MISSION TRIP 2019
DAY 1 SUNDAY
“Go and do likewise”
In today’s Gospel we were told the story of the Good Samaritan and then instructed to “Go and do likewise.” This week our neighbors will be the people of Eastern Kentucky, as we work with the Fr. Beiting Appalachian Mission to do home repairs and share faith with them. Our mission group is made up of a partnership of persons sponsored by St. Michael and St. Martin de Porres. This is the third year our parishes have teamed up for this adventure ministry. Several of us were happy to reunite after not seeing each other for a year and we were also excited to add a couple new people to the team.
Our caravan of four vehicles and twelve missionaries left the parking lot of St. Martin de Porres at 8am this morning heading south to Louisa, KY. The early trip involved much maneuvering through a lot of construction zones. At one point half of our group got separated, traveling on different highways. Within a short time we were able to meet back up to travel together. We stayed a little closer together after that.
At noon we stopped for lunch at a Cracker Barrel Restaurant in Sunbury, Ohio. Thank you to a special parishioner who donated gift cards to cover the cost of our meal. With full bellies and after spending time getting to know each other a little better, we were back on the road heading southeast. We arrived in Louisa at 5:30pm and headed right to our home for the week, a home in the mountain called Padre’s Place. It is called that because it was Fr. Beiting’s home when he was alive and running the mission. We unloaded our cars, sanitized the kitchen (remember, there’s a nurse on the team) then began preparations for dinner. Due to the generosity of another person supporting us, we began our week with a delicious dinner of steaks on the grill. We are all very grateful for all of our wonderful supporters.
After dinner we gathered for Evening Prayer. We discussed what inspired us to join the mission team and what some of our apprehensions are and how we can let go of them and let the Holy Spirit be our guide. Prayer time was concluded with a blessing of our hands with holy oil. We pray that our hands will be used as tools to build up the kingdom and touch others with God’s love this week.
Thank you all for your support and prayers. Know that we are including you in our daily prayers, too.
Your 2019 Mission team includes:
Cameron Chadwick
Ashley Dahl
Michelle Hayes
Dan Heileman
Renee’ Heileman
Rocky Mercier
Mark Mizak
Sheryl Nieman-Hancock
Joseph Pavone-Chadwick
Joe Saputo
David Schultes
Rob Weiss
