Each year Lewis County Adventist School chooses to emphasize one aspect of Christian values for its students. This year the focus is on community service. To that end, our associate pastor, Jonathan Fetrick, takes students from the fourth- through 10th-grade classrooms to do service in the Centralia and Chehalis area one afternoon a week. Some of the projects they have been involved with include doing yard work for the elderly, painting equipment in public parks, clearing brush from cemeteries, working with the local animal shelter, helping at the Salvation Army food bank, writing letters for nursing-home residents, and volunteering at the hospital. Approximately 40 hours of community service are performed each week.
Fetrick says, “I get excited about seeing our students involved in their community. They’re learning so much through these service projects. A key element of Christianity is service. Another key element is a Christian’s ability to relate with and operate in the community at large. During our service projects, I’ve been able to witness first-hand a dramatic improvement in the students’ work ethic and interpersonal skills. We praise God for what has been taking place this year in the lives of our students.”
Students from the Lewis County Adventist School work to clean up a neighborhood as part of their community service outreach.
