Greenville Life Teen Mission Trip 2009

Saturday, July 25, 2009 - Going Home

2009-07-26T13:09:00.000-07:00

After some quiet reflection and prayer over this past week's Mission Trip and thanking God for the opportunity to go, I realized I had the best job of all. While taking pictures, uploading to the computer, editing and uploading to post to the blog was very time consuming, I got to see, every day, smiling faces on adults and teens WHILE they were doing some of the dirtiest work. It was clearly obvious all felt really good about what they were doing, no matter what the task. These smiling faces uplifted and inspired me (and Father Justin) every day. They knew that (as one teen said during his faith sharing one night) no one else was going to do the work, and that if they could help a home owner feel better about getting back into their home more quickly, it was all worth it. I got to see various teens minister to each other.....a quick pat on the back of a quiet or shy teen, adults laughing with and ministering to the teens and each other. I feel so blessed I was a part of it all.

It always feels good to come home no matter where we've come from, and while some of us will quickly get back into the routine of our daily lives, we will always have the beautiful memories of Mission Trip 2009 and knowing we truly gave God permission. Let us take these memories and continue to "GIVE GOD PERMISSION" where ever we are.

Thank you Fr. Justin, Joe Farris, Stan Kossol, adult volunteers and teens for a GREAT week! "Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, Pray for Us!"

- Colette DeLeo

Closing Prayer by Father Justin on return home

Loading up the truck to go home

Friday Evening, July 24, 2009 - CLOSING MASS

2009-07-24T20:27:00.000-07:00

Tonight's closing "community mass" took place in the conference room. Several boys volunteered to clear out all the chairs while the senior girls took care of setting up an altar and decorating it. Billy Wright provided us with beautiful music. With the lights off and candles lit, the teens took their seats on the floor. Father shared a beautiful homily. At the end of mass, several people gave public witnesses of thanks for various people or things in their lives. It was simple, beautiful, and full of community, just as our patron saint Blessed Teresa of Calcutta would have enjoyed.

After mass, the work groups met one last time to pray Day One of a novena to Mother Teresa. We will pray Day Two with our van crews on our way back home Saturday. It is our hope that the teens will pray Day Three through Nine on their own once the mission trip ends. This novena is exceptionally beautiful and powerful. The books are a gift to the teens.

Father is hearing confessions as I write. Some teens are continuing some quiet reflection and prayer in the chapel. It has been a wonderful week! Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, Pray For Us!

-Rosy Donnenwirth

Closing "Community" Mass

Graduated Seniors

A Station of the Cross repaired by a few

adults and teens on St. Paul of the Cross grounds

Frisbee Game

Friday, July 24, 2009 - HOLY FAMILY INSTITUTE!

2009-07-24T17:03:00.000-07:00

Today we all went to Holy Family Institute. Holy Family is a home for abused and neglected children. Currently there are about 50 children of all ages. David DeMicheal met us in the Chapel and talked to us about the different stories of just a few of the children. The stories of some were too terrible for him to share. After his talk we all went outside to mingle with the kids and had a picnic enjoying hamburgers and hotdogs from the grill. We had lots of activities going on: face painting, field games, card games, and water balloon fights! The water balloons and water bucket fights was the highlight of the day. We were able to get most of the adults drenched and many of the kids were soaked! We later had ice cream sandwiches. We closed with a large group prayer led by one of the young residents. It was a great day!!

- Rachel Denton

Matthew closes with prayer......What a BEAUTIFUL day!!

Tom out runs A.J.!

uuuuuuuuggghhhhhh

OOOOOoooohhhhh...

no comment :)

Now THAT'S a STRETCH!! (or jump?)

Does he? Or doesn't he?

Jimmy stealing some quiet time...

Jimmy's crew

Sr. Linda of Holy Family

'Magic' show going on!

Picnic with Holy Family Institute residents

David DeMichael of Holy Family Institute....what a holy man!

OUR LAST ROSARY AT THE MONASTERY!

