The youth of Preston Hollow Presbyterian Church are headed on a pilgrimage of sorts to study the roots of their faith and see one of their own participating in mission work.
Forty-five kids in grades seven through 12, accompanied by 11 adults, leave June 12 for a 10-day visit to and .
Their first stop is the town of
“It’s not quite like the , but it’s as close as we get,”
But their first day overseas will be spent performing mission work — manual labor at an outdoor education center.
“We’ll set the tone for the whole trip by doing a day of hard work before we do anything fun,” he says.
The trip combines several themes — mission, song, history and prayer,
Hundreds of religious pilgrims and tourists visit the tiny island and its abbey daily during the summer months.
“I hope they’ll gain an understanding for our history as Presbyterians but also as Christians,” he says.
Burke Hall, 14, says he expects the bus ride to Iona — through the rural hills of — to be a highlight of the trip.
“I’m not as much looking forward to the urban spots,” he says.
The group will also visit
The final three days of the trip will be spent in
“That’s one of the reasons we chose to do this trip this year,”
Says Hall: “It kind of opens a whole new world and new opportunities to be in a whole new place and helping other people.”
The youth group held three fund-raising dinner concerts to raise money for the trip. They also participated in a “pilgrim rental” event, hiring out their services for baby sitting, yard work and other labor. Each traveler had to raise $1,500.
The youth group has made past mission trips to Mexican border towns, but the pilgrimage is the first overseas voyage.