This year, the Living Education-Charlotte students are doing their part to put into practice what they’ve learned in the classroom! Nine of our Living Youth teen camp staff are from this year’s LivingEd class. In addition, four LivingEd alumni are serving at the camp. Interestingly, six of the staff members have been accepted for the 2023-24 upcoming school year. One more note of interest – three of the staff members took part in the Living University program.
Author: Kaleb Johnson | Student, Living Education – Charlotte, 2022-23
Estimated reading time: 2 min.
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This year, Church families and young adults came out bright and early on a sunny Sunday morning. The Living Education students led the disc golf tournament by organizing teams, helping people to navigate the course, and tallying the final scores. After the tournament, everyone enjoyed a lunch of potato salad, coleslaw, freshly grilled corn on the cob, and chicken legs and thighs.
The disc golf tournament was a team-based event, and the teams were selected in an interesting way. Two Living Education students led each team, making six teams altogether, and then the participants chose which students’ team to join. Thus, the students were encouraged to come up with a fun team name and theme to draw as many people as possible.
As the game progressed, students tallied their score by recording the number of throws it took each person to get the disc into the basket. Like in regular golf, a low score is a good score. To help their team members navigate the sometimes-confusing disc-golf trail, the students arrived an hour early and walked through the trails. Also, rather than use all 18 holes, the tournament was limited to the first six holes. Each team would start on a hole, and then rotate around, allowing for continuous play.
All the teams were done after about two hours, and the Director—Mr. Jonathan McNair—announced the winners. The first award was actually a surprise—the award for the team that hit the most trees. That award was won by team 2—Ellie and Kezia’s team—who managed to hit a tree-mendous 60 trees (for context, my team hit 15 trees total). The team with the lowest average score was team 6—Nathan’s team—which scored 28. Par for the six holes was 20, so this team was only eight points over (for context, my team scored 31, and the highest scored 45). Team 6 received their spectacular award of free Living Education pens for all and a single Living Education mug—to be divided amongst the winners, of course.
After announcing the awards, Mr. McNair unveiled the food. During the tournament, he had been was grilling on his charcoal smoker, preparing some egg-straordinary chicken and a-maizing corn on the cob. All of the guests and students flocked through the food line and corn-sumed the provisions. Then, the activity wrapped up, kindly giving the students a free afternoon to do homework. The second annual disc golf tournament was a fantastic event, a total hole-in-one! We look forward to hosting the third annual disc golf tournament next year.
Just before this, the Living Education students adventured the trails for an exciting mountain biking activity. Read about that here: The Wheel Deal.
Kaleb Johnson is a student in the Living Education-Charlotte Program. He graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville in the spring of 2022. In addition, Kaleb enjoys writing, video-making, trying new activities (anything and everything), playing chess, and debating (it’s not arguing!) with people. He currently works in the Living Education department producing written content & videos and helping with a variety of other projects.
Author: Kaleb Johnson | Student, Living Education – Charlotte, 2022-23
Estimated reading time: 2 min.
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The Living Education–Charlotte students geared up for an exciting experience—a midweek mountain-biking adventure at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte! As the name clearly suggests, the Whitewater Center is famous for its biking trails. Kidding! Every year, at least one student thinks that the activity is whitewater rafting and not biking. However, the center does have over 50 miles of trails available for mountain biking, hiking, and running.
The bike trails are ranked by difficulty—green means “easy,” blue is “more difficult,” and black is “very difficult.” Having mercy on us, Mr. McNair picked a green trail, but easy is a bit of a relative term; it still took concentration and precision to ride on the narrow trails with steep turns and sharp hills.
To make things a little more interesting, Mr. McNair divided the students into three groups and gave them a task to complete: ride a three mile trail around a lake and take group pictures at specific points. He marked the trail map and selected team leaders who had to make sure that the group was in the right spot, adding a little map-reading challenge to the mix.
For a few students, this was their first time getting off the beaten path on a bike. It was certainly challenging learning to ride between the trees, rocks, and roots, but everyone got the hang of it, without too many crashes. By the end, we were all enjoying the thrill of cruising between trees, over hills, and through bumps.
The team leaders did a nifty job navigating the trails and taking pictures at the right spots. When the challenge was done, the students had the chance to ride a few more trails around the Whitewater center. After several hours, the Living Education students packed up and headed home, pretty exhausted but with shared memories of a great new experience!
The last exciting event for the Living Education students was a music recital at a senior care center. Read about that here: 2023 Music Recital.
