Earlier this summer, 13 members of Life Teen at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Peachtree City eagerly set off for the vacation mecca of central Florida. Their goal was not to hang out with Mickey Mouse or watch the killer whales at Sea World, but to give a week of their time at the Orlando Catholic Heart Workcamp, an annual summer program that serves residents of the city's poorest neighborhoods. Many of the teens said the trip was a life-defining event that helped them to appreciate the church's call to service.

“From the day we arrived, we saw what a difference we made in the lives of these residents,” said Nicole Remillard, a rising senior at East Coweta High School. “We knew why God had called us to be there.”

The teens and their chaperones spent the week painting, doing minor repairs on the houses of senior citizens and handicapped residents, and working with underprivileged children at summer day camps. Holy Trinity parishioners had prepared the youth for their efforts by donating a variety of home improvement and cleaning supplies, from work gloves and hammers to rags and window cleaner.

Catholic Heart Workcamp has a long track record of success—the principal reason Holy Trinity Youth Minister Andy Constantine said he chose the program as the first summer outreach for the church's Life Teen group. Program administrators selected those residents who would receive assistance, arranged shelter for the 300 participating teens from parishes all over the country, and provided extra supplies, food, and evening activities for the group—activities which included concerts, guest speakers, daily Mass, games and social time.

Still, the teens said they gained as much from the experience as they gave, making friends not only with the residents they helped, but also with young people from across the United States. Remillard worked with a group of 7- to 9-year-olds at a day care center for low income children. “They wouldn't stop hugging us,” she recalled. “They were just so hungry for any type of affection.”

Jeff Schortmann, a rising sophomore at Starr's Mill High School, worked with a group of five teens and two adults doing yard work, painting, and making light repairs at a shelter for abused women and children in a rural community on the outskirts of Orlando. “The residents there couldn't believe we had come to Orlando to help them,” he said. “The joy in their faces was awesome.'

Kenny Jubb, also a Starr's Mill sophomore, along with other teens from North Carolina, California and Taiwan, helped paint and repair the home of a woman in her 80s. Each day, Jubb said, she came outside in the scorching heat to visit with the group. On the last day of the workcamp the older woman appeared during their lunch time, stood in front of the group, and expressed her thanks for their hard work.

“The experience changed my life,” Jubb said. “Initially I didn't want to go on this trip, but by the end of the week, I felt good about myself.”

Jessica Lovelace, another rising sophomore at Starr's Mill, agrees. “At first, she said, “I thought we would be building a house. When I learned we would just be cleaning and repairing homes, I wasn't as enthused about the trip. But once I was there, I was glad I went.” Lovelace told about how the residents would sit on the front porch and talk with members of the group while they worked. “And children from the neighborhood would come and play in the yards and help us,” she said. “Even the bus rides back and forth to the school were fun because we had a chance to compare notes with the other teens.”

All who participated said they came away with a desire to return next summer. “There is just such a need for this type of work,” Lovelace said.

Constantine said he hoped members of Holy Trinity's Life Teen group will make an annual pilgrimage to the Catholic Heart Workcamp, which grows in strength and numbers each year. He has already advised teens to mark their calendars for June 10-16, 2001.

“Not only did our teens work and help others,” he said, “but they also met other youth and had a great time. I think the experience taught them that service isn't necessarily a duty they have to endure, but an opportunity for fun and adventure.”

Back to the Top of the PageBack to the Religion Home Page