Wesley Ministry reaches out to community through youth

    Wesley’s Westend Neighborhood Youth Ministry gives children in need a chance to have fun and learn the gospel. The ministry was started last semester and is led by junior marketing major, Suzy Spiccia.
    “We want to teach the gospel and spread the name of Jesus to children who may be overlooked,” said Spiccia.
    Every Thursday around five, the children are picked up at their houses, enjoy fun activities, are fed dinner and taught a bible verse to memorize for the week. The boys often play football outside.
    “We just love on the kids and try to give them some hope,” explained Spiccia. “A lot of the kids are from broken families, so they really just need someone to be there for them.”
    The kids, ranging in age from four to 12, come from the Westend public housing neighborhood off of Hancock Street, about one mile from campus. Freshman Benton Cranford goes to the Eastend Neighborhood to pick up five-year-old Amiyah and nine-year-old Quantavious.
    Freshman Noelle Strickland got involved because she wants to work with children from the inner-city and internationally.
    “It’s given me a really great opportunity to learn and grow close to these kids,” Stickland said.
    Though the ministry’s objective is to teach the kids about Christ, those involved have also gotten a lot out of it.
    “Being with these kids has taught me a lot about patience and how to be sensitive to individual needs,” Strickland said.
    “I see the love of God through these kids,” said Spiccia.
    Cranford agrees, saying that being around the children and working with them gets him “pumped about God” and that “it is really cool seeing God work through people who aren’t in the best situations.”
    The leaders are also noticing a difference in the children since they started the ministry.
    “They definitely want to come more now than they did before,” said Cranford.
    The children are also growing in patience, have started to behave better, and have become much better listeners.
    The leaders of the ministry make sure that they see the children outside of their Thursday night routine, though. On Feb. 9, the girls had a “Princess Party.” The theme of the night centered on Psalm 45:11, a bible verse that states, “Your royal father delights in your beauty. Honor him, for he is your Lord.”
    During the party, the girls dressed up like princesses, had a fashion show, went to Scoops, did their hair, makeup, and nails, made crafts and watched a movie. Junior Dana Bryant and sophomores Dustin Wilson and Brad Christopher joined the party to bring the girls flowers and to be their “princes.”
    “The girls loved the party, and we had so much fun also,” said Strickland.
    The night ended in a sleepover. The boys are planning on having a party of their own soon.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Feb 22 2008. Filed under Features. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry