Williamsburg—Summertime for most young people means a break from school and long, lazy days hanging out with friends. The teenagers who recently visited Williamsburg as part of Kentucky Changers see summer the same way, but with one important difference—their long days were anything but lazy.

Kentucky Changers is the missions emphasis of the Kentucky Baptist Convention that challenges students to live out their faith while getting their hands dirty doing hard work. The youth who serve not only volunteer their time but also pay for the privilege, just as they would for a more conventional summer camp experience.

From July 5-13, more than 350 volunteers—middle school, high school and college students and adults—representing Kentucky Baptist churches from across the state as well as a church from Ohio, completed jobs for 28 local families and individuals in Williamsburg and Whitley County who needed repairs or maintainance for their homes.

The Williamsburg project was the last of three Kentucky Changers endeavors this summer which brought nearly 1,000 volunteers out to help neighbors in need across the state. The first two projects were held in Monticello and Maysville in June.

In Williamsburg, materials were provided by local businesses and the city, and were distributed to the worksites by students in the Mountain Outreach program at University of the Cumberlands, which served as the base of operations for the week.

Most crews replaced roofs, painted, repaired windows and built wheelchair ramps. One crew poured a concrete floor and framed an addition to the Emergency Christian Ministries building in Williamsburg.

Despite almost daily storms, which caused delays and even halted an afternoon at the Kentucky Splash Water Park, the crews pushed to finish their projects by the end of the week. As some crews completed their jobs, they joined others to help ensure that all of the scheduled work was finished on time.

Rachel Freeman, a student at South Marshall Middle School in Benton who served as the medic for crew 26, celebrated her 14th birthday by ripping old shingles off the porch roof at the home of a single mother of two.

“This is my second year and this is an awesome crew,” she said with a smile. “I will do this again.”

A program like Kentucky Changers requires a great deal of planning. Project coordinators Peggy Murphy and Philip Ritchie spent ten months planning the three summer projects, as well as two additional projects in the spring.

Murphy, a ministry assistant with the KBC’s Baptist Men on Mission department, said she has seen Changers grow from one project with 80 volunteers in 1994, to the current five events which attracted more than 1,000 volunteers last year.

“It’s amazing how God has grown the program,” Murphy noted.

Ritchie, who works at a water plant in Lawrenceburg, is a volunteer who devotes all his vacation time each year to Kentucky Changers. He said that the projects give him an opportunity to change things.

“Seeing the change—what God has done in the lives of these kids—that’s my pay,” he said.

Each evening after the long day of hard work, the volunteers attended joint worship services in Gatliff Chapel on the University of the Cumberlands’ campus, led by members of the ministry team. Afterward, the students met with their church groups for Bible study and prayer.

On Friday evening, the entire group of volunteers, as well as the home owners, community members and representatives of the university and the KBC attended a celebration service at Main Street Baptist Church in Williamsburg. As “before and after” photos were displayed of each home, crews and home owners shared their experiences of the week.

Williamsburg Mayor Roddy Harrison affirmed the volunteers’ impact.

“With all the pessimistic outlook on our world by some, it’s a blessing to see groups like Kentucky Changers show that there are so many great things going on and good people doing them,” he said. “It’s especially heartening to see so many youth giving of their time and understanding the need for charitable deeds.”

Some Kentucky Changers volunteers returned the compliment to the city and University of the Cumberlands.

“I am so grateful to University of the Cumberlands for going out of their way to make this the most accommodating and comfortable Changers ever,” said three-time Kentucky Changers participant Laura McCoy.

Murphy and Ritchie pointed out that the Williamsburg project marked the first time Kentucky Changers had worked in conjunction with another group like UC’s Mountain Outreach. They said they were thrilled with the support and cooperation from the students and staff members who served as “runners” throughout the week.

Although Kentucky Changers was in Williamsburg for only a week, the results of their work will be evident for years to come, not only in the repairs, but also in the lives touched.

With additional reporting by News Director Drew Nichter