Testimonials From Past Youth & Adults
Emma K.
I went on the Appalachian Service Project for my first time this summer. While I enjoyed every single minute of this trip, my overall all favorite part was the relationships that I built. While on ASP you spend the week working in a small group. I can tell you that God knew what he was doing when he put together my small group. My group worked well together, we all had strengths that contributed to completing our project. And we all got along very well, which helped our work run smoothly. Another relationship that I am really thankful for is the relationship I built with my homeowner. We were building a wheel chair ramp for an elderly women. Each day, at lunch, we would take a break from our work and just sit on the front porch and talk with her. It was incredible to hear her stories and learn about the mountain she lived on. I believe it was on the third day of the trip that she gave us a letter that she had written, thanking us for the work we were doing. She closed it saying "Love always, your Nana in the mountains." After only spending three short days with this women she accepted us into her family. It was amazing to see the love she had shown for us over such a short period of time. Overall ASP was an incredible experience for me but my personal favorite part was the relationships that I built both with my small group and my homeowner.
Chris M.
One of the greatest joy’s I find every year on ASP, is how strong knit your “Team” becomes. From the first day you meet each other, till the last day on the ride home. During the week of ASP, besides the families that we serve, your team is Family. The first day is always the hardest. You think you will never finish your assigned project. But by the end of the week, nobody wants to quit until we have completed our job. By the last day, your team and the homeowners have somehow become one big family. Then the hard part is saying goodbye. And we all leave in tears knowing we have given it our all. It is a very powerful week that really brings everyone together in God’s grace.
Hanna B.
Trying to sum up ASP in only a paragraph is almost impossible but I am going to try. I have been going on ASP for three years, and it has changed my view on ministry. Especially this past year, when I was having a conversation with one of my youth leaders. She said that ASP was not just manual labor but relational ministry, and sharing experiences. I really took that to heart and tried to embody that throughout the week. I talked with our homeowner Patricia everyday. We talked about her experiences and she shared a part of her with me, and it holds a very special part in my heart. At the end of the week, when our time was up, leaving was hard, but I knew that I would take the new found friendship forever in my heart. Looking at ASP as a whole, the manual labor in helping the family is a great feeling, but building relationships is the ultimate gift that God gives when He calls us on ASP. *Homeowners names changed for their safety.
Kyler Z.
ASP has been a great experience for me over the past two summers. No matter how I spend them, this project always seems to be the highlight and I look forward to the next summer immediately after. ASP is one of those trips that turns your friends into your family and creates bonds put together by hard work sweat and love. It's a week where you get to put everything behind you and serve those who need help. ASP is a life changing event that one can experience in many ways through volunteering, donations, and just spreading the word. ASP IS LIFE CHANGING!
Kellie M.
My husband and I have been on several youth mission trips, each and every year we come back changed people. It changes your perspective on life. I had the honor of working with a good ole southern gentleman. Bill* is a man full of pride. It was terribly difficult for him to accept our help with his house. He worked side by side with us the whole time. He kept telling us to rest, that he would do it. Bill was no stranger to hard labor. On the first day that we were there, our teens were working on taking down his concrete steps leading up to his porch. The teens were chiseling it away little by little. He asked if he could help, and of course we followed his lead. He grabbed the sledge hammer and went to town on it. We all stood there in awe by his physical abilities. It appeared to be so effortless for him. All of the youth and the adults just stood there watching him go to town on the steps. He took it out in no time flat. The whole week we all worked as a team and learned tricks of the trade from him, and he us. We became a family. It was terribly hard to leave at the end of the week. There was not a dry eye, especially Bill. *Homeowners names changed for their safety.
Christina Z.
ASP is an experience which impacted my life in so many ways. Very few experiences if any, gave me the opportunity to feel so incredibly close to others and GOD at the same time. The experience stripped away everything in life that doesn’t matter and filled me with love, respect, kindness, humility, and the love of Christ.
Seth M.
ASP isn’t a mission trip, a service project, or a retreat. Its am unforgettable experience that will leave you wanting more the second you come down from the mountain. After ASP, my perspective changed in every aspect of my life and I would never trade my experience on the mountain for anything.