CHWC

I participated in the Catholic Heart Work Camp 2015 in New Orleans, Louisiana, with Racine's Collaborative Ministry. We were a total of 26 teenagers and six chaperons.

To start our trip, we had the departing Mass at St Paul's Church in Racine, and from there we rode the bus down to West Memphis, Arkansas, where we stop to rest for the night. The next day, early in the morning, we rode the bus again to arrive to New Orleans. Once there, we started in full force the Work Camp. The Camp had people from Texas, Florida, Georgia, as well as Racine and Appleton in Wisconsin, amounting to around 270 teenagers.   

This was a blessed time where the participants had the time, not only to work in different parts of the city and different type of ministries, but also to work on their relationship with God. Every day the youth participated in the mass, and through the week they had the opportunity to participate in the Adoration of the Holy Eucharist and the Sacrament of Reconciliation. At least from the group from Racine, we had a pretty positive experience, where by the youth encountered a new way to not only get busy with things of life but also with spiritual matters. It was a time where we went to and give to those less fortunate than us. However, we become so enriched by our encounter with them that, in many cases, we received more of than we went to offer.

Personally, it was a great opportunity to get acculturated and to learn the 'where and what' of the life of the youth. It was also a blessed time where people considering a religious or priestly vocation had the chance to talk and ask questions in a judgment free environment.

~Fr. Alex  

 

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