Miller Center Mission Trips 2013

***Copy of up-to-date passport required at time of application for the trip outside the US. Applications without passport copy attached will not be considered, and the passport must be valid six months beyond travel dates. If you are abroad in the fall 2012 semester, you will not be able to apply for the January trip. If you are abroad in the spring 2013 semester, you will be unable to apply for the March and May trips.***

San Francisco, CA

January 5th - 11th, 2013

$150

Spend a week serving among the urban poor of San Francisco through the social programs of Glide Memorial United Methodist Church, featured in the movie The Pursuit of Happyness. Truly diverse in many senses of the word--ethnically, economically and spiritually--the church has a model out-reach program that includes meals for the homeless, after-school care for children, programs for senior citizens, activities for youth, and an HIV-AIDS clinic. Students can expect to help serve over 1,000 meals a day to the homeless and to assist with each of the other programs throughout the week. There also will be opportunity to visit local sites and tourist attractions. 

         Epworth by the Sea

            March 17th - 23rd, 2013

         $100

Epworth at the Sea, located on St. Simons Island, Georgia, marks the place where John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, first stepped onto American soil. Today, Epworth is a Methodist Retreat Center for study, renewal, and service. Our Miller Center mission group will stay at the center and participate in numerous service projects supported by the Center, several of which should have particular relevance to the social needs of an island community such as beach cleanup and restoration, trail cleaning, and projects for the Seaman’s Center.

          Alaska

          May 12th - 21st, 2013

            $250  

Spend 10 days enjoying the majestic scenery in the Land of the Midnight Sun and discovering some of the special challenges to the delivery of social services that such an environment presents. We will stay at the Knox Retreat Center, a rustic log cabin located an hour outside of Fairbanks, Alaska. The Knox Center is part of Bingle Camp Ministries nestled on 66 hilly acres on Harding Lake. We will spend several days working at Bingle, clearing trails and preparing the camp grounds for the upcoming interdenominational summer camp programs. Additional service will take place at various non-profit agencies in Fairbanks. We may work with environments conservationists, in food banks, or with an agency providing services to disabled community members. By working alongside locals we hope to learn about the unique challenges and joys of living in such an isolated and rugged part of the country.

        Taize, France

            May 12th - 21st, 2013

          $400

In 1940, at the age of 25, Brother Roger arrived in France to answer his call "to create a community where simplicity and kind-heartedness would be lived out as essential Gospel realities."* Taizé began as a retreat for war refugees, yet soon became a community where Christians could share spiritual and material lives. Today, the small village of Taizé, France is home to over a hundred brothers of Catholic and Protestant traditions from twenty-five countries. The community has become a symbol of reconciliation between Christians and other peoples. Since the 1950's, young adults between the ages of 17 and 30 have made pilgrimages to Taizé to worship through prayer, singing, and silence; to serve the community by performing practical tasks; and to meet in small groups to discuss "the wellsprings of faith and the pluralistic reality of contemporary society."* The end of the trip will include time to see the city of Paris. 

*Quotes from the Taizé web-site.