Strasburg Mennonite Youth Group

10/23/2025

09/25/2025

Mark your calendars!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

06/28/2025

We got up at 6 am this morning. After cleanup we were on the road at 7 am.

We pulled into the church parking lot at 5:30 pm.

Thanks for praying and supporting our summer mission trip.

“Bookmobile” and “Rowdy Van” signing off.

06/28/2025

Our last day of work in Elkhorn! We woke up at 6:00am to pack lunches, eat breakfast, and have a bible study. This morning, Ms. Pam, Ms. Jeanie, and Ms. Ruby, our executive chefs, served us breakfast burritos with yogurt parfaits and freshly sliced pineapple. After breakfast, we all threw on our “Appalachian Build” t-shirts for a group picture before heading off to our job site. Determined to get as much done as possible, we got straight to work. Construction on Scottie and Crystal’s deck resumed, while drywallers inside continued to make progress. At George and Terry’s house, final touches began in the kitchen and living room, including kitchenware installation and adding the last pieces of trim. When lunchtime hit at noon, hopes were high that George & Terry’s kitchen and Scottie & Crystal’s deck would be completed. However, the time eventually caught up with us. On the deck, floorboards, railings, balusters, and concrete supports were added. When a miraculous second wind hit allowing the crew to begin digging holes for the staircase, a sudden thunderstorm (“Orthographical Lifting” according to Lee) hit, cutting our efforts short around 4:45pm. Luckily, Scottie arrived at the house before the storm, and we were able to share some time with him on his new, sturdy deck! Inside, the drywallers wrapped up their work. At the other house, we finished installing the countertops and dishwasher thanks to some expert workmanship from Keith. Back at the lodge, we celebrated Ms. Pam’s birthday with cake and a song, accompanied by a dinner of chili dogs and French fries. A debrief and “final thoughts” session with Joey wrapped up the evening, where we were able to express our gratitude for the construction crew’s dedication and the kitchen ladies’ expertise. We’ve had a wonderful week full of work and fun! We’ll be arriving back in PA tomorrow evening!

-Truman

06/27/2025

Hello from Kentucky!

We had a very busy day today. Our day started out with a half day of work, which included starting to build the deck to replace the one we tore down. Part of our group continued working on drywall and mudding. Others continued working in the other house, painting and putting together some furniture. They also got to know and were conversing with a 14 year old girl who lives in one of the houses. We wrapped up our workday around 12:00. Afterwards, we went to Breaks Interstate Park and brought along the young girl that lived in the house with us to the park. At the park they had pools and water slides. They also had a few hiking trails, that gave awesome views of the surrounding mountains. Most of our group decided to stay at the pools and swim. Jim and Lee took those who wanted to go hiking on a trail. On the trail we came to an overlook. There we had an incredible view of the mountains around us, and we also saw a bald eagle soaring below us. When those who went hiking got back, they joined the others in the pool. Shortly thereafter we left, and got pizza on the way home. We had supper as a group, and then several of us went on a drive to see elk. On the way, we had the exciting experience of spotting several elk, and even two black bears. After that group returned, we hung out and played games and played instruments. We had an enjoyable day and are ready for our last day of work tomorrow.

-Megan and Madison :)

06/25/2025

Greetings from Elkhorn City, eastern Kentucky, Appalachia!

Today at Scotty and Crystal’s house, we installed and mudded drywall, installed electrical outlets, finished insulating the floor, and added underpinning (skirting) around the house. Keith was in charge of electrical work and Lee was in charge outside. Others worked on installing a shower.
At George and Terry’s house, Owen worked on fixing the push mower. Simon painted a board, swept, and bagged cardboard for the garbage truck. We cleaned the garage, carrying the garbage to a rubbish pile on the other side of the road. Jim and Taylor added trim to the kitchen. Owen, Riley, Aila, and Chloe helped Isabella, George and Terry’s daughter, assemble a bookshelf for her room.

Isaiah and Simon :-)

Comments in pictures.

06/24/2025

Today we worked on two different houses which included working on installation under the house, working with drywall, working on ceilings, tearing down a deck( which was really fun), some plumbing (we left that up to the boys) and most importantly making relationships with the homeowners:). Even though it was almost 100 degrees today (97 to be exact) We had a great time, and we are all super excited to work tomorrow!
-Chloe Meck :)

Captions are with the pictures.

06/24/2025

Good evening fellow Strasburg Mennotonians,

It’s your boys Logan along with Emerson and Austin coming to you from a great first day in the Appalachian Mountains. We woke up bright and early at 4 AM and were left by 5 AM from the church. We made a few stops along the way including McDonalds. At the second stop to get some gas in the early afternoon we came across a car, a Honda If we recall. It had broken down in the middle of the intersection so of course we sprang to action and helped push it out of the way. True story. Other than that, we had a good smooth ride. We arrived here at about 3:30 PM. We have great accommodation with very friendly southern people. They are very kind and sweet here. We had pizza for supper and following that we played some intense games of co****le and pickleball, inside of course because its like 100 degrees outside. We are going to end the day relaxing and playing different games and go to bed at a reasonable time so we are ready for a great hard day of work tomorrow. We are thankful for the air conditioning and fans. Thank you for all the prayers and support. -Logan
-Helpers: Emerson, Austin

06/24/2025

We left at 5 am for our mission trip to Elkhorn Kentucky. When we arrived in Elkhorn we discovered that we didn't have any cell coverage. And the internet was out.

This morning we drove to a spot that has cell coverage in order to do the following post.

Sorry for the delay. Hopefully we will have internet back tonight!

11/01/2024

This is a reminder that we are having a pancake breakfast Saturday morning! Everyone is welcome!