God’s Army is Coming to the Susquehanna Conference

United Methodist Action Reach-out Mission by Youth (U.M. ARMY) is a national youth mission organization offering summer mission opportunities for youth, young adults and adults across the United States. U.M. ARMY works with VIM at both the national and local conference level to ensure quality, faith-based, mission weeks.

Last summer, U.M. ARMY had to re-imagine our mission models so we could still answer the call to serve while working within the COVID guidelines. We did this, through God’s blessing, by creating LOCAL and VIRTUAL models. These models provide a balance of gathering across church groups for social interaction, showing God’s love in a hurting world, creating opportunities for spiritual development and encircling safety around everything we do.

We held one of these LOCAL mission weeks in the Susquehanna Conference last summer with great success and many blessings. Due to the ongoing concerns with the pandemic, we have decided to move forward on this LOCAL model again this summer. EXCITING NEWS! We are offering two LOCAL models in the Susquehanna Conference this year. We already have some youth groups lined up to participate in both weeks; however, we have plenty of room for your group to join us in this “day camp” model.

The theme this year is: GOD @ WORK:CREATING. Each day begins with morning worship to get us focused for the day, followed by service work out in the local community. All projects will either be outside or at a local community service organization with strict COVID guidelines. Each team shares lunch together with guided devotion discussion related to the weekly and daily themes. After a day of service, we gather again for group building activities and closing worship. During the week, we will experience a prayer journey that provides a time of personal reflection and time with God.

Each person is asked to eat breakfast at home, bring their own lunch each day, and eat dinner at home. Water supplies will be provided, along with pre-packaged snacks. We are hoping to offer a closing picnic at the end of the week, if we feel we can serve and eat food safely.

We will be at the following locations/dates this summer:

FISHING CREEK SALEM UMC (Goldsboro, PA) – July 18-23 

CHRIST UMC (Mt. Top, PA) – July 11-16 

NO WORRIES if you live too far away or if these weeks won’t work for your group. U.M. ARMY is also offering VIRTUAL opportunities this summer. These weeks still provide an opportunity to serve in your local communities in a day camp model; however, worship and interactive activities will be held virtually with other youth groups participating during your same week.

Won’t you join us to help share God’s love and experience God’s creation? God is already at work creating our mission work within the Susquehanna Conference. We just need to be His hands, feet and heart by answering the call to serve.

For more information on U.M. ARMY, please feel free to access our website: umarmy.org

To explore opportunities for your group, please contact Darlene Thomas, Regional Director @ darlenethomas@umarmy.org or 877-771-9484 ext. 1108

VIM Journeys to McCurdy Ministries Community Center

By Linda Gilgore, York, PA

It has been 14 years since my first of many trips to McCurdy Ministries Community Center in the beautiful Española Valley of Northern New Mexico. At the time, I was a senior high youth leader at a United Methodist church in York, PA. 

That first trip turned out to be much more than I expected. It took very little time for me to decide that McCurdy would always be in my heart and that the staff at McCurdy were the best examples I had ever seen of walking in faith, being Christ-like humble servants, and truly being a light in a community. It was both heartbreaking and refreshing. Their struggle was real and their commitment to making their corner of the world a better place was inspiring. 

Each summer we return to McCurdy for a one-week trip. We love the relationships we have built with the staff at McCurdy, we love the variety of projects that we work on, we love the gratitude shown us for literally the smallest of tasks completed, and we love the traditions and history of Northern New Mexico. Each night at devotions we would hear from the team members about their experience. We love to have youth on our trips because it is a rare opportunity to see how other youth live and how they can survive and even thrive with very little “stuff”. I would venture to say that most nights on most trips there are tears of being overwhelm at the magnitude of the struggles in the area and tears of joy being the hands and feet of Jesus for a moment in time. 

Every year the dynamics of the team going to McCurdy are different, but the mission of each team is the same. The variety of the projects needing completion is different, but the purpose of each project is the same. Having the opportunity to lend a hand to the important ministries of McCurdy to their community has been and continues to be incredibly challenging, as well as incredibly rewarding and often life-changing. When realizing that cleaning, stripping, cleaning, and waxing floors in a building will make an impact on the school year for the kids, it makes the task so much more relevant and enjoyable. 

Not being able to go to McCurdy in 2020 for our annual trip was disappointing for us but even more disappointing for McCurdy, who were left with a lot of projects to complete during a pandemic without the much-needed help that comes from VIM teams. As a result, we decided to lead a Zoom virtual mission trip to McCurdy. By participating in a virtual mission trip, we were able to promote VIM trips in general and McCurdy specifically. We have been able to share our love for McCurdy and the importance of connecting as a team for a common purpose and to connect with some of the beloved McCurdy staff.

Each year at the end of our week at McCurdy it is bittersweet. We have laughed and cried, worked hard, and enjoyed the beauty and majesty of Northern New Mexico with some side trips. And we are always reminded that there are “McCurdy’s” in every community. Even though we will keep returning to McCurdy, we can also find ways in our own communities to be the hands and feet of Jesus. The same underlying issues are in lots of communities such as, poverty, mental illness, addiction, etc. 

Over 100 years ago, one person made one decision that changed the trajectory of Española, New Mexico. You, too, can choose to be the light in your valley.