Summertime. It brings to mind words like vacation, ballgames, swimming, and lots of other fun and leisurely activities, doesn’t it? Perhaps not for two different groups of volunteers from two entirely different states, who found their way to Coyote Hill Foster Care Ministries during the heat of the summer.
First, a youth group from Norphelt United Methodist Church in southern Arkansas drove nine hours from home to spend three days at The Hill. Youth leader Clay Mills & his wife Shasta brought a group of 12 youth and 4 adults to serve in any way they could. This included everything from cleaning & organizing, to scraping & painting, to playing with the kids. We noticed some correspondence from Clay included their group’s mission statement, “Our purpose is to allow our kids and parents the opportunity to grow in their Faith from the experience of serving others.” They certainly worked hard at fulfilling that purpose during their time at The Hill!
The following week, a group of college age students from Candlewood Church in Omaha, Nebraska spent some time at The Hill. This group came to Columbia to spend a few days working alongside their sister church, Valley View Community, in various service projects. Their first day included working at the Food Bank alongside a few staff and youth from Coyote Hill Foster Care Ministries who were also volunteering at the same time. Later that day a group of about 20 people from Candlewood and Valley View came out to The Hill, to assist in our preparations for this year’s Open House event. They painted basketball court lines, stained a deck, painted trim and played with kids during their hours of service. Pastor Ed Algya of Valley View said they certainly didn’t come out for any recognition, but were just happy to be able to serve together. A Candlewood volunteer also mentioned that she really enjoyed seeing our ministry first hand, and wished there was the same type of ministry back home in Omaha.
Thanks Norphelt UMC and Candlewood Church for spending so many hours on the road, in order to give of your time and efforts to our ministry – we deeply appreciate it.
Here are a few pictures of their time at The Hill.
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