2008 Woodie Awards
His House group traverses nation to help communities
By: David Veselenak
Issue date: 3/12/08 Section: News
When Jillian Johnson decided to plan a spring break community service trip, she didn't want to restrict it to one area.
So the Novi senior made plans for a road trip that took her His House Christian Fellowship group all over the country.
"We thought, 'Hey, we're college kids, there's nothing better than (a road trip),'" the ministry and community service leader said. "We wanted to give people the experience with numerous opportunities."
Johnson took 13 CMU students on a week-long road trip to Ohio, Tennessee and Washington, D.C. Along the way, the group volunteered with a soup kitchen, a restoration program for a house and worked with urban children.
The group was one of many sponsored by His House to perform several community service-based trips across the continent.
Farwell freshman Cole Bringold said he enjoyed being in Washington, D.C. and assisting people in need.
"It was really nice getting to work with the children," he said.
Participants were told they would end their road trip in Washington, D.C., but not any other destinations. Johnson said planning the trip this way made it more interesting for the group.
Fremont senior Kara Summerfield said not knowing their destination all the time made the travelers more care-free.
"We didn't have a lot of say about what was in the trip," she said.
The group traveled to Dayton, Ohio to host a block party with games and movies with inner city kids. After a night in Cincinnati, a restoration project on a house for a single mother was completed in Knoxville, Tenn. After a brief hiking trip through the Smoky Mountains, the group made its way to Washington, D.C.
After serving in soup kitchens and helping to pack food for lower-income families, Summerfield said the experiences were better because they weren't subject to one location.
"We were dealing with a lot of different needs," she said. "It gave us a little taste of everything."
Members of the group traveled together in a large van for hours at a time. Being on the road all of the time brought the group closer, Johnson said.
"It's the best way to get to know (everyone's) life story," she said. "Everyone built cool relationships."
news@cm-life.com
So the Novi senior made plans for a road trip that took her His House Christian Fellowship group all over the country.
"We thought, 'Hey, we're college kids, there's nothing better than (a road trip),'" the ministry and community service leader said. "We wanted to give people the experience with numerous opportunities."
Johnson took 13 CMU students on a week-long road trip to Ohio, Tennessee and Washington, D.C. Along the way, the group volunteered with a soup kitchen, a restoration program for a house and worked with urban children.
The group was one of many sponsored by His House to perform several community service-based trips across the continent.
Farwell freshman Cole Bringold said he enjoyed being in Washington, D.C. and assisting people in need.
"It was really nice getting to work with the children," he said.
Participants were told they would end their road trip in Washington, D.C., but not any other destinations. Johnson said planning the trip this way made it more interesting for the group.
Fremont senior Kara Summerfield said not knowing their destination all the time made the travelers more care-free.
"We didn't have a lot of say about what was in the trip," she said.
The group traveled to Dayton, Ohio to host a block party with games and movies with inner city kids. After a night in Cincinnati, a restoration project on a house for a single mother was completed in Knoxville, Tenn. After a brief hiking trip through the Smoky Mountains, the group made its way to Washington, D.C.
After serving in soup kitchens and helping to pack food for lower-income families, Summerfield said the experiences were better because they weren't subject to one location.
"We were dealing with a lot of different needs," she said. "It gave us a little taste of everything."
Members of the group traveled together in a large van for hours at a time. Being on the road all of the time brought the group closer, Johnson said.
"It's the best way to get to know (everyone's) life story," she said. "Everyone built cool relationships."
news@cm-life.com
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