|
 Group
Mission Trips is a company out of Ft. Collins, CO, and is also the
company that hosts Workcamp. Workcamp is a faith-based program that
lets middle school and high school aged students go on mission trips
to communities all over the country. The students who come on these
mission trips work on home improvement projects people in that
community need done. These projects are usually for people who
cannot do these projects for themselves because of factors outside
of their control, such as age. The students stay in that community
and work for several days before going back home.
At this initial meeting, Todd Henry, the Lincoln
local who first got Workcamp to come here, talked about the history
of getting Workcamp in the community. Henry shared that he had
worked with Workcamp previously, but started to think about the
people in Lincoln who may benefit from having them come here. He
started asking about that possibility, and things got underway. He
first needed a non-profit organization to back him up, and Lincoln
Christian Church was happy to do so. He needed an educational entity
where the kids who came to work could stay. Lincoln Christian
University offered their campus. Henry needed an organization that
would help fund all the materials that were needed for the home
improvement projects, and the Community Action Partnership of
Central Illinois (CAPCIL) filled this role.
Henry then brought up several people to talk about
their experience with Workcamp in 2021. He started with Breann
Titus, the Agency Development Director at CAPCIL. Titus talked a bit
more about CAPCIL’s role in helping fund Workcamp. Donations made to
CAPCIL for Workcamp are put into an account for them to pull from.
The more they are able to fundraise, the more they are able to help
the members of the Lincoln community.
After Titus, Henry brought Lincoln’s mayor, Tracy
Welch, up. Welch talked about how much he supports what Workcamp
does, and how important it is for Lincoln. He was very grateful for
the way Workcamp was able to help beautify the Lincoln community.
Welch further stated that it was nice to see kids from outside the
Lincoln community come here ready to help. He stated he was very
thankful to everyone involved.
Next, Annette Billington came up to talk to everyone.
Billington was one of the people who had their home worked on when
Workcamp came to Lincoln in 2021. She shared that she heard about
Workcamp from a person she worked with, and figured she would reach
out to them about her porch that was falling apart and in need of
repair. Billington then went into detail on how happy the kids were
to be there and how hard of workers they were. She stated it was a
great experience. The kids helped build her a new porch and painted
her garage.
Before Henry called the next person up, he talked a bit more on how
most of the kids that come to a community for Workcamp are from
outside that community. Sometimes, however, there are kids from that
community who want to work, and that was the case of the next
speaker, Madia.
Madia, a Lincoln local, signed up for and fundraised
to participate in Workcamp back in 2021. She heard about the
experience from her youth group and decided she wanted to take part.
Every student who was a part had to raise $450 for things such as
food and lodging, and Madia did this as well.
[to top of second column]
 |
She was a bit nervous and didn’t have much experience
with the type of work she was going to be doing, but she still gave
it her all. She shared that getting to meet other people from around
the country who believed in Christ and wanted to serve others was a
great way to connect more with her own faith.
Henry brought up Jeff Elsas next. Elsas volunteered
to be a chaperone of sorts at Lincoln’s last Workcamp. He was
unaware of what Workcamp was when Henry first reached out to him.
Elsas shared that, as a farmer, he had to put his farming first. The
beans were not going to plant themselves. Needing four or five days
to plant all of the beans, and with rain in the forecast all of
those days, Elsas made an appeal to God. If there was no rain for
those four or five days, he would do Workcamp. Despite the forecast
of rain, no rain came, and Elsas was able to plant his beans and
volunteer at Workcamp. Elsas shared that he talks about servitude in
his life, giving to others rather than giving to yourself. He saw
this in all of the kids he worked with, and was very happy to see
it.
The next person Henry brought up was Karen E. Laine.
Laine is most well known for her show Good Bones on HGTV. Henry had
the idea of getting someone famous to come and pump the kids up who
came to Workcamp. He reached out to Laine on LinkedIn, and she
responded. Laine shared that, while she had never heard of Workcamp
at the time, she felt it was right up her alley. She loved the idea
of ministering to kids through power tools. Henry shared that he was
fully expecting for Laine to come to Lincoln for a day or two and
make appearances at all the job sites. Rather than doing this, Laine
partnered with a group of girls who were working on a wheelchair
ramp, working the entire week with this group to get the project
finished. Laine shared that it was amazing to get to see how
patient, understanding, and enthusiastic everyone was. All the girls
she worked with wanted to find their place on the team, and things
ran perfectly.
Laine then took a moment to talk about Lincoln,
sharing how much she loves this community. “Lincoln is a special
place,” she said. Laine stated that, as an outside observer, she may
see things about the town that someone who grew up here might be too
close to see. She said that people in Lincoln send out an “I want to
help” vibe that is very special. She went on to call visiting
Lincoln and participating in Workcamp “one of the peak experiences”
of her life.
The final person Henry called up to speak was Pastor
Glenn Shelton. Shelton spoke more on how special Workcamp is, and
how great it was to be a part of in 2021. He shared how amazing it
was to get to watch kids do work who were so devoted and committed
to the job. Shelton shared that he knows several people who could
use the help that Workcamp can provide. He then appealed to the
people in the room to donate to CAPCIL if they can. “As a pastor,”
he said, “I’m not afraid to ask for money.” The more that’s able to
be donated, the more Workcamp is able to do for the people in
Lincoln.
If you or anyone you know is interested in either donating to or
participating in Workcamp for Lincoln, their website can be accessed
here. At
the time of writing, the application was not open, but Henry assured
everyone that it would open soon. If you scroll past the application
button, there is a place for you to make a one-time donation to
CAPCIL for Workcamp. Workcamp for Lincoln will take place from June
16-22, 2024, and the kids taking part will be staying at Lincoln
Community High School during that week.
[Matt Boutcher]
 |
