Print Issue: October 17, 2002

Spare Time To Serve: Living The Call Of Jesus

Teens from the Church of St. Ann, Marietta, participate in a mission trip to Mustard Seed Communities in Kingston, Jamaica, this past summer.

By Erika Anderson, Staff Writer

ATLANTA - It's your typical Saturday morning. Free from the school morning wake-up calls, most high school teens are doing what they love best - sleeping in.

But there is a new trend.

For many teens in the Archdiocese of Atlanta, their free time consists of much more than shopping, sports or fun with their friends. Instead, they use their spare time living their call to do unto others as Jesus did.

This issue of The Georgia Bulletin's Youth News is an effort to help all teens fully live that call. You are the church. You can make a difference.

WHY SHOULD YOU SERVE?

Celeste Frey, a high school junior from the Church of the Good Shepherd, Cumming, said she has volunteered in nursing homes, as a youth leader for middle-schoolers on their confirmation retreat and during Christmas in the parish's live Nativity scene.

"When you serve, you become closer to God and you help others to realize how important God really is," she said.

She said that when she was younger, she was influenced by the older girls she saw serving. She enjoys giving of herself because of the benefits she receives.

"Some of the people (you serve) are so lonely and just to see the smile on their faces makes you feel so good about yourself," she said.

Rosemary Walsh, a senior at Marist School, Atlanta, said that serving has strengthened her faith life.

"You are serving just like Jesus did," she said. "I have gained a lot of faith from the people I visit with."

She also has gained inspiration from her peers. Though Walsh said she has well over the number of Marist-required service hours, she hopes that helping others will always be a part of her life.

"It's great because you get a feeling of being needed and wanted," she said. "They appreciate you."

CAN YOU REALLY MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

In 1997, the youth group from Prince of Peace Church in Buford took on a small project to help impoverished people in Nicaragua. That project developed into Amigos for Christ, a nonprofit organization that is committed to serving the people of Central America and the Caribbean. As of 2000, Amigos for Christ had raised over $200,000 for the people of Nicaragua.

Amigos has helped fund a feeding center, renovate a health center, build two elementary schools and purchase a mobile medical unit staffed by a doctor and dentist. Amigos has also helped collect musical instruments for the Santa Lucia School for the Blind and has reconstructed more than 150 homes lost in 1998 during Hurricane Mitch.

"This organization has come as far as it has because of the enthusiasm of young people," said John Bland, director of Amigos for Christ. "Of course they need adult leadership, but you put them together and it's amazing. It's like the teens are forcing adults to act."

And despite the bad rap that teenagers sometimes receive, Walsh, who attended a mission trip to Jamaica and volunteers regularly at soup kitchens and shelters, has seen firsthand the commitment to service that her fellow teens have.

"You probably can find a few kids that fit that (negative) stereotype, because you always hear about the bad stuff," she said. "You might not realize that there are kids out there who are doing good things. It's great to see people give of themselves so selflessly and making so many sacrifices for others. It really encourages you."

Karen Shanahan, community service coordinator at Marist, encourages teens, not their parents, to call and make appointments to volunteer. Above all, she said, be ready for anything.

"We don't go in there and start changing things. We ask, 'How can we help?' If they ask you to clean the toilets and you want to help, you clean the toilets."