SERVICE AT ECS

FROM HEAD OF SCHOOL SCOTT HAUSS

When I first came to ECS last summer, I knew that service was something I wanted to see as part of the fabric of ECS.  It has always been in our mission, but I wanted to make sure our students could serve as the hands and feet of Jesus in a tangible way to our city.

On February 5, a great step toward that goal came to fruition as ECS hosted its inaugural school-wide SOAR day of service, a day dedicated to serving our neighbors in Memphis. My vision for SOAR, which stands for Serving Others, Advancing Responsibility, is that this will become what ECS is known for in Memphis.

I want to thank you for praying for our day of service. I was so pleased by the servants’ hearts and enthusiasm of our students as they served our city.

Each campus served in the following ways:

• 329 high school students, working alongside 39 discipleship group leaders, volunteered at 15 ministries across our city. Students and teachers did everything from cooking, cleaning and organizing closets to painting pickleball courts and assembling valentine's goodie bags for youth outreach.
• 155 7th and 8th grade students assembled 155 gift bags for two local ministries, which included handmade personalized beaded bracelets for their recipients.
• Upper Elementary students learned about the Memphis Union Mission from a representative from this ministry, then assembled bags with essential items for the homeless.
• In a Lower School chapel, representatives from each class shared how each serves a specific ministry during this school year, then students made Valentine's cards for local charities. A fun exercise at Lower School was lining up the more than 300 cereal boxes students are donating to My Town Miracles to combat food insecurity, then watching the boxes fall domino-style.

Many thanks to our friends at My Town Miracles who worked alongside our spiritual life committee to help us plan our first SOAR day of service!

What an impactful day for our students and staff as they experienced firsthand how they can serve as Jesus' hands and feet by loving our neighbors in Memphis!

Special thanks to the following ministries whom we served alongside:

• Binghampton Development Corporation
• Ches’ Closet
• The Heights CDC
• Melrose High School with Kingdom Community Builders
• Memphis Athletic Ministries
• Memphis Union Mission
• My Town Miracles
• Neighborhood Christian Center
• Oasis of Hope
• Red Door Urban Mission
• Refugee Empowerment Program
• Send Relief
• Service Over Self
• Streets Ministries
• Winchester Elementary School

I could not be prouder of how ECS served our city! I know the Lord was truly honored.  Please continue to pray that these ministries will be blessed by our service, and that our students will be blessed by this unique experience.

IT’S A GREAT DAY TO BE AN EAGLE!