Catch up with Megan and Caleb as they share what the Des Moines Christian School IMPACT team has been up to in the latest team update. They describe a day of community service that included beach clean-up, supporting local businesses, and providing food distribution to families in the community while having the opportunity to hear some amazing stories of resilience and faith.
First the group started by visiting Coconut Tree Bay in Murphy Town and cleaning up! We helped pick up trash along the local beach, and it was a competition among other local beach clean-up crews. Although the work was exhausting, it was very rewarding! We were able to grow as a group and help the community while serving with the locals. We also got to enjoy lunch with the group!
After lunch we were able to support local businesses by enjoying some refreshing lemonade! The cart was called the Drink Machine.
After that we began food distribution and split up our group into 2 groups of 8. We were given two community leaders, who helped us understand the stories of the people who we were serving better.
The first group visited three houses. The first house was a single mother who had three children, two of which were disabled. She did not speak well, but the group was able to sing a worship song and pray over her. The second home was the father and mother of our local leader and we were able to share a similar experience and pray and sing a worship song with them. The final house that we stopped at was an aunt who had taken in her nephews and nieces after her brother and his wife suffered in a house fire. Although it was a sad situation, we were able to learn more about the family and their situation which was very impactful!
The second group visited four houses. They were led by local church leader Mrs. Wendy. The first house they visited was a single mother with three kids, and they were able to sing a worship song and pray over her son. They were very impacted by her story. The second house belonged to victims of hurricane Dorian who had their house swept away by the storm. Then we were able to see the finished project of the church rebuild that they were now living in as their home. The third destination was a mother-daughter combination. The mom was 88 and the daughter was in her forties and having to take care of her mother. The last house was a mother who had just retired due to issues in her legs. She still praised the Lord despite her difficult situation and He answered her prayers with our group bringing her food.
Today was a day to remember because we were able to grow closer as a group while serving the community more up-close.
– Megan and Caleb
