|
|
Eli Parker-Burgard Photo from St. Luke's School |
Audio |
|
Eli's address to his classmates |
NEW CANAAN (11/15/2010) -- "The summer of 2010 was by far the greatest summer of my life," said Eli Parker-Burgard in an address to his classmates at St. Luke's School at the end of October. "My summer consisted of waking up somewhere between 6:45 and 8 o'clock am, walking up a steep hill to be where I needed to be, and doing work such as washing dishes, cleaning bathrooms, raking, weeding, or sweeping various locations.
"This past summer I worked at a summer camp in northwestern Connecticut called Silver Lake Conference Center."
Known at "the Lake" by the last name Asterhelvesly (as a member of last summer's Camp Family), the sixteen-year-old Eli found his rewards not in the labor, the long hours, or the financial compensation, but in the relationships. "If I did not love my co-workers and where I worked as much as I did," he told his classmates, "the job itself would have been horrible. The bond I formed with this family, and with the other parts of staff, and with the camp itself, was so strong that I was willing to put my best foot forward.
"Somehow, after just 8 weeks, we functioned not just as any group of teenagers trying to have a summer job, but as a family, doing our part to keep up our home."
Eli also spent 9 days during the summer working in New Orleans on a mission trip with the Monroe Congregational Church UCC's Pilgrim Fellowship, helping with the host church's Bible School. When he learned his assignment, he was disappointed that he wasn't doing construction work. But then, "I saw the kids who had always seemed down come to this camp and their faces would just light up when they got to dance during the Bible School program."
Eli was not alone. "THESE KIDS GET IT!!!!" wrote advisor Paulette Obertz on the Monroe Church's website. "You are very lucky to have such wonderful kids that want to do everything in their power to make a difference in the world and in society."
Churches around the state will provide further mission trip experiences, and Silver Lake will soon be seeking members for next summer's Camp Family and "Up the Hill" staff: offering further opportunities to provide young people with the best summer of their lives.
