Diocese of Ohio Mission Trips

Welcome to Homer, Alaska - population 12,000. This is what thirteen participants from St. Matthew’s, Brecksville, were greeted with as they began their 12-day-long journey to a place where many never get to visit. As believed by the Diocese of Alaska Youth Commission, “the purpose of young people is to change the world…” and that is exactly what they plan to do!

The idea for the trip began when the Rev. Marcus Cunningham, now rector of St. Matthew’s, was in seminary. After a good friend moved to become the Missions Coordinator and part time rector for the Diocese of Alaska, he called his old friend, Fr. Marcus, to see if he would be interested in building a church for their Diocese. Right away, Cunningham was excited by the idea.

Upon arriving as rector of St. Matthew’s, he noticed the church had a great interest in mission work in El Salvador, the location of their sister parish. Although they were experiencing some challenges with the idea, they thought that the trip to Alaska would be a perfect “training” trip.

“It’s an interesting location far enough away without leaving the country, and it will give us an opportunity to build experience and trust with our congregation while working on a very do-able project” said Cunningham. Along side St. Matthew’s are people from other parishes in the diocese, Alabama, and Tennessee.

Working up to the trip, participants studied and memorized Bible passages with Cunningham: “These [were] both motivational and provided scriptural basis for enacting our mission for Christ in Alaska.” Participants and supporters also helped out in both spiritual and literal ways. The St. Matthew’s knitting group made hats and scarves for the volunteers, while the youth group held carwashes and other fundraisers to help with expenses. Prayer partners were also chosen to provide secret support for the participants as they start and end their journey.

While in Homer, the crew took on a huge task: to build a 28’ x 44’ basic church building in the very short amount of time that they are there, meaning their days were packed. From dawn to dusk the participants worked, prayed, and just simply enjoyed each others company.

Although the trip might be over, please continue to pray, for these volunteers and the people they served during this trip, that they will be able to carry these experiences and relationships on for the rest of their lives.

For more day-by-day blogs and pictures posted by the mission team, visit www.alaskamission.blogspot.com!