Today was our first full day here in Beckley, WV and it did not disappoint! At Youth Works there are some quirky traditions that they have and one of our team's favorite is that team that prepped either breakfast or dinner has to creatively introduce the meal that we are about to consume. The two groups that prepared breakfast and dinner tonight set the bar VERY high for the rest of the week!
Each van has become its own serving group for the week, going to their own serving site during the day. We have asked a leader from each group to provide a recap of their team's day below:
Group 1 (the "Zion Zingers") went to Harper Mills Nursing and Rehabilitation center. At Harper Mills the group split during the morning with half of them painting the raised vegetable patches that some of the residents tend too and the other half of the group helped out the staff during the resident's morning activity. The whole group came together to help the staff serve lunch and had the opportunity to get to meet and talk with a number of the residents. After lunch they worked on building and painting more raised garden beds for the residents to tend too.
Group 2 (the "Appalachian Aces") went to Energy Express, which is a summer reading and nutritional program for children living in West Virginia's rural and low-income communities. Spread out over three classrooms at Beckley Elementary School, the group supported the Americorps Energy Express leaders and encouraged the students through art activities, gym exercise, and a time of one-on-one reading. The group ate lunch at the school, and then departed for a worksite at a local woman's house who needs her porch stain. The team got right to work with masks, goggles, work gloves, sandpaper and brushes to smooth the deck as we hope to see it restored while here! There was a great energy and willingness to serve.
Group 3 (the "Rocky Rangers") went to the School of Harmony, it's a repurposed middle school that began as a place for kids in the community interested in music. They now rent out space to various businesses: a daycare, fitness classes, a local church, an accountant, and also a food pantry that opens every Saturday. The group spent the morning mopping, sweeping, and vacuuming the rooms and hallways. After breaking for lunch, the group unloaded a food shipment, restocked the shelves of the food pantry, and watered plants around the campus. There was tons of energy and willingness to work hard in every task they were given!
Group 4 (the "Himalayan Homies") went to a local resident's house, Miss Linda, to paint her kitchen and two bedrooms. The girls split up into three groups to tackle this massive project. Before grabbing their brushes the girls all helped each deep clean the kitchen walls and move the furniture around in the bedrooms. As they painted, they took small breaks to talk with Miss Linda and a few of her family members that were around the house to get to know them a little bit better. After eating lunch, together the girls got right back to work putting a second coat of paint on the walls and setting the furniture back how they found it.
Group 5 ( the "Pyrenees Pals") went to the Heart of God Church in the town of Beckley. This church has a summer camp program for kids who are at or below the poverty line. With today being the first day of camp, this group helped rally the local kids by participating in dance competitions and lessons on nutrition. The amazing staff at the church prepares 2 meals a day for the local kids. Our group helped serve the kids food and helped clean up after it was all done. Following lunch, we played outside with the kids and had a great time getting to know them more. We are excited to spend all week with this group and further our relationship with the kids and the church.
In the late afternoon all 5 groups came together and we went to the Beckley Coal Mine Exhibition Museum and had the opportunity to learn more about the history of the city and its relationship with the mine. It was a great experience to get to understand the people we are getting to serve this week. After the museum, we headed back to the 4H camp for dinner and showers.
Finally, we had our first Porch Time of the week. Porch Time is our nightly debrief where we reflect on the day we had and hear how God showed up in our group. We worshiped in song and heard a talk from Nick setting up the week and challenging our team to seek opportunities to leave any distractions they may have behind and seek to live this week out with a heart of service.
Thank you for praying for us as we continue to experience what this trip has to offer and we are excited to see what God has in store for us tomorrow!
