I had the honor to go on four summer mission trips with the Grace Church Youth group, back when Tim Osborne was our youth minister. We generally had approximately 10 high school teenagers on the trips, accompanied by 2 or 3 adults. We planned our trips through The Center for Student Missions (CSM) (Our Purpose, Beliefs & Values — City Service Mission), which is a nationwide program that arranges housing and local connections in different cities for such summer youth programs. Joan DeJong and Al Daidone were among other adults that devoted one week of their summers to these trips, and they both went on many more such trips for many years.
I recall three of the cities where I participated: Philadelphia, Toronto, and Nashville. These trips were great learning experiences for the teenagers. learning through real life experience an aspect of their Christian faith about helping the homeless and needy. For most of the trips we drove to the city in two vans that could hold all the students, their suitcase belongings, and the adult leaders. On the trip to Nashville we went by plane. I believe that every student that made such a mission trip came back home with an expanded awareness of the larger world, and what it means to spread the love of Christ through charitable deeds, and loving care. As the scripture says, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” (Matthew 25:40) How surely these were heart-opening events for the teenagers that they would not have had otherwise, and such experiences I feel certain will be lasting them a lifetime. Not only for their own lives, but as they move through adulthood they will be compassionate, inspirational leaders wherever they go, and whatever they do. The value of those mission trips can not be measured.
It was not always easy either. I remember in Philadelphia the building and facilities provided were double bunk beds, in crowded rooms with no air conditioning, in the midst of heat wave temperatures well up in the 90s F. I recall in Toronto that one evening we were broken up into groups of four or five, and each person given about $1.50, and had to roam the city the entire evening until 11 p.m., needing to buy a dinner with $1.50; find a place with restrooms that would permit entry to non-customers (we eventually had to walk a long distance to a city-owned building that would lock their doors at 9 p.m.); to know what it feels like to be scorned when asking strangers for money; and to imagine what it must be like to be homeless with no safe place to shelter for the night, and sleep, only to waken in the morning without the money to buy a breakfast.
In fact, in Toronto, we had a guide from CSM, who had at one time been homeless, and he explained the skill of choosing an outdoor place to sleep in the entryway to a store. He said to choose a location where, should one be attacked to be robbed of what little money they had, there was an escape route, rather than be trapped in a vestibule with no escape. We were told about a homeless person who froze to death in the 0º F temperatures of Toronto, and lay frozen dead in the street by the curb near City Hall for two days before anyone realized what had happened. Our formerly homeless guide told us that he had worked for a giant tech company, and was laid off two years before he would be eligible for full retirement benefits. At his age he could not find another job. He decided he could not live the rest of his life on significantly reduced benefits, and thus was willing to become homeless for two years so he could wait for the time to elapse to claim his full government benefits. Sadly, living homeless did take a toll on his health.
In Nashville, we spent a few hours at a large facility where the homeless could get free meals, and sat around tables playing board games with each other. We interacted socially with them, played the games with them, and they were very skilled domino players and would beat us every time. It was so congenial, not exactly what I would call fellowship because we were not living their hardships, but it was very humanizing to interact person to person, having a conversation about whatever might seem suitable, and being careful not to offend. Also, in Nashville, when there was a heatwave, the city permitted the homeless to stay cool, to remain all day in the overnight facility where there was air conditioning. Kudos to Nashville, because most cities do not allow such comforts to the homeless.
On some trips we worked on fixing the homes of poor people who could not afford much needed indoor or outdoor painting, or doing some carpentry work they could otherwise not afford. I think I can vouch for Joan and Al (who made many more trips than I did) that these trips were transformative for them as well, though even more importantly for the teenagers. There are many ways to worship and honor the Lord Jesus Christ, and these mission trips provided real-time, in-person teaching of good deeds at a young age. It does take adult supervision and sacrifice to support such trips, but I think it is clear that such youth projects can bring relief and deliverance for those in great need. The kindness to the poor and oppressed was even more important than the benefits that accrued to the youth and the adult supervisors. Again, the work that our Grace volunteers do with Friends of Grace and Family Promise is an extension of exceptionally important ways of serving the most needy suffering among God’s children. Amen!
Henry Gerstman