Help Troubled Youth Help Others
September 14, 2010
11:30 AM - 1:30 PM
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
Matthew 7:12
Annual International Smile Power Outreach in October
Volunteer to help the Echo Glen youth paint T-shirts and write friendship messages that will be delivered to Romanian gypsy children by PLCC and Smile Power volunteers in November. The Echo Glen kids will see photos & hear stories from last year’s outreach before painting t-shirts. Then when the Smile Power team returns, a follow-up assembly will be given to show them photos of the smiles they have put on the faces of the Romanian children that received their gifts. All are welcome at the presentations, but it is not required for volunteering.
No artistic talent required - Volunteers present simple directions to the classes and then encourage the youth while they work. All supplies are provided.
Cannot join us either day?
Please pray - prayers that we will be able to get through the protective shell that many of these emotionally-wounded children wear and that we can plants seed’s of God’s love in their hearts.
Help with prep work – freezer paper needs to be ironed inside each of the 150 t-shirts. Can take t-shirts home to pray over and iron at your convenience.
Questions? Ready to help these kids live the golden rule? Contact the Echo Glen Outreach Coordinator.
Helping others has been life-transforming for these kids! It allows them to take their focus off themselves and their problems and to experience the joy and esteem building effect of helping others. They can learn first hand that this golden rule benefits the giver as much as the receiver. These kids feel empowered and realize they can have a future and do have something to offer the world!
This outreach has been life-changing impact for many of the children in previous years.
Marriam is an great example. Marriam and her friend Heather will be spending 25 years behind bars for a crime Heather’s mother persuaded them to commit when they were 13 & 14 years old. Marriam and Heather participated in this outreach their first year at Echo Glen. When we came back their 2nd year, Marriam stood up in front of all of her fellow inmates and said, “I used to be self-centered and think the world revolved around me. But after doing the t-shirts and seeing the smiles I put on the faces of the Bolivian kids, I realized I am happiest when I am helping others. So, Heather and me have spent this last year making scarves and hats for those orphans.”
Like Marriam, many of the children at Echo Glen have been led astray by parents who perpetuated the mistakes of their parents. These children desperately need good adult role models; they need, crave & appreciate positive attention from caring adults. They may take your heart as you fall in love with their eagerness to help other children that they view as being worse off than they are.
