After 10 years of operating an aggressive, innovative community service program as part of the school curriculum, Upper Columbia Academy (UCA) is taking that program (HOPE Task Force) to yet another level.
Through HOPE, the school cancels classes on six days each year so that every student and staff member can do a community service project. Usually, 25-30 options are available each time. During these past ten years, this represents more than 1,500 projects involving some 80,000 hours of service. If you add the other service opportunities regularly sponsored by the school such as the weekly Feed the Hungry program, blood drives, Christmas parties for inner city children (coordinated with the Salvation Army) and mission trips, the school’s service easily exceeds 120,000 hours for the last decade.
Even with that level of success, the Lord is leading UCA to take the service curriculum to an exciting new level. Next year, students will coordinate all service opportunities. This will be done through an innovative Bible class option in which students will study the principles that compel Christians to be servants, explore the trends of volunteerism in our culture and hear from numerous guest speakers who are on the cutting-edge of service in our society. The best part is that students themselves will organize the HOPE Task Force projects and other service opportunities, giving them the training and experience necessary to mobilize their local churches or any other organization for more effective service.
Cheri Corder, who has been directing HOPE Task Force for the last six years, will teach the class.
HOPE Task Force service projects are as varied as life itself. They range from recording inspirational radio messages, to organizing a clothing bank for the homeless and hauling wood for a senior citizen. The students shown here are cleaning up after making cinnamon rolls at Ronald McDonald House where families can stay while their children are recovering in area hospitals.
