60 HOURS TO SERVE, PRAY & PLAY

2010 Spring Break Mission Trip

New York City, April 12-14

Sponsored by the Youth Committee of the Bridgeport Deanery of the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut, the Rev. Matthew Calkins, chair, the Rev. Jose Diaz, Kristin Miles, Antonio Villaneuva, Raymond Panther, members.

Serve with the Youth Service Opportunities Project (Quaker)

See the sights in NYC

Entry into unique places of faith and worship

Lodging at International Youth Hostel

For youth (grades 8-12) and their chaperones in the Bridgeport Deanery

Cost: $150

Interested?   Please give your $50 deposit to your Youth Minister or Rector by February  21st.

Itinerary

Tuesday, April 13

We will gather by 9 am at the parking lot of Trinity Church, Southport. One duffel bag or suitcase plus sleeping bag will go with a van, the rest of us will take a train to Grand Central Station, then a subway to Trinity Church, Wall St. The Rev. Stuart Hoke, chaplain of General Seminary, will lead us on a tour of Trinity Church and St Paul’s Chapel, which served a heroic role in the aftermath of 9/11. We will walk to Seaman’s Institute, a faith base for sailors from around the world, and then walk down to Battery Park. We will eat lunch on the ferry to Ellis Island and see the Statue of Liberty. Later in the afternoon we will make our way to the International Youth Hostel, on Amsterdam Ave and 103rd St and find our rooms. After dinner and a group activity we’ll settle in for the night.

Wednesday, April 14

We will have breakfast at the hostel followed by a walk uptown to the Cathedral of St John the Divine. We will take a vertical tour, climbing more than 124 feet through spiral staircases to the top of the world’s largest cathedral. We’ll get a look at the magnificent stained glass windows and survey Morningside Heights while standing on a buttress! Afterward we will take the subway to Times Square and visit another famous church, St Mary the Virgin—and experience their high church sung mass at noon—quite an experience in the midst of the busiest block in America. After the service we will walk down Broadway to Union Square. At 4 pm we will check in with leaders from Youth Service Opportunities Project (YSOP), a Quaker-run organization that connect young people to various service projects. We will be helping out at soup kitchens and shelters, under supervision and with other programming to help explain the causes and context of homelessness and hunger. We stay at the YSOP building that night.

Thursday, April 15

We’ll put in a full day of work with YSOP in small teams at several locations and then gather back at the central house. After we get off at 5pm we’ll have a celebratory group dinner and then take the train back to Southport. We should be arriving home around 9pm. That’s a lot of service, prayer and play in 60 hours!

Cost: $150 per student.  

Scholarships, transportation and other costs provided by Deanery and Diocese grants,

and parish generosity.

All are welcome to join and to help lead. Our purpose is to make friends among Episcopalian youth in the greater Bridgeport area, to share resources and develop young leaders, and to go on mission in the name of Christ.