By Jon Roberts – Denver, Colorado … Students at Mile High Academy middle school ditched the books and the classroom April 1 for a chance to give back to the community by committing to a day of service.
Three groups departed MHA campus that Friday morning, each with a mission project to complete. The projects included helping to organize offices and storage areas at Denver South Adventist Church, accomplishing much-needed painting of the baseboard at Denver South Hispanic Adventist Church, and helping pack dental kits for families in need at the Special Olympics headquarters.
Reflecting on the importance of serving the community, Andrew Carpenter, MHA principal said, “Service days are important at MHA because they are a time in which we can put our faith into practice. Service is part of our CHERISH core values and giving our students opportunities to serve is essential to helping our students develop holistically.”
Denver South was happy to have MHA students assisting them. “Mile High Academy came to Denver South with 14 of their middle schoolers. They were an amazing help organizing, stacking, throwing out, cleaning, and more. We almost ran out of things for them to do because they work so fast and so well. We are so happy to be part of a school that also helps the churches that support it. And we are always happy to have more young people in our churches,” said Mikey Archibeque, Denver South associate pastor.
Students enjoyed the opportunity to serve others.
Connor, a seventh-grader reflected on the event, “We went to Denver Hispanic Church and painted baseboards. I enjoyed the day and enjoyed getting out of the classroom.”
Caleb, an eighth-grader said, “It was fun. We went to the Special Olympics and we were packing dental kits for them.”
Carpenter added, “I hope students learned the joy of service.”
–Jon Roberts is RMC communication / media assistant; photos courtesy of Mile High Academy’s Facebook page
