Pella Christian’s 13th annual Winterim program was held January 6 – 10. Winterim offers three different options for high school students, including internships, educational/service trips, and courses. Through Winterim experiences, students gain insight into their own passions and abilities, further developing their potential as God’s image-bearers.

Classes

Winterim Classes offer five days of learning experiences. Students choose a morning class and an afternoon class from a catalog of options taught by PCHS faculty, parents, and community members.

I was a part of the crocheting class! We got to crochet some blankets to give to some older people at the villages! I really enjoyed this class because I got to learn more about crocheting and I had a lot of fun with the people in my class! I got to learn several more stitches and expand my knowledge in crocheting. This class was a good reminder of how creative God created humans to be. It amazes me that people could come up with those intricate stitches and patterns! Overall I really enjoyed this class and I am very glad I was able to be a part of it!

Trinley Gibson

I participated in Walking with Jesus in the morning and Marine Science in the afternoon. In Walking with Jesus, we read our Bibles and learned how to have a better relationship with Christ. We learned about who God is, who we are, and who people were in Scripture. We were taught SOAPS (scripture, observation, application, prayer, share) and how to make our faith our own. On Friday, we went to the grade school and went to the chapel. Afterwards, we went to Mrs. Vryhof’s room and taught them about our faith journey and how everything on earth is meaningless; we can only find worth in heaven and in Christ. What I learned in this class was that everything we earn on earth or from society has no meaning at all. Our worth is not in earthly things, but only in Christ. I also learned that there are many ways to read the Bible and which one is best for me. This class helped to strengthen my relationship with God and learn about who we really are as incredible children of God. In our earthly lives with others, we need to spread the gospel and help others be drawn to God. In Marine Science, we learned about overfishing and stewardship, invasive species, different marine life, and how everything is connected. I learned that there is so much order and connection in the ocean. If one thing goes extinct or the population lowers greatly, the whole ocean is connected and could be impacted. My faith really grew in this experience because I learned how immensely intricate God’s creation is. He thought of everything. Even the tiniest of creatures has a big role in our world. Everything is connected and we should praise God even for the littlest of creatures.

Ava Nikkel

Winterim Trips

Three Winterim Trips were offered this year to Spain, Bahamas, and Mexico.

The trip to Spain included both cultural and mission experiences working with former PCHS teacher Mr. Jason Noble. Cultural activities included touring a castle, watching a Three Kings parade, and getting a closeup view of the Atlantic Ocean, complete with a picturesque lighthouse. The team also reached out to the community by attending youth group, holding a youth camp, and completing service projects. Thank you to Mrs. Rebekah Kraber and PC parent Ryan Agre for their leadership of the Spain team.

In Abaco, Bahamas, the team participated in a Week of Impact through Many Hands. They served the people of Abaco by being the hands and feet of Christ through cleaning, building, landscaping, and gardening. Thank you to Mr. Scott Roose and PC parents John De Berg, Jess Groenendyk, and Nikki Vasquez for leading the Bahamas team.

Through the Mexico trip, the team experienced cultural opportunities in the Yucatan by visiting churches and cathedrals, markets, parks, Mayan ruins, and cenotes. Thank you to Mtro. Lorenzo Escalante, Mr. Michael Turnley, and PC parents Chad and Jana Vink for leading the Mexico Winterim trip.

For Winterim, I went on a trip to Spain. We stayed in the town of Os Muinos in the province of Galicia. We stayed with Mr. Noble and his family and helped them in their work to reach out to people in their community. My favorite activity was when we put on a day camp for kids to help them with their English, and we just had a lot of fun playing games like Go Fish, Candy Land, and Jenga with them. I learned how the people we interacted with were so welcoming and curious that they just wanted to talk and listen to us about anything. My faith grew on this trip by being able to travel to another part of the world and see His amazing creation of somewhere new.

Anna Vermillion

I participated in a mission trip in Abaco, Bahamas where I was able to have an amazing opportunity to help people in the Abaco community. We were given the opportunity to sheet rock the inside of a man’s house, and that was a great experience for me. I learned that doing things that seem little to people like me can be very meaningful to/for people that are not as fortunate as I am, like those in Abaco that we got to help out. I saw God’s story unfold during my experience in Abaco on the restoration part. I saw redemption in Abaco when we sheetrocked Zhivargo’s house. His house was nothing but a bare house frame of 2×4 and 2×6 blocks, with wires sticking out everywhere. While we worked at his house, we also rebuilt his entire deck with wood boards. Seeing the reaction and the smile on Zhivargo’s face was so heartwarming, and our group was so happy for him and we are all so grateful for the opportunity to do that work for him.

Hunter Vander Linden

I went on the Winterim trip to Yucatan, Mexico. One of my favorite parts of our trip was visiting Chichen Itza. I really liked this because we got to learn a lot about the Mayan culture and see all the ruins. I also liked all the swimming we did, we swam in a cenote and the ocean. I learned a lot from this experience. One of those is the impact of the past on the current generation. In Mexico you could see how passionate the people were about their culture and how they still incorporate it into their daily lives. I also learned how the geography, history and culture affect modern day Yucatan. One of the ways I saw God’s story unfold during this trip was being able to see and experience another culture. I also saw God’s story by using the gift he gave me and my Spanish classmates in Spanish and using it outside of school.

Greta Vos

Internships

Winterim Internships offer students insight into future careers and how they can serve in God’s world after high school. We are thankful to the many businesses and mentors who share their expertise and give of their time to partner with us for these internships.

I had an internship with LDJ Manufacturing where I was learning all different aspects of the company. A part that I found interesting about my winterim experience was learning how all the different aspects of a business work together to complete their goals. My favorite part of the internship at LDJ was being able to sit down with the finance team and learn how that all works since that is a potential job I’m interested in for the future. My takeaway from Winterim at LDJ was how to be a servant leader in society by using authority over power. LDJ gave me a book called “The Servant” by James C. Hunter. Brad Jungling walked us through the book during the week and challenged us to use what we learned from the book in real life. I saw God’s Story unfold at LDJ because they openly express their faith as a company. For example, they start each day and meeting with a devotional and prayer. They are undeniably a faith based company and they are proud of that. And they showed God’s love and compassion to all of their employees.

Liam Zula

I interned at Belzer Equipment doing many different things. My favorite part was learning about the different aspects of the dealership. I learned more about how a dealership is run and not just how to work on equipment. I saw how an Ag equipment dealership can be used to show God to the rest of the world.

Ezra Ochsner

Thank you to our 2025 Winterim Internship business partners: