Students from Brookwood School staged a "Mission Marathon" last weekend, participating in a variety of service projects to help individuals and families in need in the local area.
"A group of 32 students from Brookwood's Fellowship of Christian Athletes put aside a whole weekend to truly serve our Thomasville community," said Amy Stalvey, the organization's staff sponsor.
Stalvey works in Brookwood's Academic Resource Center, along with Chris Seay, who also coaches basketball, football and track. They both served as chaperones for the FCA students over the weekend.
In cooperation with Habitat for Humanity, on Friday the FCA members filled in a ditch, and cleaned windows, floors and bathrooms to get a house on Magnolia Street ready for a family to inhabit.
They had raised $500 to purchase food from Second Harvest for a Manna Food Drop. On Saturday, the students and parent volunteers helped distribute food to a long line of people at the Thomasville Rescue Mission over a two-hour period.
Matt McMurray of the Valdosta Food Bank said the food the students handed out fed 396 people, which accounted for 108 families.
"They distributed 6,161 pounds of food," McMurray said.
At the Belvedere Commons senior living residence, the student participants played Bingo with the residents and served snacks. FCA member Rand Pope played the piano to entertain the group.
The Brookwood girls then met a group of Vashti girls at the Imagination Unlimited shop and assisted them with creating original T-shirts designs, followed by a visit to MacIntyre Park to meet up with FCA and Vashti boys playing games of Frisbee Golf.
After services at First Baptist Church on Sunday, the FCA students put in five hours of work at the home of an elderly woman. They cleaned, painted, hung pictures, took down an old fence, cut down trees, hauled trash, pulled down overgrown vines and raked the yard.
Friday and Saturday evenings, the students stayed at the Myrtlewood Plantation Lodges. Parents prepared meals and pizza was brought in as the FCA group participated in devotionals. Special speakers were Chris Nichols of Young Life Thomas County and Dr. Brad Walter, who told about his recent mission trip to Haiti.
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After their work at Habitat for Humanity House, some of the FCA members pause on Friday before heading to their evening devotional. Back row: Caroline Penhallegon, Daniel Fortner, Brittany Vinson, Alex Walter, Laura Courtney, Grace Allen, Rand Pope, Ben Mavity, Katie Hooks, Hannah Jackson, Leigh Avera and Mikki Noble, Middle: Kathryn Drew, Kaitlyn Roberts, Mary Kathryn Pounds and Ashley Yaun, Sitting: Emily Miller, Emily Drew, Austin Tyler, Haley Caldwell, Wyatt Egan, Katie Rumble and Brooke Simpson, Front: Melanie Morales, Courtney Morales and Danielle Harrell
