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photo by Eric Johnson
Pastors Patricia Toshak, right, and Dennis Tamke are surrounded by members of this year's confirmation class who took part in a mission trip to Illinois. They are left, going clockwise: Erin Dankert, LukeMay, Neil Klein, Ryan Lysne and Kendra Miller.
Mission accomplished
Local confirmation class returns from mission trip
Published Thursday, July 23, 2009
Five 13-year-olds put their hands and hearts to work during a mission trip last week in Illinois.
The First United Methodist Church/Fellowship United Methodist Church confirmation class chose to travel to Petersburg, Ill. for their mission trip July 11-17.
Chaperoned by pastors Patricia Toschak and Dennis Tamke, the students participated in a United Methodist Volunteers in Mission camp, where they were part of a 42-member group from around the country who helped out in various capacities in the Petersburg area.
Kendra Miller, Erin Dankert, Luke May, Neil Klein and Ryan Lysne — all entering the eighth grade this fall — left July 11, detouring through Missouri before heading to their destination. The group chose Petersburg because their churches have never attended that particular camp.
Miller went to the Mary Bryant Home for the Blind and Visually Impaired to help them with various tasks.
“One day we were getting ready for a baby shower,” Miller said. “And, we washed windows. One day we had to send out letters. Another day we helped out with Vacation Bible School.”
“We went to a home, and they had a huge garden, and we had to guide them through it so they could smell it,” said Lysne, who also volunteered at the home.
Klein helped out at a nursing home.
“We exercised with them,” he said. “We sang for them. I liked doing it.”
Toschak said one special opportunity for them was volunteering at the Washington Street Mission, where food and clothing are provided for the homeless.
Some students helped out at a sports camp, where they played Capture the Flag and kickball with younger children. The group attended the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum and Presidential Library in Springfield, Ill. one day, and had daily activities.
“We had club times, where you share things,” May said. “You could have a happy story or a ‘Yay, God,’ where you saw God in a person that day.”
Dankert explained that the students had a Happy Fun Bag, with notes “to show someone they were doing good that day.”
“Some people helped out with the breakfast,” Lysne said. “We did devotions in our book and read about prayer.”
The hardest part about their mission trip was leaving, Toschak said.
“They made very good friends,” Toschak said.
The class raised money for their trip using “Miles for Missions.” They sold “miles” for $1 to reach their $1,000 goal, even beating it by $50.
Toschak said she has seen the class mature because of the mission experience.
“I think they became aware of the variety of needs in the world,” Toschak said. “They never complained.”
The class will be confirmed Oct. 25.
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Comments
Posted by Littletoad (anonymous) on July 23, 2009 at 3:54 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I'm confused! Couldn't the charity work of been done just as well here at home and the monies spent on travel and "Happy Fun Bags" wired to the community for something really needed.....it's just these types of wasteful practices where I find it so hard to suppport these groups! If I ever hear of someone going 100's of miles to wash some windows, well I'll probably croak!
Sorry for the bashing, but I really think people priorities are misplaced at times, or at least how they carry them out!
Posted by petakillsanimals (anonymous) on July 23, 2009 at 6 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Littletoad , your a cold blooded complain about everything do nothing loser! And I am sure you voted for the comedian and the Kenyan!
Posted by Littletoad (anonymous) on July 23, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Peta....sorry, you missed my point....their money and effort would of gone further if they if applied it closer to home....charity dollars are supposed to be hard to get, so why not get the best bang for the buck, what's cold hearted about that?!
Posted by Aletheia_Kratos (anonymous) on July 23, 2009 at 8:54 p.m. (Suggest removal)
What is cold hearted is that you took a benign story about some folks who put themselves out and did some good in the world and turned it into a story about their wasting resources.
Who are you to determine how they spend their resources? Who are you to judge how they spend their time and their money and their talents?
If they followed your thinking, they would have simply gone to work and earned more money so they could write out a check to some cause you deem worthy.
Perhaps they were interested in more than just giving away money. Perhaps they wanted to spend some time as a group doing good in a community to which they have no affinity. Perhaps they saw value in the experience of traveling somewhere and working together on something bigger than themselves.
Perhaps they have a deeper and broader understanding of charity than your extraordinarily judgmental and shallow view.
Maybe you would like me to arrange a reporter to come to your house and tell us how you spend your time so we could sit in judgment on your choices. I am sure you waste more money each and every month on trivial things than they collectively spent on their trip. Their "waste" actually accomplished some good for them and for people they don't know and will never see again. Your waste satisfies your personal base desires.
So who should be judged?
Posted by petakillsanimals (anonymous) on July 23, 2009 at 9:37 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Toad I didn't miss your point. We have to hear about all the bad that bad people do day after day after day. And here we actually have an article of good people doing good and then you make a comment like that. In the words of our new president "you acted stupidly".
Posted by Littletoad (anonymous) on July 23, 2009 at 11:11 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Peta....Glad you got my point, but now you're confusing me! In your 1st retort you bashed me in referenceing Obama (voting for the kenyan)....now in your 2nd post you're quoting him favoriably and saying I'm "acting with stupidity"! Are you conflicted? You of all people that bash liberals and their spending at "every opportunity" (see any of your posts on other topics) do understand that waste is waste. So if I call it out on a grass roots organization such as a local church group, well then feel free to call me "Mr Stupid" But this "Mr Stupid" would of at least reached more people needs....and isn't that what we're all trying to achieve!
AK....I won't add much to what I've already stated.....but if they have the luxury to go 100's of miles to deliver their charity work then so be it.....just don't complain when you see some lack someplace else and there are no funds to do it! Hardly judgamental....it's just that the "charity pie" is only so big and therefor one needs to be as practical with those toughest of dollars to come by for doing charity work. I won't respond to any of your other "judgemental comments" you made! Thanks!
Posted by Aletheia_Kratos (anonymous) on July 24, 2009 at 8 a.m. (Suggest removal)
You won't here me complain about charities. That isn't my style.
Posted by petakillsanimals (anonymous) on July 24, 2009 at 8:40 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Toad I was being sarcastic, obayme made that racist biased statment seconds after he said " I dont know all the facts yet". Pay attention to exactly who you put into power and what they are doing. They are going to ruin this Nation and will then still blame Bush for it in the end.
Back to the original point of you bashing five 13 year olds doing something good for others. What are you going to do for others this week?
Posted by formeraustinian (anonymous) on July 24, 2009 at 9:08 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Littletoad - You obviously no nothing of mission/missionary work. This was to help these kids see what people in other communities have to go through. It's a growing/learning experience. Often times you can't see the forest for the trees - in other words - when it's in your own backyard you don't get the full effect as going to another community. What a great way for these young people to learn how to respect and appreciate who they are and how good they may have it over others. If they travel somewhere to learn this, where's the damage? They collected $$ so they could go. Do you really think those $$ would have been spent in Austin? Again, back to my original statement - you obviously no nothing of missionary/mission work - maybe you need to attend church to find out about real charity. Or better yet, why don't you go down to the Salvation Army and donate $1000 of your time! Quit bitching about the good things that go on in this world - there aren't that many!!!
Posted by leftys2221 (anonymous) on July 24, 2009 at 9:17 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Who will be to blame when the economy comes around and things start going better? Oh wait they are.
Posted by petakillsanimals (anonymous) on July 24, 2009 at 1:04 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Lefty you remind me of Dorthy when the Wizard of Oz said "dont look behind that curtain". Double digit unemployment, Trillion dollar deficit, they are printing money like mad, socialist healthcare, Hellary is a laughing stock in N. korea, Gov. takeovers of private businesses,
Taxing the rich aka the job makers 55%, and a self proclaimed muslim in the White House...just read his books!
I could go on and on......but let me put my rosed colored glasses on...HEY! your right things are ok now!
Posted by Littletoad (anonymous) on July 31, 2009 at 2:42 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Formeraustinian.....I'm sorry, perhaps I could of done a better job and explained myself or my logic a little clearer....I wasn't bashing their good work or the missionary style of delivery per se. (I am aware of your point regarding)
The US has been at war in the Middle East for a number of years now over "OIL", with a secondary component of "terriorism" (Note: my leanings are that it's "All about Oil" and not really about terrioism at all, but that's another story!) We also know that we have had other conflicts in this area prior to this latest conflict. Point 1)It's this huge military budget that "is not" even reflected in the price of gas and will be paid for by future generations. Point 2) the loss of human life....althou rather small on the US side, I believe the US loss is approx 5000, on the other side it is much, much larger (note here I'm talking civilian and combatants losses) Please fill in between the lines on this, I don't want to write a book on this!
Having said the above....I expect or at least would like the clergy to be of all people the most sensitive to these moral issues especially as it pertains to the human loss of life of war. As it is, it seems to get sweeped under the rug. It seems rather trite to me that we need this fullfilment of doing missionary style "traveling" and yet we need to kill people to do it. Therefore, going back to my delivery method issue, we need to much better job. Perhaps the message I would of liked to of seen would of been where the 2 ministers and the 5 students make a moral stand and say they're not traveling till the killing stops....wouldn't that be a refreshing statement!
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