For the past week, teenagers from South Carolina communities visited Aiken, helping adult volunteers provide home repairs for five families in need.
Courtney Hrubala, a Spartanburg High School student, worked on a home in the Petticoat Junction area - the homeowner is severely limited by the oxygen tank she must use every day.
"I think we're here for a reason," Hrubala said. "It's a blessing for me to be in a position to help."
St. John's United Methodist Church has participated in the Salkehatchie Camps program for the past 21 years - the past eight years serving as a host church with Methodist churches and those of other denominations statewide. Nearly 50 teenagers spent the week camping at the church, while young people from St. John's participated with churches in other cities.
Bob Kosky, a St. John's volunteer from the start, listened to campers as they related their experiences each night.
"I had tears in my eyes," he said. "This is about helping the poor. We need better roles in the world, and I strive to be a role model for others to emulate."
At the home of Dorothy and Thomas Griner of Graniteville, St. John's member Gene Usher and other leaders joined eight teens reroofing the house, repairing a leak and cleaning up the front yard.
The Griners "don't have a lot of resources," Usher said. "Now they know somebody is out there, where God will answer some prayers."
Thomas Griner retired from the Graniteville Company, and they moved into the home of Dorothy's parents.
"We have limited income, and it's been kind of hard," she said. "This is wonderful, seeing all those kids work so hard."
Teens ages 14 to 19 are invited to join the program each summer. Marsha Mike, another coordinator with the St. John's Salkehatchie program, got involved eight years ago when her oldest child turned 14.
Mike is drawn to a Biblical passage in the book of Matthew: "Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.'
"I want to help my neighbors, and it begins with that," she said. "There are the relationships you make, and it keeps you going year after year. I love meeting the kids, and they return until they're about 18. Then a new group of kids come in."
Evan Davis, 19, a rising sophomore at Winthrop University, was encouraged to participate in the camp program in Aiken for the first time. He wanted a way to grow his faith and found how the repair efforts in Graniteville have been life-changing.
"It's amazing how God has worked his way through us," Davis said. "I've gotten to meet the Griners and see the faces behind this. They are very humble and have worked hard their entire lives. Now it's time to give back to them."
Rob Novit is the Aiken Standard's education reporter.