By Julia Green
Glen Mar’s mission trip to North Carolina from June 21-27 was a major success. For the fourth straight year Glen Mar worked with Carolina Rebuilding Ministry (CRM). From the perspective of a youth who has never been part of anything like this before I can say with full certainty it was also a transformative trip. There’s a lot to cover because a lot got done, but I’m excited to share my experiences and observations from this trip.
I had the unique privilege of writing and delivering the message on our worship night. CRM has a stage with pews for worship, but our amazing group overflowed into the lounge area. Mr. Chad Sellers put together an amazing group of musicians for us, and the live music was truly incredible. Everyone attending the worship filled the room with praise, and it was just such a special touch to the week. This served as a great reminder that we all have a purpose even if we don’t understand what it is just yet.
Our amazing kitchen crew truly never went unnoticed either. The manual labor from repairing these homes is very draining, so to come back to the school and have a fantastic delicious meal is an absolute blessing. I have special dietary preferences and that was a concern going on this trip, but the kitchen crew went above and beyond my expectations. Morning and evening devotion, which my crew got to organize both, gave everyone a creative outlet to praise God in their own way. We had songs, skits, and dances along with our meals.
My job site involved two crews, and we had to raise up a house and build a new floor. This was such a crazy thing I had to wrap my head around. The adults and older youth showed great leadership and patience with everyone throughout the whole process. I’d never used most of the tools involved, but when Mr. Eric Labram asked me to try and had trust in me it most definitely got done. I was so impressed to hear the work going on at the other job sites and the experiences everyone shared. There’s such a bond you build when you’re serving the Lord with these amazing people, I’m a very blessed person to have been on crew G.
Our homeowners were some of the kindest and most unique people. The homeowner at my site, Miss Joann, stood and spoke to us several days and shared how God had been faithful to her by bringing our group to fix her floor. It almost moved me to tears by how much faith she demonstrated. There are so many amazing people out there in the world. My big takeaway from this week is that even those you are closest with can surprise you if you give them the opportunity to express themselves, and that there are so many kinds of people out there to meet, so you have to be brave and put yourself out there.
