|
Cathedral teens venture to Mexico to build homes
By Jennifer Mayo, news@catholicsun.org
December 4, 2008
The little Mexican beach town of Rocky Point is a popular spring break destination for many students and families alike.
But for hundreds of Ss. Simon and Jude parishioners, making the trip south across the border is nothing like a vacation.
Since 1996, nearly 700 teenagers have traveled to the Mexican town to build homes for the working poor. The parish’s youth group completed their 30th and 31st homes Nov. 6-10.
“It’s a way of keeping the teens involved and empowering them to live out their faith. It shows them that we’re [the Catholic Church] bigger than the Diocese of Phoenix,” said Jen Pitera, youth ministry coordinator at the cathedral.
The group goes on three mission trips a year. Around 120 teens help build a total of four houses during that time.
To be able to go on the mission, the teens must raise the funds to pay their way. They must also help raise funds for construction materials.
For Blake Heinley, a sophomore at Bourgade Catholic High School, the November mission marked his sixth trip in two years.
“It’s a fun experience overall,” Heinley said. “My favorite part is the last day when we get to give them the keys and present them with the house.”
Teens serve families who are truly the working poor. Family members old enough to work do so. Yet even with five people working, a family can bring in less than $200 per week. To complicate matters, the family must own a good portion of the land before they can qualify to have a home built.
Pitera says it’s a reality check for the teens in her program.
“There are countless stories of humbling experiences,” she said. “They see these families who have so little and they’re happy and faithful and beyond generous.”
On the November trip, the families and their neighbors provided a lunch for the cathedral group, a particularly humbling event for all involved.
Danielle Burr, a senior at Xavier College Preparatory, worked on November’s mission for the first time. For her, it was all about getting out of her comfort zone.
“This year I wanted to step out and do something I wouldn’t normally do,” she said. “When you leave your comforts and go out in the mud and the dirt and help people — that strengthened my faith. You have to go out and help people to show God’s love.”
The teens have no contact with home, and they learn to work as a team and care for each other. They prepare meals for the group.
On Sunday, the last day of the trip, a priest comes to celebrate Mass with them. According to Pitera, this, in combination with the work that they do and in getting to know the families, really transforms the teens.
She has even seen it change their perspectives on their future careers. Many of her former teens have gone into non-profit work, attributing that choice to their service in Rocky Point.
“You know you’re doing the Lord’s work,” Pitera said. “It’s better than any classroom setting.”
|
