Working together
Mission Week projects unite a congregation
Members of the Derry Presbyterian Church fill backpacks for people who are homeless as one of their many Mission Week projects.
Each summer Derry Presbyterian Church in Hershey, PA hosts an annual Mission Week where over two hundred members and friends participate in activities coordinated by the church’s Mission & Peace Committee.
Each day there are new opportunities to go to learn about a mission supported by the church, whether it’s across the globe or just outside the church doors.
This year during Mission Week, a dozen people went to Nicaragua to build a cinderblock house and lead a mini-vacation Bible school complete with crafts and puppet shows. The church has done a trip like this for the past fifteen years.
Members and friends also worked closer to home on hands-on projects for groups like Habitat for Humanity and the Joshua Farm, an urban farm in Harrisburg.
The congregation also does service projects within the church walls. This year they assembled school kits (backpacks) for Church World Service refugee families in nearby Lancaster, PA. Members donated the school supplies that went into the kits.
They also made homemade casseroles in the church kitchen that were frozen and used later for meals supporting Family Promise, a group that supports homeless families in Harrisburg.
“Mission Week gives our members an opportunity to get to know one another better as they work side by side in small groups and learn about many of the programs the church supports,” says Susan George, director of communications and technology at Derry church.” “We seek to be the hands and feet of Christ, and to make a difference in our community.”
The congregation hopes the program will continue to grow people’s faith.
“We’re excited about building upon our Mission Week experiences and continuing to grow in our outreach efforts and relationships with mission partners,” says pastor Marie Buffaloe.