Pictures & Quotes

"Growing in faith is one of the things you see most in all campers. Their fears turn into smiles and happy faces in just a few days. I have seen God's presence in all the camper's faces as well as in our wonderful resident. God's Love is so strong at SHINE and keeps growing in our hearts even more."

"My experience at SHINE has made a difference in many ways. It has helped me pay more respect to those others around me; it has brought me closer to God; it has made feel extremely fortunate for the things I have; it has helped me to see that the light of God is important to pass on. I experienced God in our resident. She was a widow with no job, was ill, and had a son in sixth grade. She decided to join us for dinner on the last day...and told me how she saw God in all of us who have helped her. I feel our resident and her son have helped me come closer to God." 

"Can you believe it, as a group we are fulfilling one of the greatest quotes ever: 'Preach the word of God at all times, and when necessary, use words.' God Bless!"

"I saw God through the people that lived at the house that we fixed up. They were so appreciative of our services that it made everything we did worthwhile for them."

"SHINE this year taught me so much. Just the fact that there were hundreds of catholic teens from all over the U.S. there really touched me. It showed me how much the world...still really loves God and is willing to work for Him. I worked at an elderly lady's home. She clearly did not have much to live on and she had trouble getting around on her own, but no matter what life threw at her, she used her faith to get through it. She let her light shine through it all and that showed me that I should be so thankful for what I have, and not complain about what I don't."

" I found that I take a lot for granted, and I should take my faith more seriously than I did before. I saw how much faith means to the people we helped, and because of that they were helped, not only by us, but by God. I experienced God by the people that we helped, they were so happy we were there. They really changed me."

"SHINE enlightened me on the power of prayer and worship. Attending Mass each morning prior to God's work opened my heart and head to a deeper faith, It reconfirmed that Jesus is my strength. I experienced God in many ways on this trip, but the greatest of all was in our youth. To see them give of themselves, their time and money to do God's will is overwhelming. Their commitment to their faith and ability to share with other youth and adults is amazing. I am so proud to be a part of a community that has such spiritual and self giving youth."

"The SHINE Work Camp made me have more respect for God and to appreciate the Lord more. It taught me to be open and not to be embarrassed about my feelings. When we had Adoration, it made me think about God's presence and it allowed me to open my heart. God was a powerful person to me before, but now He is even more powerful.

"We had Adoration the night before we left and it was so powerful. The Holy Spirit was in the very hearts of all those young people and amazing things happened. I have never felt so close to God my entire life. I will take all of these memories and remember them forever."                      

"I went to SHINE not knowing what I was going to experience but I had no idea it was going to be this powerful. I was a firm believer in Christ up until high school, but slowly I lost my faith. SHINE has changed my life in so many ways. I now pray morning, night and everywhere in between. I have seen God in my friends eye's in the wonderful staff and in myself. The Lord works in wonderful ways and I believe he called me to SHINE because it was his way to bring Him back in my life."

"The experience with our resident was extremely moving. She wanted nothing and she told us she never wanted material things in her life. Her comment "You've given me a reason to live" was both a sad and a joyous comment. It made me realize that something so simple as giving a little time to someone could change their attitude about life in such a big way. This experience will stay with me for a very long time and hopefully give me more incentive to give more of myself to others."

"This year SHINE changed me a lot. I learned a lot of things about my faith that will make me a better listener, learner and leader. The work seemed harder, but when it got difficult for all of us at our site, one of the leaders mentioned that we were not doing it for ourselves, we were doing it to help the resident and to serve God. That comment made me realize that I should work harder and put my whole heart into it...I saw God in the friends I made because they are amazing wonderful people that made the work that much better. All of my experiences and discoveries this year were worth it, and I can't wait to go again."

"SHINE Catholic Work Camp this year, like always, was truly amazing. Each day I got the chance to work around wonderful people who had tons of faith. I enjoyed the evening programs which were extremely motivational and fun at the same time. While working for our residents, I discovered that God's presence can be brought out through their compassion for the work you do for them...I began to understand what it really means to have faith in God and in life. SHINE has managed to help me understand my faith and has provided me with skills and lessons that I will proudly carry out in my future."