On a mission: U.M. ARMY works in Washington County
Fifteen-year-olds Maddie Bradbury, left, and Aydan Sullivan, both of Wethersfield, Conn., carry the last of old furnitiure and other items off the front porch before painting it at the home of Mark Wiley of Monongahela. Tommy Dowd, 16, also of Wethersfield, is in the background.
Tommy Dowd, 16, left, of Wethersfield, Conn., and Katie Burton, 15, of Long Island, N.Y., scrape and sand spindle after spindle prior to painting the railing at the home of Mark Wiley of Monongahela. Four students participating in the U.M Army outreach in the Monongahela area and sponsored by the First United Methodist Church in Washington were working at Wiley’s home.
With scraper in hand, Maddie Bradberry, 15, right, of Wethersfield, Conn., watches as Katie Burton, 15, left, of Long Island, N.Y., uses her strength to dislodge the railing as Mark Wiley, owner of the home in Monongahela, and Duncan Merkert, adult team leader, look on Monday.
Mission trips are common summer activities, and the United Methodist Action Reach-out Mission by Youth is no exception. This week, 56 workers descended upon Washington, paint brushes and hammers in hand, to participate in community outreach.
The U.M. ARMY, a national organization, started almost 40 years ago, with a goal “to provide Christ-centered missions that serve people in need and promote spiritual growth and leadership development in youth and young adults.”
This year, there are more than 4,000 participants working on mission week programs across the Southwest, Northeast and Southeast.
The outreach work done during these mission trips involves finding clients who are unable either physically or financially to do the necessary repairs on their homes, such as yard work and painting, or repairing items like doors, windows, stairs and porches. Each week the U.M. ARMY also tries to complete at least one major project, like building a handicap ramp. Clients are not charged for the work because youth and adult participants pay $300, which covers the cost of tools, supplies and meals for the week.
The 56 workers who came to Washington County are composed of church groups from Pennsylvania, Connecticut and New York. Church groups are known to travel as far as 11 hours to participate. This is the first year U.M. ARMY visited Washington, and they are staying at First United Methodist Church.
U.M. ARMY Director Ted Thomas, of Mechanicsburg, was involved in the organization for 10 years. “Everything that we do for people we feel is really important, no matter how little the job or how big the job,” he said. “It’s important because it’s enabling us to develop a relationship with the people in the community, and it’s enabling the youth to be able to develop a relationship with the people they’re serving.”
Each weekday, small teams consisting of one adult and three-to-five youth members set out to predetermined work sites, which are referred to them by local service agencies who know the community, such as Meals on Wheels, Tri-County Patriots for Independent Living or Social Services. There are about 28 sites they hope to reach this week.
Yesterday, one of the groups traveled to the home of Mark Wiley, 59, a Vietnam veteran from Carroll Township. Because of a construction related injury a few years back involving an explosion, Wiley sustained an array of injuries including damage to his frontal left lobe, an orbital blowout fracture, a crushed cheekbone and ripped nerves in his face. His injuries resulted in cognitive issues like long- and short-term memory loss, as well as vision problems. The mission group’s task was to repair steps, paint, fix rails and remove a large number of items off of Wiley’s porch.
“My motions are almost in the direction of tears because I’ve never had a group of people, and on top of it young people, come and help me at this capacity at any time in my life,” Wiley said. “It’s amazing and God bless everyone that is involved because I’m really humble.”
According to Thomas, the program also teaches youth valuable leadership skills. Every day, each team member has a different job, such as team leader, safety inspector, lunch person, navigator and more. Each of these jobs comes with different responsibilities, like packing lunch, ensuring the group has necessary tools for the day or checking for proper safety equipment.
“It also teaches them that it’s not all about them, and they see that once they’ve come and helped someone and are able to see the gratitude on their face,” Thomas said. “It’s really enlightening for us, and it is for them, too.”
Katie Burton, 15, from Huntington, Long Island, came from Centerport United Methodist Church. She said she likes meeting new clients and getting to know them really well, and her favorite part is to sit down at lunch and talk with them as they eat together. The group not only brings lunch for themselves but the clients as well, whom they ask to join in with the devotion before eating.
After the day is over and the repairs are done, each group returns to the host church where they have free time, and participate in activities, such as getting ice cream, playing mini golf or going to a minor league baseball game. Each morning and evening, they also take time for worship.
“One of my favorite parts is to see a 14-year-old stand up in front of the group and talk about their faith and their journey,” said Jennifer Vastardis, U.M. ARMY executive director.
Although participants come from different church groups, they are all one group and one family by the second or third night, Thomas said, explaining it does not take long for them to bond with each other and become friends. The program is not just limited to United Methodist Churches, but is open to all denominations and is open to youth from seventh to 12th grade.
“I can’t say thank you enough,” Wiley said. “And I could not pinpoint which one is working harder. I see this as a gift, and it’s highly appreciated and very precious.”