Wilton Teens Trade Snowballs for Sawdust: A Winter Break with Heart

During the recent February school break, 17 youth and five adult volunteers from Wilton Congregational Church (WCC) traded their usual winter activities for a meaningful mission trip. They traveled to Hayesville, NC, partnering with the Hinton Rural Life Center, a Christ-centered nonprofit dedicated to serving the local rural community through missional outreach. The WCC youth group joined Hinton in its vital home repair and firewood ministries, providing hands-on assistance.

Wilton High School junior Isabella Kaoud was a returning mission trip participant who said she found the experience powerful and moving.

“On this mission trip, we had the privilege of underpinning a trailer home, chopping and distributing wood to help citizens heat their homes, and volunteering at a nursing home,” Kaoud said. “Throughout all these special experiences, I learned things about myself and others, things that I wouldn’t have learned in life back in Wilton.”

The WCC’s youth group demonstrates a consistent commitment to service, traveling for mission trips around the country each year to serve and improve the lives of their neighbors.

“No matter our age or background we are all given the ability to serve — and in doing so, we become part of something greater than ourselves,” WHS junior Caroline Worst said of what she learned on the mission.

These impactful trips provide Wilton community’s youth with the opportunity to expand their worldview and transform the lives of others, while also experiencing personal growth.

“I have grown my faith on this trip because I got to see how God acts in different ways. I saw that with God’s gift of community, we were able to work as a team and make a difference in the Hayesville community,” Ellery Worst, also a junior, said.

Wilton Congregational offers volunteer opportunities for children, youth, and adults, fostering a spirit of service through partnerships with local, regional, and national organizations. For more information about the church or to get involved, visit the Wilton Congregational Church website or email Rev. Caroline Hughes.