Kaleb Johnson is a student in the Living Education-Charlotte Program. He graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville in the spring of 2022. In addition, Kaleb enjoys writing, video-making, trying new activities (anything and everything), playing chess, and debating (it’s not arguing!) with people. He currently works in the Living Education department producing written content & videos and helping with a variety of other projects.
Author: Kaleb Johnson | Student, Living Education – Charlotte, 2022-23
Estimated reading time: 1 min.
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Music recitals are a staple of the Living Education program, but for several of the students, this was a totally new experience. Adding to the excitement, this year’s recital was held at a senior care center for the first time since 2019. Most of the students played a piano piece or sang a song, and all first-year students performed in the Living Ed Vocal Ensemble for two songs, which had been practiced as part of the music class.
The senior care center had a nice piano for the students to use, and the LivingEd students brought speakers and microphones for the singing performances. Following a few minutes of set up, the recital began at 6:30 pm and was well-attended by families, faculty, and, of course, residents. It began with individual pieces performed by Living Education students and some additional students from the music teacher’s private studio.
After these exciting renditions, the first-year Living Ed students performed the two choir songs they had been practicing in class. The recital concluded with America the Beautiful and an open invitation for all guests to sing along.
The previous events the Living Education program arranged were the men’s and women’s trips. The ladies went to Charleston and the men went hiking!
Kaleb Johnson is a student in the Living Education-Charlotte Program. He graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville in the spring of 2022. In addition, Kaleb enjoys writing, video-making, trying new activities (anything and everything), playing chess, and debating (it’s not arguing!) with people. He currently works in the Living Education department producing written content & videos and helping with a variety of other projects.
Author: Kaleb Johnson | Student, Living Education – Charlotte, 2022-23
Estimated reading time: 5 min.
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The men in the Living Education program went on an overnight hiking trip, traversing 16 miles of Appalachian trail between Carvers Gap and I-19E. Overall, the trip was two days long—eight miles on each day—with a campsite at Little Hump mountain.
We arrived at Carvers Gap, eight souls in all—Andrew McNair, David Smith, Jontavius Mincey, Kaleb Johnson, Nathan Kroon, Mr. Penman, Mr. McNair, and of course, Mr. McNair. We broke into two groups. Mr. Penman took Andrew, Jon, and Nathan. Mr. McNair, accompanied by Mr. McNair, took David and Kaleb—I should clarify that it was Rod McNair and Jonathan McNair. However, I rather enjoy referring to them simply as Mr. McNair and Mr. McNair. I’m a simple man with a simple sense of humor.
After grabbing our packs and taking some pictures, we set off on the trails. Mr. Penman’s group went first, and Mr. McNair’s group waited about 15 minutes before proceeding. After a few miles, Mr. McNair’s group came upon a fork in the trail. One path was a dead-end trail that led to Grassy Ridge, which had a commanding view of the neighboring mountains and valleys. David and I made the trek up the trail to Grassy Ridge. When we returned to the Appalachian trail, we found Mr. McNair and Mr. McNair resting quite comfortably. Around this time, both of the groups had summer sausage, tortillas, and mayonnaise for lunch. One group saved some of their summer sausage, and one group pressured their students into eating all of the food so Mr. McNair did not have to carry it anymore. The first mayonnaise and summer -sausage wrap was great. The fourth was less great. Excessive mayonnaise and hiking don’t go well.
After a few hours of trekking up and down mountains, enjoying stunning views, and getting exhausted by steep uphill sections of the trail, the students arrive at their campsite: little hump mountain. We decided not to camp at the top of the mountain, even though it had a fantastic view, because high winds were forecasted for the night. Instead, we camped a few hundred feet away at a site with rocks and trees to break the wind.
Having safely arrived, we established camp quickly. We forewent the wooden palisade and moat as we felt sufficiently secure from any forays that could occur. We started a small fire and proceeded to use propane-fueled water boilers to prepare the provisions for dinner. We feasted upon instant macaroni and cheese, instant mashed potatoes (which were really good), hot chocolate, and other refreshments. Mr. Penman’s group even added their leftover summer sausage to their macaroni and cheese. The other students could only watch wistfully.
The night was unfortunately cold, and the students had grown soft and spoiled with their typical indoor sleeping—for some, it was even their first overnight camping. Thus, it turned out to be a restless night for most. Around 3 am, the storm came in. The gale blew tirelessly. The tent covers flapped noisily through the night. Yet it was oddly majestic. The wind blowing fiercely, the sporadic rain falling soothingly upon the tents, and the light chill of the night reminded us constantly that we were alive and, unfortunately, awake.
