The Italian Mission Team of Ivyland Presbyterian Church in the Presbytery of Philadelphia is grateful to the Synod of the Trinity for its Mission Travel Grant gift in the summer of 2024. This gift will offset costs incurred by our trip to Rome and Naples earlier this month.
We spent the first two days in Rome seeing a bit of the eternal city. Then we traveled by train to the heart of Naples, a small town called Portici. There, we met some wonderful children. We shared a week together studying the story of Joseph (Giuseppe).
We studied lessons, worked on crafts, performed a play and played games — the kids loved the two young men who were part of the team. In fact, these young men were among the favorites for the girls and the boys at the summer camp program called Imparare Giocando (onlus). It means learning while playing and it is a non-profit mission run by a local Methodist church member and elder named Rosaria Russo. Russo, herself, grew up in a children’s home and she has been giving back ever since.
The team walked together (6-7 miles per day), sweat together, ate together, laughed together and prayed together. It was a wonderful blessing. We were safe and we came back bursting with stories for our church family. We will share a Powerpoint and some words in August about our trip. Thanks again to the Synod for the grant.
