How our teens spent their summer vacation

Thank you for all the support and prayers from the Mother Teresa Community for the teen group during the Catholic Heart Workcamp mission trip In Richmond, Va., in July.

Over the week, the 29-member group volunteered at 12 agencies devoted to serving the greater Richmond community.

Here's what our teens did at these agencies.

Housing Families First is a nonprofit that works with homeless families. They have three main programs: a short-term emergency shelter for families, a rapid re-housing program to help families move to permanent housing as quickly as possible, and a school partnership with Richmond, Chesterfield, and Henrico County Schools to help students and their families precariously housed in hotels and overcrowded living situations move to permanent housing.

During our time at HFF, we helped clean the shelter, make snack bags for the families, and inventoried supplies used by the shelter for cleaning and outfitting apartments with new linens and household and toiletry items.

We also helped with their upcoming school supply drive, did outreach to community members, and helped kids get ready for camp.

Here’s a short video of what we accomplished during our week there.

Boaz & Ruth is a nonprofit in the center of Highland Park, one of Richmond’s most troubled areas. Boaz & Ruth advances a mission of rebuilding lives and communities through relationships, training, transitional jobs, and economic revitalization.

They employ a holistic approach to those affected by unemployment, underemployment, formerly incarcerated, or returning from rehabilitation.

We assisted them in several tasks during our time at Boaz and Ruth. We worked in two teams replacing and painting fences around the homes and cleaning and painting an apartment to prepare it for occupancy. We also helped to organize the thrift store.

Sleep in Heavenly Peace believes that all children deserve a safe, comfortable place to lay their heads. Across the US, too many boys and girls go without a bed — or even a pillow — to sleep on. Their motto is: No kid sleeps on the floor in our town. Volunteers are dedicated to building, assembling, and delivering top-notch beds to children and families in need.

Nirmal, Daniel, and Brandon volunteered with this organization during the mission trip. They built 12 beds and delivered 8. 

"I enjoyed volunteering at Sleep in Heavenly Peace, making beds for those less fortunate," said Brandon. "The most enjoyable part was delivering them, connecting with the children, and seeing the smiles on their faces." He recalled Mother Teresa, who said, "In doing your best, serving others for free, a lot of eyebrows will raise, and sneers will curve many a - faces."

Team members Ashlynn, Luke, Michael, Morgan, Caleb, Ava, Nic, and Kori volunteered at Bellemeade Park during the mission trip. 

They worked outdoors to clean and beautify the area and played with the children.

Bellemeade Park offers children the chance to connect to the natural world through creative play, exploration, and bonding, both within our families and the wider community.

This connection to nature promotes lifelong learning, physical and mental health, and happiness. 

Luke, a second-year camper, said, "At Bellemeade Park, we were led by Mr. Bob, a gentleman who has dedicated 20 years of his life to expanding the park and giving inner-city kids the opportunity to learn about the outdoors. My group mulched areas, created paths and even got to spend time with the kids at the park. The experience was heartwarming, and it made me appreciate what I have at home."

Michael, a third-year camper, said, "During the week I worked at Bellemeade, most of the time, I was outside doing physical work and collaborating with my team, which came from around the country."

"The experience that was most impactful to me was being able to speak Spanish with some of the little ones that didn’t know English while we played."
 

The Sacred Heart Parish community seeks to reflect more on the mystery of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to all. They are a community of learners. They learn from each other and commit themselves to spiritual formation and acquiring skills for life.

The parish holds a special place in the diocese for evangelization and pastoral outreach to Spanish speakers. It serves as a resource for ministry with them while, at the same time, welcoming all who wish to call Sacred Heart their home.

Teens Alex G, Kaegin, Jayson, and Ryan volunteered their time at the parish center during the mission trip. The two teams completed yard work, repairs, painting, and odd jobs at the parish and for parishioners.

"I really loved the connections I gained in CHWC, not just the people we helped but the other volunteers too,” said Kaegin. "The trip helped to fester a deeper connection with my faith that I hope continues to grow as I do.”

"The Catholic Heart Work Camp was a fun and new experience that helped me and many other teens connect through God and come together to help less fortunate people," added Alex G.
 

Adult chaperone Tim along with teens Alex S. and Chris R and the rest of their team, worked at Marywood Apartments (Section 8 Housing) cleaning apartments, assisting residents with technology, and planning a luncheon/game day with residents.

Alex, a first-year camper, said, "I worked in Marywood Apartments, which is a retirement house, and for work, the manager of the apartments would tell us a room that we needed to go to, and we would just help out and do what even needed to be done. During that week, I met some really kind and nice people that I am really going to miss."

At Marywood Apartments, the happiness and well-being of every resident is a priority. They provide a comfortable, independent living community for seniors (62 years old or greater) or those applying for an apartment specifically constructed to be accessible to individuals with physical disabilities. 

One of our adults, Ross, led a group of teens at SOAR365. The Richmond-based not-for-profit company was created in 1954 by families determined to find a better way of caring for their loved ones with disabilities.

Our wide range of programs and services are designed for individuals and families coping with the daily real-world challenges of living with a disability. SOAR365 has a profound impact on the 1,300 individuals and families they serve each year.

The team spent many hours landscaping, power washing, and painting reaction areas designed for people with disabilities.

They spent six hours cleaning an outdoor seating/recreational area and another five hours painting wheelchair ramps and other equipment at an outdoor camp for people with disabilities. They spent the last day landscaping at an outdoor park.


2023 Mission Trip
Photo Album