Southminster Church Members Aid Local Homeowners in Need

Approximately 160 members and friends of Southminster Presbyterian Church, plus local Boy Scouts and their parents, rallied in early November to do much-needed maintenance on 20 homes in Wheeling Township owned by low-income or senior residents.

For the third biennial "God Energizing Mission" (GEM) project, the church worked with Wheeling Township to identify homeowners in need of help. This year for the first time, participants will be painting a Little City group home.

"The number of people in the church that stepped up to help our neighbors is amazing," said Jean Walker, project co-chair along with Sandy Pifer, both Arlington Heights residents. "The people we helped were so appreciative and a real joy to get to know."

Church members from five years old and up were encouraged to participate in the GEM project through one of these teams: House Assessment and Work, Worship, Prayer, Caregivers, Hospitality, Church Life, Devotionals, Publicity, Financial and Registration.

The GEM weekend began with a supper on Friday evening, where everyone gathered to learn about the following day's activities; breakfast at the church and then work in the homes from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, with a break for lunch and devotions with the homeowners; and a breakfast gathering/ worship service on Sunday where homeowners gave testimonials about their gratitude for being helped, and church members spoke about their experiences.

"Nothing is more heartwarming to me than to see the joy in the faces of the people we served," Pifer said. "The seniors are especially gracious and appreciative. As one woman said, 'I can't believe a church organization would do this for me!' I believe we are truly spreading God's love to our community."

Twenty teams of church volunteers were involved in the following tasks: painting; washing windows; doing general cleaning; cleaning carpets; landscaping; cleaning gutters; repairing a shed; replacing lights; washing a mobile home; sealing a driveway; stabilizing porch railings; laying new carpet on steps and small porch; organizing rooms; and removing a deck. Jay Haack of Haack Builders volunteered his services for the more complex projects.