NEW WINDSOR — As the rising sun broke the horizon on a humid July 22, the sound of nail guns could be heard down a concealed driveway.
The work was being done by a volunteer crew of more than 10 youths and young adults from the St. Peter the Apostle in Libertytown REAL (Rebuilding and Evangelizing Around Libertytown) Team.
They were replacing the roof on the modest home of Milly Sweitzer, 85, a parishioner of St. Peter the Apostle. She and her husband, Donald, who died three years ago, built the home in 1972 and raised their eight children there.
It was one of five job sites visited by a total of 33 volunteers during the week-long REAL Team outreach. It was coordinated by Kevin Parker, known as “KP,” the first-year minister for the parish in eastern Frederick County.
What would normally have been a trip to Preston County, W.Va., to help restore homes ravaged by floods, turned more local with the coronavirus pandemic.
According to Father Charles Wible, pastor of St. Peter the Apostle in Libertytown, REAL built on its long tradition of a summer youth work camp to West Virginia’s Appalachia.
“With COVID- 19, it was impossible to do it, but both the young people and adult leaders wanted to do some kind of larger service project,” Father Wible said. “We’ve also thought for a long time that we wanted to do something local, for the needy in our own neighborhood, so to speak. Out of this, REAL was born.
“Taking into account the restrictions and care for social distancing, (we) came up with a plan to do several projects with small groups of adults and teams,” he said. “Those parishioners who regularly supported the Appalachia Camp came right on board. We set up a virtual giving tree through Flocknote and the parish website and the parish generously responded.”
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While participation was down from previous years, REAL’s impact, on both donors and clients receiving help, has not diminished.
“The outpouring of support from our own parish has just been incredible,”Parker said, in light of current restrictions.
He described how the parish’s online giving tree generated some $6,000, which went toward lumber, screws and paint. While the roof on the Sweitzer home is by far the largest project, REAL volunteers also did deck tread and step replacement, power washing, staining, painting and plumbing repairs.
Parker said St. Peter the Apostle parishioners in need were specifically selected to ensure for projects the REAL team could complete.
“Feels good to have these people think that much of us (seniors) and come out and do all this work,” said Sweitzer, who joked about their initiative.
“They do such a great job … except they wake me up at five in the morning. I thank them all for being here today. They work hard out there.”
Sweitzer’s home is shared by her daughter, Joan Sears, who said, “It’s a real blessing that they (repairs) are being fixed.”
A short drive away, Grace Buchheit, a recent graduate of Hagerstown Community College, and Eilis McCormick, a rising sophomore at The Catholic University of America, replaced deck treads and steps at the home of another St. Peter the Apostle parishioner.
They spaced and secured large timber planks with screw-gun efficiency as sweat dripped off their faces in the late-morning sun.
Jim Buchheit, Grace’s father, and fellow adult volunteer Mark Kulis worked the circular saw and moved freshly cut pieces to the deck.
“This is my third time serving with the home repair project at St. Peter’s,” said Buchheit, 19, who studied chemistry at HCC. “I really enjoy serving and especially getting to know the homeowners you’re serving.”
Buchheit enjoys, “just being involved with the church,” to the point where she is discerning religious life while working with NET, the National Evangelization Team, coordinating retreats for middle and high school age students across the country. Her twin twin brother, Adam, worked on the roof project.
The volunteers were directed by Parker, the youth minister who retired from his career as an electrical engineer.
“I honestly think the Lord was calling me to this job (as youth minister),” Parker said. “I could have stayed back … at the lab for several years, but I just felt compelled to step up to this position.“I’ve probably put in more hours this year than I did last year. I never call it going to work. I just get so much joy from working with these guys.”
Parker hopes the REAL team can offer both a local and West Virginia outreach next year.
Email Kevin Parks at kparks@CatholicReview.org
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