Clarence Presbyterian Church's Youth Mission Trip to NYC This year for their Mission Trip, the youth from Clarence Presbyterian Church took the train to Staten Island to help out with an organization called Project Hospitality, also known as PH - an interfaith organization dedicated to feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, and caring for people with HIV/AIDS. For a week, nine senior high youth along with three adults from the congregation helped by preparing and serving food in a soup kitchen, guiding clients through a food pantry, feeding the homeless at the Drop-In Center, and by cleaning the Hospitality Center - a living space reserved for single mothers and children fleeing abuse. While on Staten Island the group was privileged to hear life stories from former homeless people, from persons who are now clean from substance abuse, and from individuals living with HIV. Their stories touched the hearts of both the youth and adults in the group and helped to take down the wall of stereotypical images so often associated with these individuals. Many of the youth returned home with new concepts and ideas in their heads, such as: - Homeless people, substance addicts and people with HIV are really not unlike us at all.
- Some of these unfortunate people had as great a start at life as we have had.
- Everyone’s life journey is important.
- Everyone has feelings no matter what their plight.
Upon returning home the group decided to adopt the words of Tony, one of the volunteers at PH, to summarize everything they had learned from their experience: - You are in charge of your own decisions, no matter what your life experience.
- People do care even if you think they don't.
- We can all make an impact in a positive or negative way and not even realize it.
For more about the experiences of the Clarence Presbyterian Youth on their Mission Trip visit: http://www.clarpresby.com/information/youth/mission-trip-2009-project-hospitality-in-nyc For more about Project Hospitality you can visit their website at: http://www.projecthospitality.org/
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