By Sidney Needles

The peace and quiet of Milo Adventist Academy’s summer vacation was recently interrupted by a large group of volunteers from Maranatha Volunteers International, a supporting ministry of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. This 67-member team saved the Oregon school a large amount of money by completing several maintenance projects, free of charge. Their work is especially appreciated by school staff who don’t have the spare time to do the projects themselves and students who will enjoy a tidier campus.
 
Volunteers spent most of the project’s two-week duration painting Milo’s cafeteria and boys dorm. But they also squeezed in other projects, like landscaping and repairing termite damage. “The volunteers that come on these projects are very driven and motivated,” said the project’s coordinator, Edward Jensen. “They understand the benefits we’re providing to Milo. They have a very Godly attitude about it that rubs off on each other.”
 
In addition to adult volunteers, roughly 20 teenagers worked to make the project a success. “They were very energetic kids–[they] did a really good job,” remarked Jensen. “We turned them loose on [painting] the boys dorm halls, and they knocked out several halls.” Volunteers of all ages worked seamlessly together, inspired by a common goal. Jensen was impressed by the way service seemed to bridge a generational divide. “There’s no pushing back really,” he recalled. “The ones that are really experienced are willing to help the ones who aren’t experienced.”
 
Maranatha has worked to make a difference at Milo Adventist Academy since 1989, completing 14 volunteer projects over the years. Nestled in the southern Cascade Mountains, the campus is surrounded by beautiful natural scenery. But it’s volunteers’ firm belief in Milo’s mission that draws them back again and again. The school provides a Christ-centered community, which helps students discover their individual interests and gifts and prepares them to answer life’s calling.
 
Many volunteers also join Maranatha projects, like the one at Milo Adventist Academy, because of the connections they make with mission-minded individuals. “They just love the experience of working with those folks,” said Jensen. “We enjoy seeing each other every year and making our connections.” Having served on countless projects with Maranatha over the years, Jensen has experienced the community they cultivate as well as anyone. “I’ve probably met more people in my entire life working for Maranatha in my retirement than I did the whole time during my career.”
 
Each year, Maranatha works with organizations in the United States and Canada to provide volunteer labor for various construction or renovation projects at summer camps and retreat centers, schools, and churches. Work ranges from renovations of existing buildings to new construction and saves thousands of dollars in labor costs.

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