St. James' Youth Groups Summer Mission Trip Offerings
Below you will find information about all of our upcoming Youth Mission Trip Offerings. Take a look at what we have in store, and contact Pastor Mary if you are interested in coming on one of these trips.
The deadline to sign up for a senior high summer trip is March 3, 2008.
If you want to go on a summer mission trip, please know what we ask of every missioner:
That you commit to a significant amount of fundraising. Youth do not pay out of pocket for mission trips, provided they engage in fundraising. Please plan to attend a potluck dinner on Sunday, March 9, at 5:30 p.m., where we will talk about raising money for our trips.
- That you commit to attending all preliminary meetings related to your specific mission.
- You are welcome to invite non-St. James’ friends to come with us, but we accept youth in order of age (in other words, older youth get first dibs), and we accept parishioners first. After March 3, we will release remaining spots to friends and family in order of age.
- Senior High: please choose ONE trip, but you may indicate a second choice if you would like to go on two trips this summer. If additional spots are available for that second trip, once St. James’ youth who have not been on another mission trip in the summer of 2008 have made their choice, we will take St. James’ second-time summer missioners first—and then fill the spots with non- St. James’ friends and family.
- That you uphold the spirit of mission—to bring good news to the poor, expecting that you will be transformed in the process.
- That YOUTH sign up to go on a trip. We don’t accept parental sign ups. Youth must initiate the contact with Pastor Mary.
Middle School Mission Trips:
Middle School Outreach Camp: August 25-28. Outreach Camp was a huge success last year, and we are once again offering a week-long day camp for all middle school youth (rising 6th-8th graders.) We travel to Washington, DC, and visit rural locations such as Woodstock, VA, to engage in hands on outreach. We work in potato fields and the streets of DC. This is a great opportunity to experience the breadth of outreach that we can do without traveling too far!
Jackson-Feild Home for Girls: April 11 & 12 (Friday and Saturday, Friday is a public school teacher workday.) Our middle schoolers will be traveling to Jarrett, VA, to build a serenity garden at the Jackson-Feild Home for Girls. St. James’ has been a long-time financial supporter of the girls’ home, and now we are lending our hands, rakes, shovels, and hearts to build a garden where the girls can find a bit of peace and quiet!
Senior High Mission Trips (rising 9th grade-rising college freshmen):
Towel Ministry: June 20-27. Once again, we will return to Valle Crucis, NC, for a senior high mission trip. All rising 9th graders-rising college freshman are eligible to go, but we do have space limitations. If the dates present a problem for youth who are involved with graduation ceremonies, we will offer a Saturday departure. Towel is a program that centers on home repair and renovation, but don’t worry, you don’t need any special skills to participate. The emphasis is as much on building relationships with the home-owners as on the labor itself.
- Solar Light for Africa: July 10-23. Seven teens and three adults will be traveling to Liberia to work with the girls who attend the Bromley School. We will be installing solar light panels and leading a Vacation Bible School. This trip is filled.
- Welch, West Virginia: July 13-19. We will work with St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in an area called “Premier Park.” Premier Park is home to 50-75 people, many of whom are on disability, most of whom cannot work, and all of whom live on very limited incomes. The people of St. James’ have, each summer for several years, have traveled to Welch to build decks and ramps (for those requiring handicapped access). Ken Getty is missioner-in-charge, and master builder who teaches those who do not know how to use power tools. Worship is a feature of each day. But a key part of this trip is meeting and talking with the residents of Premier Park, many of whom are happy to share their profound and lively faith.
- Gulfport, Mississippi: August 3-9. We will return to Mission on the Bay to help with Hurricane Katrina reconstruction. This is a great opportunity to lend a helping hand to the efforts to rebuild the Gulf Coast… and you don’t need any special skills to participate.
Should you have questions about any of our youth offerings, don’t hesitate to contact Pastor Mary!