Local students complete East Coast missionary trip

    Gene and Bethany Collins,  youth pastors at Bethel Pentecostal Church in Oakfield, completed an 12-day missions trip with nine local students down the east coast of the United States.
    The group left on July 29, with an overnight stop at Zion Bible College in Haverhill, Mass. The next day, the group’s destination was Ocean City, Md. where they worked with Bob Banning of Georgetown, Del. and his youth at The Son Spot, under the direction of Pastor Dick Sands.
Contributed photograph
MISSIONS – The Bethel Pentecostal Church in Oakfield sponsored a 12-day missions trip down the east coast of the United States. Attending were, from left, front, Jennah Steamer; middle, Ben Boutilier, Jon Damon, Mandy Emery and Lindsey Watson; back, Becca Sherwood, Gary Tucker, Bethany Collins, Gene Collins, Chris Casey and Kaleb Sperrey
    The Son Spot is a Christian Coffee House, which offers facilities for groups that come and volunteer to spend the night upstairs, said Bethany Collins. They do services on weekends in their building before going out to the boardwalk.
    At The Son Spot, local youth handed out Bibles and sang songs on the boardwalk, along with performing skits on the beach. They served breakfast to international students, who work in Ocean City during the summer break.
    Another highlight in Maryland was working with “Mr. Randy” who builds sand sculptures of Bible scenes that stay up year round.
    The group’s next stop was Baltimore, but on the way, they got to see Annapolis, Md. home of the United States Naval Academy. In Baltimore, the group toured Oriole Park, visited Ft. McHenry, where the country’s National Anthem was written, and worked in a homeless shelter.
    From Maryland, the youth group headed to West Virginia to work with a church in Goodhope.
    “We did some cleaning, repaired a porch roof and built a deck,” said Bethany Collins.
    The final stop was Pennsylvania where the group stayed at Millersburg Assembly of God. The stop was special since Norman Lawrence, an Oakfield native, is pastor.
    “We worked in Harrisburg with the Volunteers of America Assocaition doing landscaping at a home for the mentally handicapped and cleaning, sorting and stocking at a thrift store,” Collins added.
    After a stop at an outlet mall in Pennsylvania, the local youth arrived home on Aug. 9.
    The students who went on the trip were: Chris Casey, Oakfield; Ben Boutilier, Merrill; Gary Tucker, Houlton; Kaleb Sperrey, Medway; Jon Damon, Skowhegan; Mandy Emery, Island Falls; Jennah Steamer, Ludlow; Becca Sherwood, Oakfield; and Lindsey Watson, Mars Hill.
     The trip was planned by the Collins, youth pastors of “T.A.G … You’re It.”