Colorado youth trek through history

RBC | Moving your entire life with all your belongings towed behind you cross-country takes a few days in our modern era. Before settling in the West, the early pioneers moved their families by creative methods, including wagons or on horseback if you were fortunate, and in more humble situations, using hand-carts inspired by early members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Hand-carts were, surprisingly, a faster form of transportation than wagons. 

There were many individual reasons people migrated west. In the 19th century, a societal culture dominated minority groups and utilized severe measures to exile people based on race, economic status, and religion. A significant event during this movement was an attack against the early Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints members that included an extermination order by the Governor of Missouri against “Mormons.” 

During 1856-1860, Latter-day Saints used hand-carts to migrate west to settle in the Salt Lake Basin. Most treks for more than 3,000 pioneers were successful without significant hardship. In 1856, using hand-carts primarily, the first “companies” pulled their way through difficult circumstances that tested their faith and unity. Most companies left in June, but a few who left later in the summer ran into severe conditions and 1,200 required rescue; their stories are told in movies such as “17 Miracles.” 

“Trek” experiences are re-enacted each June by church youth, young men and women ages 14-18 with the support of leadership couples. The re-enactments combine historical knowledge with the physical and sensory experience of walking in the shoes of their ancestors, including authentic clothing. The youth push their hand-carts approximately 10 miles a day, equipped with a five-gallon water bottle, the family’s lunch and snacks, and typical outdoor supplies — a pop-up tent, sunscreen, etc. It’s designed to be physically and spiritually challenging, and simulates some of the actual conditions experienced by the early pioneers. 

Hand-carts for this trek experience were rented from a business in Orem, Utah. Local support from families in the Rangely Ward of the Church helps ensure the event’s success: Shawn Morgan and his family supply porta-potties and trash collection. The Berrett and Hazelbush family also contribute their expertise as locals and stewards of the area. President Mark Berrett made targets for the hatchet-throwing activity. The Prater family donated the water tank/trailer for the week. 

This past week, youth from the Littleton, Colorado, Stake visited Rio Blanco County to reenact the trek. The landscape provides a realistic terrain for the youth. The five-day experience is organized to guide the youth through faith-based lessons and activities where they can share their testimonies of Jesus Christ and build relationships with their heritage and peers. Each day carried a theme for the focus of the experience: “Unity, Trust In God/Repentance, Trust In God/ Unity, God Loves Us As We Are.” Speakers shared real-life experiences that taught them how the love of Christ and the Church community helped them to overcome their difficulties, even abuse and addiction. This particular stake included 93 youth and 70 adults. 

Littleton Colorado Stake President Mark Sabey offered some secrets behind the adventure experience. On the surface, it might appear as an out-of-the-ordinary religious experience. However, it is not unusual for groups to experience persecution or exile. There are carefully chosen psychosocial factors that organize the spiritual storyline. 

“When you learn about history, you have more resilience in the present,” offered President Sabey. “Roots and Wings” theory suggests that happiness and confidence are formed from a grounded sense of belonging and a curious and safe expression of autonomy. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recognizes each individual’s fundamental human right to autonomy, or agency, their free right to make choices for themselves. A participating church member explained that the trek experience helps teach the youth about hardships and how to overcome those challenges with their mettle. Organizers of Trek include Jared Wandry, Peter Sabey, Marcie Zufelt and Glendon Berrett, whose daughter Morgan was a participating youth. 

Activities included square dancing, speaking/musical presentations, games, and the “women’s pull.” Games include muzzleloader shooting, rappelling and tomahawks. During their free time, families had the opportunity to enjoy playing stick pulls, snake toss, sack and three-legged races, and stilt-walking. 

The women’s pull is a unique activity based on a specific experience that the original pioneers endured. One of the tactics used against the 19th century groups included enlisting some of the men into a battalion known as the “Mormon Battalion” and sending them to San Diego. The women needed to continue the journey by picking up the hand-carts and pushing them onward, often across difficult terrain. In the women’s pull, the men sit out and the women pull the carts while singing, praying and encouraging each other. The leaders may assign “angels” to help behind the hand-carts in accordance with testimonies of the original pioneers. The women bond through sisterhood and ability. Morgan Berrett shared how her “family” communicated during the women’s pull experience to coordinate and get to know one another. 

The youth trekked 23.5 miles and created memories that will last for eternity. 

BY KATIE FAYE KING | Special to the Herald Times