Teens from the Presbyterian Church in Morristown devote week to serve others

On June 29, twelve high school students packed up vans with tables, hand bells, music stands, trumpets, and a violin.  The Ringers-on-the-Green were off to the Outer Banks, North Carolina for a week of spreading joy through hand bell performances.  Concerts were held at churches in Virginia and the Outer Banks.  The repertoire included many classical selections, as well as one popular song, Just Dance by Lady Gaga arranged for hand bells.  The annual trip was planned months before, and fundraisers were held throughout the year.  The musical tour was anticipated by the Ringers-on-the-Green who had perfected their music through many long hours of practice.

The Presbyterian Church in Morristown’s high school youth group, Koinonia, volunteers through the RISE program every summer.  The Risingville Intercommunity Service Effort focuses in Steuben County, New York to help families with home repairs.  This year, Koinonia traveled to Jasper, NY with fifteen high school students and six adult leaders on July 8^th through July 14^th.  Their projects included fixing a retaining wall, building steps, and dry walling.  The teenage excitement of a job well done is expressed through many laughs along the way.  As Angie Rines, Director to Youth and Young Adult Ministry said one day, “Today consisted of banana peel fights, singing Lion King, Jesus music in the shower, hip hop Disney, and finally finishing our ceiling!”  One highlight of the RISE experience is learning to “mosey”.  This idea is in place to make sure the teams get to know the families they are working for, as well as each other.  And mosey they did, by the end of the week, home owners smiled and waved, some with tears, as the teams drove away from their homes.

Another group from The Presbyterian Church in Morristown headed off to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on July 22^nd and will return home on July 28^th.  Ekklesia, the middle school youth group, packed up for a week of YouthWorks where they will do work projects and lead a recreational program called Kids Club. The fourteen students and four adult leaders spend the days hard at work and the evenings are enjoyed with devotions and community activities.  The group started out the week by locking the rental van keys in the car.  Overcoming that small challenge seemed to be a bit of practice for YouthWorks.