrobatic planes fly overhead and hearing their gasps, cheers, and squeals was worth the trip.
Capping off the afternoon was a stop back at the bleachers of Aquatic Park to watch the highly-anticipated Blue Angels. The fog began rolling back in at that point, but that didn’t dampen spirits, because even though the Blue Angels couldn’t do stunts, it was exciting to see real naval aircraft flying in formation, which still made this the best part of the trip for many. GVCA student, Andrew Bimson concurred: “The most amazing part of the trip was when the Blue Angels flew above our heads. The sound tingled in my ears!”An In-N-Out dinner stop on the way home, complete with surprise milkshakes courtesy of Principal Broderick, was the perfect ending. Students Ryan Zhou and Gabriel Dionisi declared, “This field trip was the best field trip by far! We learned a lot about California history and had fun too!” Looking back on each moment of this special day, the abiding memory is God’s unmistakable hand of blessing upon it from start to finish, a gracious answer to many prayers.
View more pictures from the trip in the photo gallery.
This post was contributed by Jenny Nakamura.