When morning came, we got up and started a fire. Fortunately, the rain had not lasted until sunrise, and the ground was relatively dry. We ate oatmeal, granola, and bagels. Then we packed up our tents and our packs and headed off. The previous day had been mostly uphill, and today would be mostly downhill. Or so they said. First we had to finish the climb to Big Hump Mountain. As I approached the base, I saw the side of the hill going straight up in front of me, and thought to myself, “I’m sure it’s not as bad as it looks from here.” I was right; it was worse.
We climbed relentlessly up the trail. I recalled the poem “Excelsior” and thought of the allegory “Pilgrim’s Progress.” Somehow, I now understood these works much better. When we reached the top, I saw my favorite sight of the whole trip: a trail winding off in the distance, all of it downhill.
The remainder of the day was a picturesque walk through the woods. In this area, the Appalachian trail is full of switchbacks, carrying us carefully down the mountain to the road. It was a marvelous section of forest, shaded by tall trees and filled with large rock outcroppings. Within a few more hours, we made it to I-29E to the truck we had left there earlier.
The section of the Appalachian trail we hiked was fantastic. The beginning was filled with majestic views of the foothills sprawling as far as the eye can see. The end was adorned with a mossy and tranquil forest. Overall, the trip was 16 miles—not too difficult, and a great experience. It was a perfect place for an overnight hiking trip!
Read what the ladies in the Living Education Charlotte did instead of a hiking trip: A Ladies Weekend in Charlotte.
Kaleb Johnson is a student in the Living Education-Charlotte Program. He graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville in the spring of 2022. In addition, Kaleb enjoys writing, video-making, trying new activities (anything and everything), playing chess, and debating (it’s not arguing!) with people. He currently works in the Living Education department producing written content & videos and helping with a variety of other projects.
Author: Sabrielle McNair | Student, Living Education – Charlotte, 2022-23
Estimated reading time: 4 min.
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The Living Education girls were accompanied by Mrs. Carol Weston and Mrs. Dawn Rothenbacher and were led by Ms. Rebekah Ross. In total, ten women set off for this ladies’ weekend in South Carolina.
Within a few hours, we arrived at the rental house on the outskirts of Charleston, settled in, and prepared the Friday night dinner meal. As the sun went down, the gorgeous view from the dock overlooking the river was enjoyed by all. Observing the beauty of God’s creation made our Friday night dinner feel like a meal with a show. We enjoyed spending time together as women of all ages.
We headed off on Saturday mid-morning to attend the follow-up TWP that was taking place at the local church location in Walterboro, South Carolina. Mr. Alex Celan spoke about the Holy Days and their importance in God’s plan, then welcomed everyone to enjoy fellowship and snacks. The church service ensued shortly after for the members, with the sermon provided by Mr. Dexter Wakefield, a familiar face for the Living Education students. In addition to his regular duties at Headquarters, Mr. Wakefield is also a faculty member for Living Education, teaching public speaking. Once at our rental home again we enjoyed our dinner followed by an evening activity, “The Art of Letter Writing,” in which each girl wrote a letter to a loved one or friend.
Sunday kicked off our first activity day in the city of Charleston. Starting with a ferry ride to the historic Fort Sumter, we got the opportunity to glimpse the renowned harbor dolphins and watch them play with the boat along our trip.
Once we arrived at the fort, we learned it was the location of the first deaths of the American Civil War and a primary flashpoint triggering that war. Fortunately, because we attended the first tour of the day, we were able to witness the raising of the flag and even participate in the patriotic ritual.
After returning to the mainland, there was a quick lunch before we proceeded to the historic district of the city to complete a “treasure hunt” and see the notable houses and landmarks that depict the vestiges of a historic city. We went from the renowned Rainbow Row, a street of pastel-colored townhouses, through alleys draped in greenery and paved with cobblestone, and ended at the city market, one of the oldest in the country—completed around the 1830s. This market is a four-block-long section of covered open aisleways and open-air sheds housing various local vendors distributing Charleston-themed wares. To finish the day in the city, we stopped at a vintage ice cream parlor for an icy treat on the stairs of the grand customs house, which was constructed in 1879. On the way home, some girls headed to the dock to paddleboard on the river, while the rest relaxed for the last evening spent in the area.
Monday morning began with a quick packing-up of the cars, and we headed off to the Charleston Tea Garden, the producer of “American Classic” tea. It was the first tea to be made with produce grown wholly in America. This tea garden is a lovely estate with ancient oak trees covered with Spanish moss, which creates an enchanting southern picture. After heading out from the tea plantation, we proceeded down the road to another notable feature of the Charleston experience: the Angel Oak Tree. Massive in size, this living piece of history has been around for hundreds of years, and we had the opportunity to view its magnificence while enjoying our lunch. All this concluded the enjoyable and educational experience of the ladies’ Charleston trip!
The prior activity the Living Education students had experienced was the BMW Tour, and the guys were included in that one. Read about that here: How the Ultimate Driving Machine Is Made! (BMW Tour).
Sabrielle McNair is currently one of the student leaders at Living Education. For the majority of her life, Sabrielle lived in Albany, New York. Having grown up in the church, she has been involved in church programs since she was a young girl. Presently, she works as the women’s Resident Assistant, assists in LivingEd event preparations, works in the finance department, and writes for the website.
Author: Kaleb Johnson | Student, Living Education – Charlotte, 2022-23
Estimated reading time: 5 min.
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Have you ever wondered what it’s like to work in a Library? Or what it’s like to help produce a regularly aired TV program? If yes, then you’re in luck! The Living Education work/study program has students working as a Technical Assistant in the TV studio and a Librarian for the RCM memorial Library. This post gives an inside look at two students—Madeline McNair and Rachel White—and their positions.
Madeline is a first-year student, but she worked in the Television Studio prior to enrollment. She primarily cleans the audio of the telecast recordings using Adobe Audition, removing intrusive background sounds picked up by the high-quality microphones. This requires a very attuned ear to pick up even the smallest clicks and rustles in an audio track! She also has begun making the closed captioning for telecasts as well as finding wartime videos and pictures for the telecasts.
The most fun part of the job? “I would say being a part of that part of the Work [making telecasts], because the TV studio is a separate building than the office so it is a different experience. You really see a lot of the actual telecast production; I’ve seen them film a couple of them, which is interesting. It is interesting to see how much work goes into the production process.”
The most challenging part of the job? “It is kind of hard doing repetitive work like that [Audio Correction]. It takes a while to go through. It’s a thirty minute program, and it takes longer than that going through each one.”
Do you have a fun story from your job? “One time we were waiting for a telecast to start because there was some delay, and Mr. Ames was going to be filming. And he was just sitting, just waiting, and he started singing a hymn, just to himself. But he was mic’d, so everyone was hearing him just sing a hymn to himself.”
Rachel White is a first-year student who works in the RCM Library at the Headquarters office. She works as the Librarian but also helps with Living Education projects, such as the Germany in Prophecy course. With any spare time she may (or may not) have, she transcribes for the Editorial Department as well.
The most fun part of the job? “I like setting up displays [book displays in the Library], especially when there is nothing specifically that needs to go up there because I get to decide what category I want. I did displays on the Psalms and Acts. We have a bunch of different books on the brain and how being religious affects your brain, and I’d like to do a display for that too.”
The most challenging part of the job? “One of things I’ve had the most trouble with is the transcribing and trying to get what the speakers say to make sense in writing. Everything they say makes sense but it doesn’t translate to paper. Trying to get what they say to work on paper is much more challenging than you would think.”
Do you have a fun story from your job? “I found a folder [In Archives] that said, ‘Heresy Version.’ I was like, ‘What is this?’ And so I opened it up and it had letters between Tkach and other ministers and different stuff Worldwide was putting out at that time [during the apostasy]. It was really interesting. The way it was worded was very confusing and very slightly changing doctrines and changing mindset. So yeah, I found the ‘Heresy Version’ folder.”
Read the previous work/study highlights we’ve put out if you’re interested!
Kaleb Johnson is a student in the Living Education-Charlotte Program. He graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville in the spring of 2022. In addition, Kaleb enjoys writing, video-making, trying new activities (anything and everything), playing chess, and debating (it’s not arguing!) with people. He currently works in the Living Education department producing written content & videos and helping with a variety of other projects.
Author: Kaleb Johnson | Student, Living Education – Charlotte, 2022-23
Estimated reading time: 4 min.
The BMW plant is a marvel of modern manufacturing. The plant produces around 1,500 cars per day—models X3, X4, X5, X6, and X7—making it the highest production BMW plant in the world. The Living Education students had the privilege to tour this plant, and its attached Museum, and see how the “ultimate driving machine” is made.
The BMW campus has a modern-looking building called the Zentrum Museum that houses several BMW cars that are important to both the brand and this particular plant. For instance, the first ever BMW produced in this plant—also the first ever produced in America—is on display, covered in the signatures of all the employees that worked for BMW at the time!
This museum is also the starting point for the plant tours, so the Living Education students thoroughly explored the cars on display while waiting for the tour to begin. The two most popular cars among the students were two BMWs on display that starred in James Bond films, the z8 and the z3.
After perusing the Museum, the Living Education students set off on a tour of the plant. On this tour, no phones or cameras were allowed to be used, and the students, with their tour guide, walked right through the actual manufacturing lines.
The first stop on the tour was the body shop. This massive building—over a million square-feet—welded together the body of the BMWs. The students walked around the shop, watching massive robot arms lift whole undersides of cars weighing thousands of pounds, and seeing precise and methodical welding all along the assembly line. In went metal parts, seemingly insignificant, and out came the body of a precisely engineered vehicle, all from an unceasing assembly line of robotics and personnel.
The second area of the tour was the assembly hall. Here, the body of the car, after it had gone to the paint shop, entered and had its inner components added, and its doors, windshield, and sunroof put in. By the time it left, the car was fully functional. This assembly line relied on people more than robotics, but it still used robotics widely to assist the assemblers with moving heavy objects or improving the ergonomics of their working condition. For instance, part of the assembly line had all the cars rotated on their side so that people could more comfortably add parts to the bottom of the vehicle.
The final stage for these BMWs consisted of a step called “spanking the baby.” Once the car has passed all inspections and tests, the iconic BMW logo is placed on the nose of the car and tapped in with a rubber mallet. At this point, the car is complete and ready to be delivered to its owner.
Overall, the BMW plant produces 1500 cars per day—all of which are already purchased orders and built to a specification with intense quality checks. The Living Education students got a glimpse into how excellence is achieved in the automotive industry. They also saw how a premiere company manages employees, ensures quality, and encourages continuous improvement. The Living Education students saw how the “Ultimate Driving Machine” really is made.
When the students returned to the museum, they were impressed, and a little bit tired (the tour involves around 2 miles of walking over about 2 hours). But they decided to do one last thing. They all picked a favorite BMW in the museum, and also bought some stuff at the gift shop (why not, right?). Here are all the students with their favorite BMW.
The previous activity the Living Educations students had was a fun adventure to the JAARS facility in Waxhaw. Read all about that here: Come Fly with Me (JAARS Trip).
Kaleb Johnson is a student in the Living Education-Charlotte Program. He graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville in the spring of 2022. In addition, Kaleb enjoys writing, video-making, trying new activities (anything and everything), playing chess, and debating (it’s not arguing!) with people. He currently works in the Living Education department producing written content & videos and helping with a variety of other projects.
Author: Kaleb Johnson | Student, Living Education – Charlotte, 2022-23
Estimated reading time: 4 min.
The Living Education program aims to provide students with valuable work experience and also assist the Church in doing God’s Work. Part of doing God’s Work involves accounting, which is very complex in modern times. Thus, having students work part-time is a great benefit to the Accounting Department, and it also gives students valuable experience that is in high-demand in the working world. This year, Kezia Ciesielka and Rachel Price are working in the Accounting Department!
Kezia is a Student Leader in her second year at Living Education. She works both as an Accounting Clerk and as a Resident Assistant, but this article focuses on her work in the Accounting Department. Due to her class schedule, she works 30 hours a week—the typical first year student only works 20 hours a week. She is considering studying accounting and is using this opportunity to experience the field, learning the ins and outs of businesses and accounting systems and using software like Great Plains and Kwiktag.
Most fun part of the job? “Getting to sit down, with a good bit of things to go through, when you’re not super-stressed out because it needs to be done super-quick, with your cup of tea, and make sure everything is in the right spot. It is very satisfying because everything goes where it belongs.”
Most challenging part of the job? “When we are coming up on a deadline and you think, There is no way I can do this all, and it all has to be done exactly correctly, because if I mess up, this is money we’re talking about; I can’t mess up. But then I just tell myself, I can only do what I can do.”
Rachel Price is a first year student who works almost entirely in the Accounting Department, though she does assist in the Mail Processing Department when they are busy. In Accounting, she is currently working on a multi-year project that involves taking old paper documents and scanning them and organizing them so they can be readily accessed. She works primarily in her office with Scanly—that’s what she named the scanner—and Patrick, who once was a possum but now is only a possum hide (she got him for the Renaissance fair; it’s a whole thing).
Most fun part of the job? “Cleaning the count room! It’s nice because you get up and move around, polish that table, and make it shiny.”
Most challenging part of the job? “Not shutting your brain off, because you are scanning and that’s a very mundane activity, but you really can’t just shut off your brain while you’re doing it, because you are naming these files, and if you name it wrong, it’ll be really hard to find; that’ll just bring issues in the future if it’s ever needed.”
In going through all these departments, I find it remarkable how the Church integrates a fluctuating number of students every year so fluidly. No one is sitting around; no one is unused. