Our home at 1st Presbyterian continues to be a refuge in the middle of the bustle that is Jamaica Center. Just half a block away, peace covers our housing site and somehow transports visitors to what feels like a different era. Even in the midst of a particularly busy afternoon and a big baseball game, the church remained tranquil.
Inside big changes continue to take place as Mr. Ali supervises new floors in the gym area and flooring is removed from the stage to replace the beveled lanes in the bowling alley. The youth group looks forward to seeing their room restored to its prime function of fun. Members of the youth group are already looking forward to Wednesday night services this summer and Aqueelah anticipates even more youth-led facets of those wonderful times. The church, she tells me, is gearing up for Youthworks return and looking forward to making our groups this summer a part of the family.
Our service sites have a hard time thinking about summer when there are holidays like Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas to get through first. Lists of activities in our many senior centers were crowding out the calendar and activities directors like Jumi are barraged with event planning. Thankfully, the seniors will be well-rested from those come June and ready for the excitement our participants bring. The Salvation Army, like all, prepares for the busy season and looks forward to a lot of extra helping hands. The church where we have Kids Club is also busy running food drives and helping the community get ready for the holidays.
All in all, Queens might not be ready for the summer quite yet—but with each person I met the same mantra prevailed: “As soon as Christmas is over it’s gonna be time for those Youthworks kids to get here!”
-Lauren
Jackie– Site Director
