Join Us! SMP 2015

YOU are invited! 

Summer Mission Project 2015

Youth Ministry Hat

Like many of you here at St. Mark, I wear several different hats. The hat above is my Youth Ministry Hat.   It’s a fun hat to wear, and it’s one of my favorite hats, because it means I’m spending time with some of my favorite people here.  Speaking of which – I wanted to highlight an event that 8 of our youth and 3 adults participated in this past week.  On their day off of school, these kids met up with us at the church in the morning.  Together, we drove out to the Mobile Food Pantry distribution site in Lovingston, VA. We met up with other volunteers and spent the morning unpacking produce and canned goods from the food truck, repacking them in bags, then distributing them to grateful clients in need of assistance, serving a total of 250 families.  My youth ministry hat is a rewarding one to wear, and it’s also a fun one to wear.

PACEM hat

In the coming months, I’ll wear my PACEM hat as we meet together and plan the details of hosting the homeless women in our community for two weeks this February.  We’ll make sure our cozy blankets are laundered and ready to go; we’ll brainstorm ideas of how we will make our guests feel welcomed and loved; we’ll make sure we have all areas of hosting covered by a crew of volunteers.  My PACEM hat serves to remind me how fortunate I am, and that I can demonstrate my gratitude by helping to organize and support shelter for others.

Summer Mission Project hat

And then there’s this bright yellow hat, the one that is the best of both of my other hats.  This is a fun hat, a rewarding hat, and an important hat.  This is the hat I’ll wear for this year’s Summer Mission Project.  Have you heard the news? We are heading to Hartsville, South Carolinaand working with Habitat for Humanity on a blitz build – building one house in one week, start to finish.  We’re partnering with another congregation, Lewinsville Presbyterian Church, and working alongside them to build a house – a home – for a family in need of shelter.  (More on LPC here)  The Habitat for Humanity Summer Mission Project is an intergenerational trip, open to everyone who is age 14 or older. 

Now here’s a surprising and delightful little detail about this hat:  it’s a one-size-fits-all hat.  Do you have a heart for mission?  This hat fits you.  Do you know how to hammer a nail?  This hat fits you.  Do you have no idea how to hammer a nail, but you’re willing to learn?  This hat fits you.  Do you want to make a tangible difference in the lives of your fellow sisters and brothers in Christ?  This hat fits you.  Do you desire to respond God’s love for us through your service to others?  This hat fits you.

And so, I would like to invite YOU to join the SMP Team for the blitz build that will be life-changing for the family who will have a place to call home.  I’m willing to bet that this trip will have a profound and lasting impact on your own life, as well.  Planning is well under way for this trip, and I would love to add YOUR name to the list of participants.  There is a poster in the Narthex with more information, as well as a flyer in my office.  Please, try wearing this hat – I guarantee, it fits anyone with the heart to try it on.