Ridgewood, Glen Rock Teens Do Community Service At Archdiocesan Sites

RIDGEWOOD, NJ — A group of teenagers from Ridgewood and Glen Rock devoted some of their summer vacation to complete community service through a camp offered by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark's youth office, the archdiocese said.

For this year's Summer Service Week, 45 teenagers from North Jersey and Pennsylvania volunteered at different archdiocesan sites, such as St. Leo's School in Elmwood Park, and swept, painted, landscaped and removed garbage.

In addition, they packaged meals, inventoried food and sorted clothes for people in need at a soup kitchen and a food pantry. Some even built birdhouses for a cemetery "as a way to comfort mourners," the archdiocese said.

After each day of work, the teenagers returned to a Catholic youth retreat center to discuss their experiences, and reflect on Jesus' service to others, as described in the Bible, the archdiocese said.

Auxiliary Bishops Gregory Studerus and Michael Saporito, appointed by Pope Francis to serve the archdiocese, met with the youth on two separate occasions, leading them in prayer and reminding them "why the giving of themselves is crucial," the archdiocese said.

“We’re living in a world where it’s all about ‘me,’ but the Summer Service Week is the complete opposite of that,” Rich Donovan, the youth office’s Associate Director for Events and Training, said. “By helping others, these teens went on a journey that’s made them view the world and themselves differently. They appreciate things more."