Image of Christ in breadline The Pilgrimage

 

Programming

Program Descriptions
The staff at The Pilgrimage will work with group leaders to set up a schedule of volunteer and experiential learning activities. The initial planning process will begin with your reservation call. While programs tend to follow some basic patterns, the staff can work with groups to incorporate special interests or particular people into the schedule. Schedules vary depending upon a group’s desired experiences. Programming is subject to availability of social service providers. Most agencies can take 5-10 people so larger groups are split up to serve at various agencies.


Pilgrimage volunteers dice onions at the Breakfast Program

1. Church in the City
Groups focus on issues surrounding hunger, homelessness, and poverty in the urban DC area, as well as ways in which people of faith have responded to these critical issues.  They do this by working at soup kitchens, shelters, and food banks such as: DC Central Kitchen, So Others Might Eat, Capital Area Food Bank, Washington Parks and People,  and others.  Groups are encouraged to make time for the educational programming about poverty-related issues to complement their service such as the National Coalition for the Homeless Speakers' Bureau, visiting with the PCUSA Washington Office, and the “Face Hunger” workshop.  As AIDS is nationally and globally recognized as a serious health crisis—especially here in DC which has the highest AIDS rate in the US—we also offer service projects and educational programming that focus on this crisis.  Interested groups will be working with organizations such as: Food and Friends, DATA, and Metro Teen AIDS.  Although groups can spend a weekend on this program, they will gain a much deeper knowledge over a four to seven-day period.

For a sample of our Church in the City programs, please click here.

2. Urban Plunge
Participants in an Urban Plunge will arrive on Sunday night and then spend Monday morning through Wednesday morning out on the streets with a guide from the National Coalition for the Homeless . During the plunge, participants will sleep on the streets, eat at soup kitchens, and try panhandling for money. There will be reflections by the guide along the way. In the evenings, the group will meet up to spend the night together. After participants have completed the plunge, they’ll spend the next few days working at The Capital Area Food Bank , working in soup kitchens such as So Others Might Eat or Church of the Brethren, and will end their week with a reflection workshop by David Harris. The cost for the Urban Plunge is $28 per night per person for the trip, which includes the cost of the guides and workshop with David Harris. ALL PLUNGE PARTICIPANTS MUST BE AT LEAST 18 YEARS OLD.

For an example of our Urban Plunge program, please click here

3. World Religions
Drawing on Washington’s rich resources, groups learn about various religious traditions by attending services and visiting sites such as The National Shrine, The Islamic Center and Mosque, St. Nicholas Cathedral, The Washington Hebrew Center, The National Cathedral, and others. Using these experiences groups can then learn about the importance that a diverse understanding of religions can offer to the world community. Generally this program should include a weekend (Friday to Sunday).

For an example of our World Religions program, please click here.

4. Inward/Outward Journey with Washington National Cathedral
Our Inward/Outward Journey is a collaborative program with The Washington National Cathedral where participants will have a chance to do inner reflection and outward service. During the Inward Journey, experience various ways you can be attentive to the voice of God through a half-day pilgrimage at Washington National Cathedral, Centering Prayer and other contemplative prayer practices encouraging consent to God’s presence in our lives, and a labyrinth walk offering meditative prayer that engages the body as well as the spirit. During the Outward part of your journey you will minister in soup kitchens, food banks, and other direct service opportunities, serve meals and provide toiletries to homeless people living on the streets of DC with the Bread for the Journey program, and dialogue with current and formerly homeless individuals during a panel discussion with persons from the National Coalition for the Homeless Speakers’ Bureau.

Inward/Outward Journey brochure


Volunteers at Christian Community Group Homes

Additional Programming Opportunities

In addition to service learning opportunities, the Pilgrimage is pleased to offer additional programming that allows groups to reflect and process their urban experience through a workshop or service learning setting. Please talk with the Pilgrimage staff if you are interested in one or more of these programs..


Students from Penn College join Church of the Pilgrims
members at a WIN meeting

Workshops

One of the main missions of the Pilgrimage is to have an impact on volunteers not just with working with their hands but also working with their minds. Through a series of staff-run workshops, groups can learn more about the root causes of poverty and what they can do about them as conscientious Christians and world citizens. Groups may choose from 10 different workshops conducted in the afternoons or the evenings.

Workshop descriptions

Faces of Homelessness: National Coalition for the Homeless
The Faces of Homelessness Speakers’ Bureau is a program of the National Coalition for the Homeless that is comprised of people who are currently or formerly homeless and works to educate the public about homelessness and what can be done to end it. This powerful presentation allows people to personalize homelessness, dispel stereotypes, and inspire hope by presenting the first-hand experiences of the panelists, and allowing the general public to interact with these "experts" through question and answer periods, and one-on-one discussions after the presentations.

Writing Workshops: Led by David Harris, poet and friend of the Pilgrimage
David Harris is a regular speaker with the National Coalition for the Homeless Speakers' Bureau. David is also an accomplished poet and creative writer and uses these talents in running a creative writing workshop. The purpose of the writing workshop is to give Pilgrimage participants a structured, creative way to reflect on the stories from the panel and their experiences of service learning in D.C. David is a gifted, humble teacher who evokes deep reflections from participants.

Click here to visit David’s Poetry Web site

Bread for the Journey

This simple practice, which encourages participants to step outside of their comfort zone, takes a few hours of your time and can be incorporated into any program. The group gathers and makes bagged lunches and delivers the food by walking to neighborhood parks where homeless folks spend their days. The bagged lunches are not a mass-feeding opportunity, but an icebreaker to talk to someone one-on-one and get to know their story.

If you are interested in Bread for the Journey, please talk with Pilgrimage staff. Groups are responsible for the food/toiletries (no mouthwash, please). Pilgrimage staff does not accompany groups on the walk. Bread for the Journey is self-directed; maps and directions are provided. .