The Journey to Strong
A big part of expanding horizons for our youth looks like inviting them to share the road with great people in new environments.
The mix of bringing them outside the familiarity of the neighborhood and into new territory puts them off balance. As we walk alongside them, they start to adjust, and we get to provide the balancing hand when things get hard.
We’ve all been there before. Someone invites us to step into some unfamiliar territory (a new experience, a new book, a new flavor). We struggle to adjust, but with a little encouragement and trust, we soon realize, “Hey, this is the best.”
This summer, two Providence Road Youth, Kevin, and Jarroid (J’), had the chance to serve at Camp blessing in Brenham, TX, for five days as part of the dining hall crew. The camp experience, centered around kids and adults with special needs, presented a unique opportunity for our youth to step into ‘strong’ for the sake of others and experience an entirely different culture.
Camp Blessing, an award-winning Christian summer camp ministry designed for children and adults with special needs (physical/developmental/intellectual disabilities), offers a week-long residential, barrier-free camp surrounding them with love, acceptance, and fun.
At first look, our guys weren’t sold on the opportunity, complaining about sharing lodging with the other volunteers. However, after spending some time getting into the work, Kevin, who was unhappy about the lodging situation, came up to Cole Erno and said;
“Hey Cole, I don’t want to switch cabins anymore!”
A win!
Being part of the crew and serving is hard work and what we love about hard work is it provides so many opportunities for our guys to gain distinction. As staff members, we get to model what vulnerability looks like in this environment offering a new approach to challenging situations.
During the week, J’ struggled with the apprehension of returning home.
“This is my only getaway, and I don’t want to go back to baton rouge”
This served as a reminder that, while getting out of town can produce incredible moments for change, the primary goal of Providence Road has always been supporting youth in their home communities.
By coming alongside youth by providing a safe, adult support system, these youth, in turn, learn how to provide that safety to others.
At the conclusion of the week, camp leaders expressed high praise for both Kevin and J’ saying that ‘they were the hardest workers they had seen all summer.’
A huge win for the community!
This is the invitation of Providence Road, and it serves as a reminder to us as adults that the act of being vulnerable with our own stories is the practice ground that leads to major victories in life.
When we are willing to share the stuff that matters, relationships are changed, and we receive the benefits of community on a whole new level.