Thursday, July 23, 2009 - WORK DAY #4

2009-07-23T21:03:00.000-07:00

Today was our last day working at our work sites, and we had to build a wall.. After being woken at 4 in the morning from the previous night's thunderstorm and the overall exhaustion that entails working on the mission trip, I was not in the best of moods. The wall was a disheveled, lopsided mess that needed a lot of work. Luckily, with Dr. Ruffolo's expertise in building retainer walls the job was quickly finished. Though, tired and sore I was proud of our work and glad we could help. As we were leaving the owner, Mrs. Harvey, came to see her wall and in her eyes I could only see gratitude. She insisted on paying the expenses for the concrete, while Dr. Ruffolo said that she only needed to pay in the form of a thank you. So we took group pictures, exchanged hugs and were on our way back to the Monastery. At the Monastery we helped clean and trim the courtyard area. Later Stephen Mori-Chaves and I helped Art replace the fallen 13th Station of the Cross.

They were small tasks, and yet i felt so lifted and close to God when servicing others. Who truly benefits: the person being helped or the servant?

Did you know that there is a town in New York called Cementon? There they mine the rock cement to make cement mix. Yeah, I didn't know that either, funny what you can learn from helping people in need.

Afterward we went to St. John Neuman for a pizza party with Oscar IIX and a local youth group. There we danced and got to meet several other teens just like us in Pittsburgh, showing just how connected our faith really is. When we finally got back to the monastery we had a holy hour of adoration. There, kneeling amongst peers worshiping our Lord was truly an experience like no other. Listening to father Justin's homily and just being close to Jesus brought many to tears. It was a great way to end a hard day's work.

Each year the work we do is hard and often times seems meaningless, but our actions speak echos to the people around us. Looking into their eyes, coming from all different walks of life, it's easy to see we are all one people. For it is not our right or need to pass judgement but only to live within God as an example to others.

- Quan Ngyuen

Our day ended with Adoration

Oscar and Sonja play for the crowd

Father Al of St. John Nueman

Catholic Community Gathering at St. John Nueman

St. Paul of the Cross Monastery

from the 10th Street Bridge

One of the Stations of the Cross painted

by one of our work crews.

At Sisters of St. Joseph

Our teens stapled over 18,000 roses to these business cards

at Genesis Pregnancy Center!!

Genesis Pregnancy Center

Father Justin with Sister from the Passionist Nuns

Morning Rosary (growing numbers!)

Wednesday, July 22, 2009 - WORK DAY #3 and Kennywood

2009-07-23T13:34:00.000-07:00

The teens wanted Fr. Justin to ride the roller coasters,

but he settled for the trolley and turtle chase ride instead!

Fr. Justin was challenged to ride and was a good sport!

More splash victims!

'Rookie' volunteer Mark C. gets drenched!

Austin checking out Fr. Justin's tattooed bicep!

KENNYWOOD!!

Fr. Justin getting a 'tattoo'!

Over the course of our first 3 days, my family's work has gradually increased in manual labor. It took us a little while and some driving around to find work at first. But when we finally reached the house, we met an elderly gentleman whose home had been severely flooded because it was built above the creek. On top of this, the shingles had blown off the roof. So every time it rained, his insulation took in all the water. It broke my heart to watch as we told him we would be unable to help him because there was too much damage. Our next stop was where we stayed to work in the basement apartment that had also been flooded. It was there that I so clearly saw God in my group and the owner. What we would have run away from in any other situation, we embraced it instead. When I paused to look around the dark, low-ceiling room, which looked like it was straight out of a scary movie, I saw Leah and Miranda working to clean the tenant's collectables. I saw Quan, Matt, Steven and Dr. Ruffolo working along side the owner to scrape mud and wash floors, cut dry wall and remove carpet tacks. When we finally emerged covered in white dust and face masks. We were tired but pleased with our work and the people we helped. What began as a group of strangers sharing a common faith came together not only to serve others but to become friends too. Somehow God knew that today would be our toughest day because we were definitely rewarded with a night at Kennywood! P.S.....Fr. Justin, I love your tattoos!

- Amanda King

Little Sisters of the Poor

Nazareth Housing #4

Felician Nuns

Nazareth Housing #2

Runaway Tractor!

