Mission Moroto Stories: 21 Soldier Hitchhikers

by Matt Bullen May 19, 2026

One day a few years ago, Rebekah, Lisa, and Matt were headed to town from the mission in their Toyota Mini Van when suddenly 21 heavily armed soldiers stepped out into the road and flagged them down. Rebekah pulled over and the soldiers asked if they could be given a lift to town. You don’t really tell 21 soldiers no so Rebekah said, “Sure!” Lisa scooted over as far as she could and they began to pile in with rifles and packs in the seats sitting on top of each other and in the floor and then one of the soldiers said, “Open the boot.” The Americans looked at each other quizzically and then realized they meant the hatch! So, Rebekah opened the hatch and 8 of the soldiers piled in on top of each other stacked like firewood. Finally the hatch, the sliding door, and the two front doors were pressed closed. Except for arms and rifles sticking out of the windows, all 21 soldiers and Rebekah, Lisa, and Matt were crammed in the van. The soldiers kept asking Lisa, “Madam, are you ok?” and Lisa would respond, “Yes! I’m great.” Matt slowly began to slip his phone out of his pocket to sneak a photo but Rebekah looked over at him and said sternly, “Dad, don’t even think about it.” So the phone was quickly slipped back into the pocket. 😆 The 21 Soldier Hitchhikers got their ride to town and when they got out they thanked and fist bumped the three profusely. Mom, Dad, and Rebekah drove off shaking their heads at each other and saying, “Ain’t nobody every gonna believe this one!” 🤣 www.missionmoroto.org