TAMAQUA, Pa. -- A church group from the South is in Schuylkill County this week for a mission trip to help out in the community.
What brings a group of people from North Carolina all the way to Tamaqua? A group from a Southern Baptist Church in North Carolina is here to help out in the community this week. They'll be helping to fix up First United Methodist Church, a place where a local Southern Baptist chapter also calls home.
"The church that currently meets here, they're getting up there in age and they don't have a lot of people who can do the high-reach painting and the things that need to be done, so we partnered with them and said, 'We can bring groups up and we can personally help the church to do some maintenance that needs to be done,'" said Pastor Steven Gintz.
"God has blessed me, so I like to bless by helping others out. That's what he calls us to do. It's all about love. Love your fellow man and help out," said North Carolina resident Jackson Sanderford.
Not only is this group from Southern Baptist working to make improvements to the church, but throughout the week, they're holding summer camps for kids throughout the Tamaqua area.
"I just love to go see the kids and the people and help out. To be a part of a culture that's a culture that I'm not used to, to acclimate, know the people and love on the people," Dana Blankley said.
The group will be at the church and out in the community handling a bunch of different duties all week.