Passionist Nuns

Tuesday Evening, July 21, 2009 - Charlie and Becca

2009-07-22T20:51:00.000-07:00

Katelyn

Joe-Joe

Ian

Brandon

Connor

Tyler

Danielle

Michael

Gabby K.

Matthew J.

Matthew H.

Nicole

Emily

Katie

Rachel

Amanda

Quan

Madison

Cole

Hannah

Max

Cutler

Austin

Robert

Brianne

Phillip

Ben

Carrie

Mary Haven

Tory

Billy

Teens sharing 'where or how they saw God this week'.

A.J.

Andrew

Charlie

Becca

Last night we heard two amazing speakers from our group...Charlie Sang and Becca Morris. They both shared their hearts and their journeys to God with us. After they inspired us with their stories, Fr. Justin invited all of the teens to come up and share their witness with everyone. Fr. Justin told us to be patient if the Holy Spirit didn't move too quickly and that we would wait for minutes between speakers (if we had to). When he left the podium it was only 30 seconds before Andrew Nagler got to the stand to share his story with us. It was so inspiring to hear everyone's walk with God. To begin with, most were sharing a funny story from their group, but then the funny stories turned to sad ones, with some sharing about losing a loved one to other sad stories and their walk with Christ during those times of darkness. This was very appropriate because our Patroness, Blessed Teresa of Calcutta experienced 18 years of darkness when she couldn't feel God's presence. It is experiences like these that make this Mission Trip different from anything else during the year. In the beginning of the week, everyone is so awkward around each other and barely talk during the first car ride, but just three nights into the trip we are sharing our hearts with each other. For me, it was so awesome to feel comfortable enough to share with my walk with Christ with the group, and getting feedback and knowing that I am not alone in m struggles with my faith. I love this trip. I don't know where I would be without it.

- Tory Whitson

Tuesday, July 21, 2009 - WORK DAY #2

2009-07-21T20:28:00.000-07:00

The first few days of the work week are often seen as grueling, tedious, or even boring work to us teens. This view quickly changes, however, when we see the faces of people that our work is directly affecting. I've learned that no matter how small or difficult the task, the act of serving in God's name is always worth it. My group pulled moldy insulation from the basement ceiling for a woman with a 9 month old baby. She was so grateful for what we did. Each and every smile makes every second of work worth it. In our program tonight, we were asked how we saw Christ in our work day. I think I speak for everyone when I say that we have seen God in each and every person we helped today, and hopefully they have seen God in us too.

- Nate Kellum

Little Sisters of the Poor

Hot Metal Bridge Church

East End Co-Op Ministries

Judge Joe Blick hard at work!!

Judge Joe Blick and Charlie Sang

hard at work!!

One of the flooded homes in Turtle Creek

Monday Night, July 20, 2009 - Chris and Linda Padgett

2009-07-21T20:18:00.000-07:00

Chris Padgett uses his gifts to the fullest. From humor, to music, and from genuine love of God, to direct connections to each young person in the room, Chris knows how to inspire. Being a father of eight, Chris lives his Catholic faith, and likewise, he had many stories about his children. Starting the night with a little humor, Chris told a joke that his yong son told him. The joke goes, "Why shouldn't you bring a Pokemon in the shower with you.....because he might 'Pikachu'." Very funny to a group of kids who grew up during the phenomenon of Pokemon card trading. From there Chris led the group in singing some songs with his guitar that got people pumped. After this, the girls went to the Chapel with Chris' wife Linda who spoke to the girls about being a Woman of God, and the guys stayed in the Retreat conference room. Chris talked about being a man of God and used many metaphors and analogies to relate to each young man in the room. These included video games, sports, music, school, and everything else that is in a teenage boy's life. He was very real with each one of us talking about a few struggles in his life, all the while being the hilarious man he is. The focus of Chris' talk was to be a true man of God and to put God first in all we do. He did not try to sugar-coat anything he said. He said the path of light was a difficult road given all the temptations in our lives and even said that "all Hell will come after you." Nevertheless, he was passionate for his faith and urged each of us to be as well. After his talk, the girls rejoined the guys in the retreat room and Chris got his guitar back out and led us in more song. The night then turned prayerful and the Holy Spirit truly descended on each person involved; it was the first time that our group of 137 showed a great deal of community. After more beautiful music Chris led the group in prayer and the night was ended. Chris is a holy man and he has great talent and love in his heart. By the way, he said to add him as a friend on Facebook and add him on Farmtown. lol - Billy Wright

Monday, July 20, 2009 - FIRST DAY OF HARD WORK!

2009-07-20T20:36:00.000-07:00

Turtle Creek has been given a cross to bear. 3 weeks ago this economically struggling township just east of Pittsburgh received 20 inches of rain in a matter of hours. The catastrophic flash floods that followed completely submerged the basements of most homes with water and mud. In some areas the water rose as high as 4 feet above the first floor. Given the age and economic history of this area, the majority of the population is made up of elderly, retired, or disabled people who have lived in Turtle Creek their entire lives.

For one small family the cross was too much to bear. John and his elderly sister have been living in Turtle Creek since 1979. At that time John was a successful auto mechanic who owned and operated his own shop across from his home. He was married with children. Due to a tragic automobile accident John lost his family and he was left with a disabling traumatic brain injury. His sister moved in next door to him to assist him in his recovery as well as other aspects of life. Now both are much older and suffer from a host of chronic medical conditions. The last thing this pair of siblings needed was a basement full of mud and four feet of water through their first flood.

Via the "Catholic Charities of Pittsburgh", we were called to John and his sister's home to help in any way we could. Like two minivans full of Simons the teens of St. Peter picked up their cross (as well as 10 bikes, 2 trash compactors,12 auto tires and 2 truck transmissions) and assisted in clearing some of their devastation.

Our teens and leaders worked at 18 sites today. I am so proud of them. Jim deVente

Catholic Charities

Fr. Justin celebrates Mass for us in the Chapel

Food Bank of Greater Pittsburgh

At the Passionist Nuns

"The Wall"

At Franciscan Nuns

Our first morning Rosary walk.

Sunday, July 19, 2009 - Pittsburgh Pirates Day

2009-07-19T20:10:00.000-07:00

Carolyn teaches the groups how to make rosaries.

Christina helps Mission Trip 2009 go green!

Enjoying a little free time.

......no words necessary!

Enjoying the Pirate game!

What an awesome group of teens! (and adults!)

Adult volunteer ladies!

St. Paul of the Cross Retreat Center

Another wonderful day! It started off attending the 10 a.m. Mass with the St. Paul's Parish Family. Our teens overwhelmed the Church in a sea of blue as they wore their Mission Trip t-shirt. Fr. Pat Geinzer and Fr. Justin con-celebrated the Mass. They were together again! Fr. Pat told the Parish our high level mission during the homily and invited me to discuss some of the details. Our teens acted in their usual holy manner and we received so many comments from parishioners on how honored we should be to have such a reverent group of teens. After Mass the entire group gathered at the Gateway Clipper River Boat for a short cruise from the south side of Pittsburgh to PNC Park to take in a baseball game. The weather was picture perfect and the game wasn't bad either (unless you're a Pittsburgh Pirate fan because the S.F. Giants beat the Pirates 4-3!) Later in the evening we gathered for the night program where among other things, everyone made a rosary instructed by Carolyn Morris which will be used all week at our morning Rosary walk. Things are going smoothly and everyone is well. Such an awesome group of teens! THE REAL WORK STARTS TOMORROW!!! Stan

Sunday, July 19, 2009

2009-07-19T06:15:00.000-07:00

Joe Blick gave one of the best youth talks last night I have ever heard. His message began with love being Catholic, treasure being Catholic--never take it for granted. He spoke from his experiences as a prosecutor, lawyer and judge. He spoke about issues in our society that militate against fidelity to Christ. He witnessed to our teens from his own experiences. You could hear a pin drop as he urges them to be who God wants them to be.

"Don't be taken in by the false values of our society that will have an agenda against the Catholic Church and belief in God, Himself. Take up your cross, whatever it is. God is with you. God formed it for you. To question God, to doubt God, to wonder where He is in our lives is like a fish asking, 'Where's the water?' "

He urged them to look at abstinence and saving yourself till marriage, citing how it strengthens and beautifies loving marriages. He warned them about the horrible influence internet pornography has on society and on influencing our minds and hearts and cheapening God's gift of love. He told them to give God permission to use them as his instruments to bring his compassion and love to others. The talk was so much more effective than I can write about because it was peppered by example after example from Joe's own life and backed up by the witness of his own life---powerful! In Christ, Fr. Justin

2009-07-18T22:30:00.000-07:00

Joe B. gives his traditional opening night talk!

The gorgeous rainbow that greeted us

Safe arrival at St. Paul of the Cross Monastery

Saturday, July 18, 2009 - Departure Day!

2009-07-18T22:26:00.000-07:00

Joe H., one of our rookie adult volunteers!

Saturday, July 18, 2009 - Departure Day!

2009-07-18T22:21:00.000-07:00

Running happily to claim their van seat!

Gearing up for the ride up to Pittsburgh!

Fr. Edward prays with us.

Saturday, July 18, 2009 - Departure Day!

2009-07-18T21:50:00.000-07:00

The first Day of Mission Trip 2009 began bright and early as 113 teenagers and 23 adults gathered in the St. Peter School gym. Joe Farris encouraged everyone to leave their comfort zones and to "Give God Permission" to use them as He wanted. Fr. Edward blessed the entire group. 20 vans, 2 cars, and 1 big truck pulled out by 7:24 a.m. - record time! Shortly after getting on the road, Joe Farris called us to say that some people had already prayed the rosary for the safety and success of the Mission Trip. The final van arrived at 7:30 p.m. at St. Paul of the Cross Monastery. We were greeted by a gorgeous rainbow!!

In Mission Trip tradition, Joe Blick presented a powerful and inspiring talk on carrying crosses and having pride in our Catholic faith. As usual, he blew us away and made a huge impact on everyone in attendance. We miss you Joe Farris! You would be so proud of this group!

Friday, July 17, 2009 Drive Through Check-In!

2009-07-18T21:25:00.000-07:00

Luggage check-in was a breeze! Art Schneider parked the cargo truck in the St. Peter School parking lot and loaded up the luggage as it was dropped off by parents and teens in a "drive through" fashion!

July 11, 2009 5 P.M. Commissioning Mass

2009-07-18T20:55:00.000-07:00

We celebrated the Mass which was packed with teenagers everywhere! Following the homily, I asked all the teenagers and leaders present to come forward. They were sent from the Church of St. Peter in Greenville to the Church of Pittsburgh to bring their faith and love to all God's people to whom they would minister. The entire congregation prayed that God would be with them to reach out in their name especially to the poor and needy. I thanked the young people for their commitment and goodness, the congregation for their generous financial support of the Mission Trip, and the leaders under the direction of Joe Farris who serve our young so lovingly. Fr. Justin

"GIVE GOD PERMISSION."

2009-07-02T21:29:00.000-07:00

"Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, Pray for us!"

More Andy's Pics

2009-07-02T21:18:00.000-07:00

FIrst Annual Andy's Fundraiser for Mission Trip 2009

2009-07-02T21:04:00.000-07:00

Greenville Life Teen Mission Trip 2009 kicked off with our First Annual Pancake Breakfast at Andy's on Tenth Street! We now know that most of our customers who came out to support our cause enjoy sleeping in on Saturday mornings! We were slammed in the last hour! We had no idea what to expect, and aside from some having to wait (patiently, thank you!) a little while for their food, we all had fun and enjoyed the community. We are so appreciative of all the support we had. It was a great success! Thank you Andy's!

Mission Trip 2009 Meetings, Meetings, Meetings!

2009-07-02T19:45:00.000-07:00

No trip of this magnitude can go on without SOME organization! We started off on May 13th with the second meeting of all the Mission Trip Adult Volunteers to go over the many aspects of the trip with Joe Farris. We are so grateful for all of these adults. We could not do it without them! Following that meeting was the Parent Meeting. Of course we could not do it without the support of our Parents and our Church Community. Thank you to all of our Parents and Parishioners for their generous donations and prayers for which this trip is made possible. Be sure to keep up with our happenings each day throughout the trip! God Bless!