This summer we partnered with IDEAS for Us, Do Good Farms and Grow It Forward to create a unique, local mission experience for our youth ministries centered around Creation Care.

We learned and got hands-on training from local environmentalists surrounding these topics:

Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy Systems

Water Conservation & Saving Our Local Waterways

How to Grow Food & Where Our Food Comes From

Recycling & Zero Waste Practices

The Florida Ecosystem: Plant & Animal Identification

Sustainability and more ways to take care of the earth

Local Environmentalists

Caroline Chomanics - IDEAS For Us

Saniye Kazan - St. Luke’s UMC & Grow It Forward

We also shared in a devotional time every afternoon with Brandon discussing Creation Care, and how we are all called to "Do Good".

ECO MISSION WEEK RECAP

Day 1 - Energy & Water

For the first lesson, students learned where our energy comes from and how it powers our lives. They worked in groups to make their own solar-powered s’more ovens and even named their oven creations. They learned about alternative forms of energy like Wind, Hydro, Nuclear, Solar, Kinetic, Geo-thermal, and Bio-Mass. To close out this lesson we put together our own solar-powered fairy light jars and put them outside to charge.

For the second lesson, we learned where our water comes from and how it becomes polluted. We played a water relay race where students were challenged to transport water through an obstacle course and conserve as much of it as possible along their journey. We learned all about our Florida Waterways and painted a rain barrel as we watched a short film called "Planet Earth". The Rain barrel we painted will be put outside to collect rainwater for our pollinator garden and other plants around campus.

After our work for the day was done, we went to spend some time in community and caught a movie.

Day 2 - Food & Waste

Our first lesson today was about where our food comes from, how it grows, and where it ends up. We took a tour of the Grow It Forward micro-farm at St. Lukes's to see how food is grown at the church to combat food apartheid areas. We got to plant our own pea seeds in pots and we even tried some Vietnamese Long Beans and Cubanelle peppers right off the farm. We learned about composting and made our own vermicompost bin with 68 live worms. We named worms and labeled their home “Wormtopia”.

For our second lesson, we learned about waste, the journey from trash can to landfill, and recycling. We learned about sustainable product swaps that are more eco-friendly and avoid the use of single-use plastics like Swedish unpaper towels, reusable take-out cutlery, coconut bowls, reusable bags, electric lighters, and others. We talked about the harmful effects of the fast fashion industry and upcycled old t-shirts into dog toys, macrame pot hangers, and reusable bags.

For lunch this day, Youth Intern Saniye Kazan made us vegan tacos for Taco Tuesday! We discussed the environmental benefits of veganism and how eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, nuts, and grains is good for our bodies and the planet.

We ended the day with "Vegan Chopped" (yes, just like the cooking gameshow). Students were put into teams with an adult leader and were challenged to make an entirely vegan meal with the items provided for them. Teams were rated on their team name, creativity, taste, plating, use of items, and edibility “is it food?”. After the judges critiqued each plate, teams were giving their final scores and 1 team was pronounced the winner.

Day 3 - Ecology

Wednesday we talked all about how living things interact with each other and their environments, and what effects they have on each other. We learned about the importance of pollinators like bees and butterflies, how to identify different kinds of Florida native bees and butterflies, and the different kinds of flowers that they like. The students then helped install a pollinator garden right outside the youth room. We did this by properly planting flowers that pollinators are naturally drawn to like Milkweed and Salvia.

In our second lesson, we learned about different Florida Ecosystems including mangroves, prairies, and the everglades. We discussed the different kinds of wildlife we’d find in each of those ecosystems and ways we can protect them.

For our afternoon activity, we took a trip to The C.A.R.E. Foundation which is a local animal rescue for exotic animals. We took a tour of the many animals they care for and learned how each of them got there. Some of them were surrendered pets, some rescued from slaughterhouses, and some even rescued from the black market. We got to see how each animal is treated with love and dignity and how we can be helpful to them as well.

Day 4 - Work Day at Do Good Farms

On Thursday Morning we volunteered at Do Good Farms in Winter Garden. Youth took a tour of the farm and learned about different ways of growing food like permaculture, aquaponics, hydroponics, and food forests. We all got our hands dirty in helping Josh and his team prep land for their newest food forest site that will be right outside the hydroponic greenhouse.

After all of the hard work, we all grabbed lunch from House Blend Cafe which is owned by Josh Taylor of Do Good Farms and went to Mrs. Amy Winslow's house for and fun afternoon at the lake. While at Mrs. Amy's house, students got to see how she does her part in being eco-conscious like her vegetable garden, pollinator garden, and solar-paneled roof.

Day 5 - Disney Springs (Middle School)

On Friday our middle school group took a trip to Disney Springs and completed an Eco-Scavenger Hunt! Youth were challenged to find different eco-mission week related things all around the park and worked in teams to complete the scavenger hunt. For lunch, we ate at Blaze pizza and enjoyed the outdoor seating on the water. After that, we came back to the youth room to make our very own living terrariums. Students made the hanging terrariums using sand, rocks, dirt, moss, and live succulents and learned how to properly care for their new plant friends.

Day 5 - Wekiva Island (High School)

On Friday our high school crew took a trip to Wekiva Island and worked on a canoe clean-up of the Wekiva River. We got to experience the beauty of the river and its wildlife all while picking up trash using nets grabbers and buckets. Students spent the rest of the afternoon at the springs swimming, eating, and playing volleyball.

We hope our youth had fun and learned a lot about their calling to do good, and be good stewards of this gift of a planet that we've been given.

Special thanks to Saniye Kazan (our Missions Intern) and our Adult Leaders for all the time and effort they gave to make this experience happen for us!

Leaders
Brandon Sangster - Director of Youth Ministries
Saniye Kazan - Missions Intern
Jeni Roop
Maité Ramirez Stansell
Emily Hudson