NEW ORLEANS — Most high school freshmen are sleeping in this week, maybe watching TV, and savoring the last days of summer.
“It’s nice to be doing something that’s bigger than me,” Quinn Bramschreiber said.
He is in Hollygrove, picking up trash and cleaning out storm drains.
“It’s not a quick easy shovel for each drain. It takes some time,” Bramschreiber said.
He’s not the only do-gooder in town. He’s one of thousands of teens in New Orleans for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Youth Gathering. You’ve probably seen them out and about, completing service projects in their bright orange shirts.
“It’s a pleasure working with them,” Brenda Brown said. “They’re so mannerable and nice.”
Brenda Brown and Ralph Lagrue are neighbors in Hollygrove. They say street flooding is the norm on their block, and they’re hopeful their newly cleaned drains will make a difference.
“We need these drains to catch the water,” Lagrue said.
Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton says making a difference is the whole point.
“This is how we show up as the Lutheran church,” Bishop Elizabeth Eaton said. “We show up in service and witness.”
Soon, Bramschreiber will be back on a plane to Colorado Springs to start high school, but he says he doesn’t regret spending his final days of summer here with us.
This week, the youth groups are also learning how their voices can make a difference through advocacy and engaging in anti-racism training.
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