When you walk through the community on 6 Mile and Gratiot in Detroit, you’ll find yourself surrounded by desolation and a feeling of despair. If you only take a quick glance, you’ll see remnants of what used to be someone’s family home; you’ll see a desolate neighborhood where full city blocks are without even one house or more burned-out houses than you can count; you’ll see that wildlife has returned and roams freely.
But if you take a moment longer and look just a bit closer, you will see signs of life and the beginning of renewed hope. As a close observer, you will find a few beautiful homes that have been well-cared for and loved for decades. Within those walls, you’ll meet wise souls with stories to tell. Resilient community leaders and neighborhood police officers are coming together to make this community a place that people can be proud to call home.
Then, moving to Chalmers Ave, you will come across a unique ministry—Camp Restore-Detroit (CRD)—which has settled in as the community’s new neighbor. CRD is an urban camp that houses and feeds volunteers and coordinates projects with community leaders—projects that provide hope and restore relationships with one another and Christ. CRD is housed within Mount Calvary Lutheran Church, and it has established a reputation as a center of hope and love, providing willing hands, feet, and hearts for projects and dreams the community thought were impossible—until now.
The Restoration Has Begun
You are invited to be part of this restoration process. This summer, you can help revive the city of Detroit in partnership with CRD and the Michigan District, LCMS. Not only are there opportunities to serve right in your own backyard, but you can also impact several sister LCMS churches in the city of Detroit in the process!
What? THE BIG WEEK: Lutherans Love on Detroit! June 23–29, 2019. Volunteer opportunities range from blight removal (imagine finding a sidewalk the community did not even know existed!), small home construction with partner families, vacation Bible schools, a sports camp, working at local community centers and within schools, to name just a few. In addition to the service, we will have activities, speakers from our community, as well as a guest speaker, small group time, and a praise team for worship each evening.
Why? The driving factor in planning this week is the sheer number of volunteers that have been requested from Camp Restore in that time frame. There are 3-4 vacation Bible school programs, one sports camp, along with a plethora of blight removal and construction projects. For the VBS and sports camp alone, we need 75+ volunteers!
Who? Both day campers (commuters) and overnight campers are welcome! This is a great opportunity for all ages to serve for one or more days or all week! Whatever works for you, we can put you to work! Families with young children are welcome. Children can attend VBS and sports camp at Camp Restore while their parents serve!
How? For more information, or to register your interest, visit michigandistrict.org/camprestore.
