Mission trip 2014

MISSION TRIP 2014

AMEN/St. LouisJuly 7-11, 2014

Home, Sweet Home…for one week

Bunk beds and air conditioning !

Our First Assignment –Curby Presbyterian Church

We will help with VBS….. But first….

We help clean up neglected areas of the building

Beginning with + 300 pounds of recyclable metal from the “Dirt Room” underneath the sanctuary

Moldy books and supplies from the “Dirt Room” go to the alley dumpster

We clean from bottom to top….Including debris from the church tower

Meanwhile, Ralph helps replace burnt out lights.

There are 9 children the first night…over 15 by the third night of VBS

Tuesday’s Task – Paint the halls of Isaiah 58 – a food pantry & service center

We remove furniture and bulletin boards as clients come and go in the morning.

Next we tape the walls.

After the clients leave, we paint the walls.

And paint the walls…

And paint the walls.

Cooling Off After a Long Day of Work

Wednesday – Gateway Gardens

Gateway Gardens is a project acrossurban St. Louis of planting gardens in empty lots to assist people in learning to grow food, to create opportunities for people to connect socially, and to encourage biodiversity.

Abandoned Buildings around the garden plot where we worked

We prepared new beds for planting

Installed a concrete base and post for water hoses

We mowed around the raised beds and fence

We weed whipped the edges of beds

After a long day in the heat and after helping with VBS, we enjoyed some ice cream

Thursday – Kingdom House

Established in 1902, it is near downtown St. Louis

Roofing repairs to outdoor shelters

And more roofing repairs

Turning compost in their bins

They composted from their yard waste, but also food scraps

After lunch, sorting in the Kingdom House Thrift Shop

The Thrift Shop included clothing for men and women

We even found a few items we considered purchasing

Then back to Curby Memorial for another night of VBS

Friday – Grace Hill Center

Abandoned housing owned by St. Louis City Land Reclamation Authority near Grace Hill’s facility

Still more abandoned housing around where we worked

Head Start Children we accompanied to Grace Hill’s “Peace Park.”

And, of course, they had a gardening project too

Grace Hill’s Head Start program used the gardens to teach children about nutrition and food as well as gardening skills.

Before we started on one of the beds

The same bed….after we finished.

Grace Hill’s Fruit Orchard where they teach about foods, nutrition, and gardening skills.

Bye, Bye…..Each group leaves a picture on

the wall at AMEN/St. Louis when they leave.

The gift of First Presbyterian Church to the people and ministries of St. Louis

• Six people

• 35 Hours of service

TOTAL HOURS OF SERVICE – 210 hours or 5 ½ weeks of one person working alone

TOTAL DOLLAR VALUE - $3,150(@ $15/hour)