What I Did Last Summer...

Now that school is back in full swing, my thoughts turn to my own childhood days when I would begin a new school year.

Everyone remembers the dreaded, "What I Did Last Summer" essays assigned by (I believe) every 6th grade teacher in these contiguous United States. The story lines droned on, swimming together in their similarities...

... a week at Church Camp...
... weekend with my grandparents...
... nothing. Just watched TV...
dotted with the occasional blast of excitement when some lucky classmate would gloat over a family vacation to Disney World or the Grand Canyon.
But those were few & far between.

Too bad my kids are homeschooled.
They would have the coolest essays because this summer was nothing short of life-changing.
My two older daughters had the privilege of participating in Healing Place Church's Summer Student Internship known as Navigate & Saturate.

For almost 8 weeks, they attended classes on dealing with world issues (homelessness, poverty, etc.) and Biblical studies.And they worked hard... serving it up for the community in true HPC fashion!

Some or all of the interns were involved with each of these outreaches:
They held car washes (completely free)
cleaned up & painted a school and playground
visited nursing homes and spent time with the patients
participated in the homeless breakfast outreach (NoPlace)
stood on blazing street corners & gave away ice-cold water
spent an afternoon serving kids of the inner city
& volunteering with VBS.

But it wasn't ALL work. ;)

There was a lot of playtime as well.
Hiking through Tunica Hills
Field Day
Free Manicures
Bowling
and, let's not forget, Medieval Day!Each day was exhausting and every day was a blast.
I wish I could have done something like this when I was their age.
Beats spending their days at the mall or lounging in front of the tv.
Best of all, they can't wait to do it all over again next summer.

Students Serving
THIS is the future of HPC!