At DinoMights, we have been holistically building out our programming since the very beginning, always seeking to find ways to better prepare our participants to be self-assured, competent adults. One example of this is our annual YouthWorks Service trip.

In the pursuit of developing spiritual excellence, DinoMights has long offered the opportunity for kids in our program to learn about the love of God and to make a personal commitment to follow Jesus. But what happens after that? How can we help to nurture their spiritual development? In 2012, DinoMights pursued the suggestion of one of our youth leaders to help Dinos learn about how to put their faith in action as they mature. Because we believe faith motivates us to serve others, we now take our oldest DinoMights on a service mission trip through YouthWorks.

Three out of the four years, the group of DinoMights going on the trip has served at a Native American Reservation. This year’s trip included 11 kids, one van, and a long drive to the Pine Ridge Reservation in Wanblee, SD. Many of the kids who went were high schoolers who are part of our Summer Staff, led by program staffers James and Paola.

The daily schedule for the week includes work projects like painting houses, cleaning up yards, removing trash, and helping to clean and organize classrooms at the small school that serves the reservation. Meanwhile other volunteers help with “kids club” for children on the reservation who need positive activities to keep them occupied in the summer. DinoMights participants volunteer by reading with the kids, playing games with them, and enjoying singing and doing skits together. Breakfast and lunch are also served to the kids, some of whom might not get food if they are at home all day.

In the process, the DinoMights who go on the trip have the chance to share the love they have received and pass on the same support they have been offered. This is the essence of being a DinoMight.

Daily devotions are also part of the trip, plus an opportunity to worship with the local kids and other groups on site volunteering with YouthWorks. During their free time, this year’s group had a chance to go hiking in the Badlands. They also made a point to visit the 38-foot tall cross, just outside the town of Wanblee. It was made by a local resident from scrap metal and other recycled materials he found. It provides a striking testimony to how God can make something beautiful out of something undervalued by others. 

The group came home a week later - tired on the one hand, but refreshed on the other - ready to serve the younger DinoMights at our annual Power Camp.