Learn more about the NOMADS
- Watch the video on this page to learn more about the NOMADS and why people choose to travel with a purpose.
- Be a part of the NOMADS! Volunteers do not have to be retirees, and they come from many Christian denominations. All skill sets are welcome – you’ll learn what you need to know on site.
- Listen to a Get Your Spirit in Shape podcast conversation with Tammy and Rodney Ripley, NOMADS who feel they offer hope through their travel and service.
Not everyone completes construction projects on vacation or during their retirement, but that is exactly what NOMADS choose. These dedicated volunteers – Nomads On a Mission Active in Divine Service – provide labor for historically Methodist organizations. You’ll find them painting, cleaning, remodeling, building or repairing camps, colleges, disaster areas and more.
Some of the NOMADS’ favorite memories are interactions with people they meet while traveling. Here are a few of their stories:
Client connections
Beth and Jack Rosko repaired a mobile home that sustained damage after a hurricane in South Carolina. “[The homeowner] was home every day, and she had 100 kids in her family between her own children, her grandchildren, and her great -grandchildren, so it was fun in between our work to just sit and visit with her,” Beth shares.
Shared joy and hope
Jill and Frank Kamuf completed a variety of projects at a daycare in Florida. Jack remembers, “Watching those kids… and the teachers, trying to get them started on the right foot in life, is probably one of the more memorable things that we’ve done. You see a lot of young little faces, always smiling, and so that always made you light up a little bit, too.”
During the same project, the group met a young woman leaving an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting at the church who needed help. The NOMADS talked to her and prayed for her. Jill shares, “I still pray for her.”
No acts are small
Jane and Randy Hall have participated in more than 25 NOMADS projects across the U.S. During one of their projects at a church, the custodian asked if the team could also build a step at his elderly mother’s home. Jane recollects, “It probably didn’t take us thirty minutes to build her the step, and she was absolutely thrilled. It’s the little things… It just does your heart good to see the look on their faces when you’ve accomplished something. Even something that you think is very small is major to them.”
Ministering where you are
Joan and Tom Walker have what they refer to as a “parking lot ministry.” Joan shares, “Not only are we helping on projects, but [helping] as we travel. I really feel like the Lord has led us to people that really needed us at that moment.”
At one stop, in a Walmart parking lot, the Walkers assisted a mother who had a teenage daughter and a young child. In another town, they met a homeless woman in a truck stop parking lot. Her boyfriend had been arrested after asking someone for money and that person felt scared. Joan says, “She was all alone. So we loaded her up with food and water and money and helped direct her towards services in that town.”
Tom recollects a project in Calexico, California, at a former motel that is now housing immigrants and migrant workers. Tom says, “It was very old, very run down… We were kind of feeling sad that they had housing like this. But it was quickly explained [that] if they didn't have that housing, they would have nowhere to live. And I mean, right there, it kind of made you feel like, ‘Okay, we really have to do something for these people.’ That was a project for three weeks that you really, really worked hard and you really felt good walking away because you knew you helped people, which is what we want to do.”
Laura Buchanan works for UMC.org at United Methodist Communications. Contact her by email.
This story was published on August 27, 2024.
