Casa Chirilagua has been blessed for the fourth summer in a row with interns participating in InterVarsity’s Urban Summer Program. This year we had the additional blessing that one of our partnering organizations, the Co-Op, a local apartment complex, rented the group a two bedroom apartment in the neighborhood. It has allowed the interns to have a gathering place to rest, play and study together while allowing them easy access to engage with children and families in the neighborhood. They have been soundly beaten in scores of pick-up soccer games throughout the summer!
The students have spent much of their time tutoring Kids Club kids on important skills to try to battle summer learning loss. They engaged students one-on-one, in their homes and on site, for a summer recreation program in which many of our students were enrolled. They read books, worked on reading comprehension and studied those pesky math facts, which always seem to fade from memory over summer break. The kids loved having their tutors show up each day, and as always, the interest and engagement of dedicated loving college students seems to capture and hold our kids’ attention better then almost anything else.
The summer is also an intense time of study for the interns as they read, listen to speakers and engage in discussion about race, immigration, economics and faith. As a result, they are now challenged to think deeply about how they can use their time, talent and treasure on their college campuses in the fall and in their future vocations. Please pray for our six wonderful committed interns as they move forward in processing all that they have seen, done and learned during this very busy summer.
