11-year-old puts service and missions above self, finishes grueling climb 14,421 feet up
An 11-year-old boy is stepping up (literally and figuratively) to live out his faith and raise support for Boys and Girls Missionary Challenge (BGMC). 11-year-old Bryson Reine took his passion to help others to the top of Colorado’s second tallest peak, the class 2 Mt. Massive at 14,421 feet and people joined him in helping raise a significant $28,000 toward the cause of missions. The total hike was just short of 15 miles with an elevation increase of over 5,000 feet. BGMC is the missions education program for all kids in the Assemblies of God.
Bryson told AG News that he thought about giving up but when he thought of all the people he was going to help, he had to finish the hike.
“There was a time when I was going up the mountain and my legs were hurting pretty bad, that I thought, Why am I doing this?,” Bryson shared with AG News. “And then I just thought of those kids in Africa and the difference this would make in their lives — that just encouraged me for the whole rest of the hike.”
Monies raised will go towards drip irrigation systems to help farmers and laborers in Africa produce food to feed their families. Bryson completed the hike with his father, Shawn, who shared with AG News the father-son team started at 3:30 am to avoid the storms and scrambled their way up to the summit. “We started at 3:30 a.m. — to avoid the afternoon storms that often arise up top — and did the mountain together,” Shawn says. “Now, Mt. Massive doesn’t require ropes to scale, but it is a hike that requires rock scrambling (using hands and feet to reach the summit). My legs were really hurting by the time we were done, and so were his.”
As for the example this feat set for others, the ministry couldn’t be happier.
“Bryson’s testimony is the epitome of ‘Kids Helping Kids,’” David Alexieff, national BGMC director told AG News. “Bryson and his desire to help kids in Africa by raising monies to purchase drip irrigation will not only impact today’s generation of kids in Africa but also for generations to come. As a leader, I am constantly inspired by the current generation of kids in America. Their heart and compassion for others is truly infectious!”
