Summer Youth Mission Trip 2011
June 11 - June 18; Boston
by Dr. Betty Weckerly, Director of Christian Formation
First Church Charlestown, Boston, Massachusetts
This coming summer will mark the eighteenth year that West Plano Presbyterian Church has extended hands
of service and hearts of love through the Summer Youth Mission Trips. After three meetings with the Christian
Formation Committee and parents, we proposed that the 18th trip the week of June 11-18, 2011, will be to serve
the people of Boston Mass. We will join with the larger church through service at City Mission Society of
Boston and be housed at First Church UCC in Charlestown, Massachusetts. This trip offers our youth a unique,
cross-cultural experience in a region of the country offering new insights into the concerns for justice facing
our nation.
While in Boston, our group will be participating in a mission trip coordinated by Boston Urban Outreach, a
program of City Mission Society of Boston (CMS). CMS is the oldest faith based social service agency in New
England and the second oldest in the country. Through Boston Urban Outreach, we will have the opportunity to
serve individuals who are homeless, but more importantly, we will share meals and experiences with some of these
individuals. These personal experiences will reaffirm the value of all people. An important part of our "work"
will be providing a "ministry of presence", sharing stories with others and building relationships with people
of varied backgrounds and traditions. We do plan to get dirty and will have some hands on projects as well.
Our group will be staying at First Church of Charlestown.This United Churchof Christ congregation is very small,
only about twenty members, however it has survived for over 375 years. John Harvard, the founder of Harvard
University was one of the early pastors. Our group will lead worship at the church on Sunday and their community
will host us for lunch. Another worship experience that we are looking forward to is the weekly Jazz Worship
Service at Old South Church in Boston, another UCC church with a rich historic past.
While in Boston, our mission coordinator, Rev. Carl McDonald, has estimated that our group will serve for over 350
hours and will impact the lives of over 1000 people! Thanks be to God.
WPPC Boston Mission Trip team working on a project
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