Mt. Pleasant church group returns from service work in California

By SALLY Y. HAYES

Mt. Pleasant News

Over the mountains and through the desert to Los Angeles, Calif. they went. A group of 11 from Mt. Pleasant?s Pleasant View Mennonite Church traveled by van west for a week and a half trip of service and learning. The Rev. John Zimmerman led the way with Joy Lapp, Iowa Wesleyan College professor of religious studies, and nine teenagers in tow.

The nine youth members attending, all from the local area, were Eli Gillespie, Caleb Zimmerman, Eric Gerst, Nick Lehman, Dakota Woods, Shelvie Waller, Brittannee Waller, Shana Allender, and Haley McDowell.

The group was bound for L.A. to participate in a DOOR (Discovering Opportunities Outreach Reflection) program. The Mennonite and Presbyterian program offers youth urban service experiences in six locations across the U.S.

Zimmerman was glad to lead the group saying, ?It is a chance to have an adventure in a totally different part of the country.?

L.A. was the chosen destination voted upon by the youth group months prior to the departure.

The crew held various fundraisers over the past eight months, including: a yard sale, free will donation meals, and a small concert featuring local music artist Cali Wilson.

The group left the morning of July 22 and returned in the early hours of July 31. Zimmerman and Lapp split the more than 3,600 mile drive to L.A. and back. They rested Friday night in Denver before departing Saturday morning to drive the remaining 25 hours to the Golden Coast.

Prior to leaving Colorado the van packed full with the group of 11 climbed the elevation to 14,000 feet up Mt. Evans. Zimmerman said the traveling was the hardest part of the trip, being in such close quarters for an extended amount of time, but he said ?it is good to deal with people not at their best.?

Once in California the first stop was Venice Beach. A new experience for many of the students, seeing as many had never been beyond the Iowa state lines.

The service learning program was located near the once glamorous Hollywood Boulevard. Today, Hollywood Boulevard is rundown with many homeless people, including many youth.

Zimmerman spoke of the homeless, he said, ?Some had showbiz ambitions but wound up on the street. For example, you can be the best in Mt. Pleasant, move out to Hollywood, go to an audition but then there are 200 others that were the best in their small towns. Its hard to get a break.?

The service program the Mt. Pleasant group worked with for the week, in conjunction with two youth groups from California, was at a homeless center for youth. The volunteers helped with a food bank, meal programs, and a clothing bank at the youth drop-in center.

The drop-in center allows homeless youth to use shower facilities, provides art programs, has meal service, and helps the youth apply for jobs in the area. At the end of the day to wrap up the youth group listened to various speakers tell their stories of living on the streets.

The speakers told of their hardships and overcoming life?s obstacles. One commonality was the difficulty in sleeping. While homeless they were constantly fearful of getting hurt or taken advantage of. After being homeless, even when they were safe many spoke of hardly ever sleeping well.

Zimmerman said that he and the group were ?struck by what hard work it is to be homeless; the stress and the difficulty to survive on a day to day basis.? He hoped the trip helped to break down the stereotype of who is homeless.

While reflecting on the trip, Zimmerman is glad the group went, he said, ?I always like taking groups, it forces us all to think of others and beyond our own problems.? He believes everyone that went was glad they participated in the experience.

The service learning program, volunteers, and overall experience, Zimmerman said, ?reminded us that sometimes things in life really suck but those times need not be the end of the story.?