Taylor University students witnessed great acts of service in a small community within East Belfast, Northern Ireland through their practicums at Willowfield Parish Community Association.
The Willowfield Parish Community Association was formed in 2002 by Willowfield Parish Church as a means of outreach and poverty alleviation among the local community of Inner East Belfast. Through their staff and team of volunteers, Willowfield provides various services within their parish of around 8,000 houses in East Belfast.
During their time in Belfast, Taylor students had the opportunity to fulfill their practicum experience at Willowfield and contribute to their programs through volunteering at the Church Halls.
Abigail Zinnecker, Taylor University sophomore, spent her Wednesdays and Fridays at Willowfield for the duration of her stay in Northern Ireland. Zinnecker volunteered at several programs provided by the Willowfield Parish Community Association and was a part of a team that created a five-week program for the kids at Willowfield.
“I learned patience and collaboration more than anything else,” she said. “It was meaningful to be able to have the ability to work with people of all ages and backgrounds to create something meaningful.”
Charlene Harwood, Willowfield’s current Kid’s Worker, began her 14 years at Willowfield as a volunteer before beginning her full-time position of working with children in the church and community.
Through her role, Harwood creates and facilitates programs designed to provide a safe space for kids of different backgrounds to gain self-confidence and learn more about Jesus Christ. These include after-school and school programming, academic tutoring, Friday night clubs and Sunday morning activities.
“The dream is that the kids from the community will join the kids at the church, and the kids from the church will join the kids in the community,” Harwood said. “So that is the vision that, one day, those two things will be melded together, but at the moment, it just involves a bit of everything.”
One such group Harwood designed was the Squad Goals, a program designed to encourage young women in personal development and self-confidence. The club’s programming emphasizes the importance of identity and empowering young women in their voice, purpose and inherent value. Its importance, Harwood said, is highlighted by the high levels of violence against women and girls in Northern Ireland. Nonetheless, there is hope that organizations such as Willowfield can provide encouragement to the students of this area.
“It is really just encouraging to see those young girls grow up and see the impact of knowing that for a solid seven or eight years of their life, they have been told that they are loved, that they are special, that they are valued, that they have worth,” she said. “Just to see that as they have turned into young adults and then actual adults as they grow up.”
Ryan McCarthy, a junior at Gordon University, also volunteered at Willowfield during his semester abroad in Northern Ireland.
As a Christian Ministries student, McCarthy emphasized the importance of gaining experience in ministry in a different part of the world.
“I have only been able to experience ministry in America,” he said, “and getting to experience it in Belfast was unique considering the history of religion in Belfast. Getting to know the people of Willowfield was a blessing; They welcomed us with open arms and took care of us very well.”
McCarthy said Willowfield was a reminder to him that he could show the love of God to people by simply getting to know them.
Willowfield not only offers programs for kids and youth, but for other aspects of the community as well. The church provides community outreach, courses on financial literacy and a debt center, men’s and women’s groups, and food stores and food banks.
“We are a little organization in terms of the global scale,” Harwood said. “We are just trying to cover our patch and all the needs of our patch.”
