SPR Youth Mission Trip
Youth mission trips at SPR might not be what you think of when you think of a “mission trip.” Our youth live out their mission not by attempting to build, fix, or rescue, but by learning to work alongside others for justice. Each year, the mission trip focuses on solidarity and education around a specific justice issue. SPR youth visit a partner community, learn from local organizations about how to be good activists and allies, and reflect and pray together on how the Gospel commands all of us to live. Upon returning home to Chicago, they put their knowledge into action.
All youth who have completed grades 6-12 during the prior academic year are eligible to go on SPR mission trips. Prior involvement in other SPR youth ministries is strongly encouraged, but not required.
Native Solidarity
St. Paul, MN (2019)
In summer 2019, the youth of SPR traveled to Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, to learn from urban Indigenous community organizations about restorative justice and how to live in solidarity with Native peoples. Our partners included the Native American Community Development Institute, the Minneapolis American Indian Center, and the Church of Gichitwaa Kateri. Read our mission trip journal here.
Immigration Justice
Tucson, AZ (2018)
SPR Youth spent the summer of 2018 in Tucson, Arizona to learn about im/migrant issues and allyship with those at the border. With the help of BorderLinks, a local organization that has worked on im/migrant rights for almost 30 years, we walked migrant trails in the desert, accompanied migration-related legal work, met with members of a migrant safe place for queer and trans* migrants and learned from community members, activists, and academics in Tucson and the surrounding borderlands. We were also honored to cross the U.S./Mexico border to break bread with the people of Nogales, Mexico during our trip. Read our mission trip journal here.
Christian-Muslim Interfaith Dialogue
Detroit, MI (2017)
In August of 2017 we went to Detroit, MI to learn about the Muslim and Arab communities there and to gain some insight on how to fight Islamophobia and racism here in our own communities in Chicago. We are thankful for all of the support our SPR family showed us along the way and we hope to be a witness to our community with the knowledge we gained. Read our mission trip journal here.
Food Justice
Pittsburgh, PA (2016)
For our inaugural SPR Youth mission trip, we headed to the Rust Belt to learn about food! We studied food justice in the context of urban spaces, rural communities, and reinvented industry towns, and heard about food sovereignty, food and conflict, and how to harvest food with faith in mind. Check the St. Paul and the Redeemer Facebook page for blogs about the trip, written by our youth participants!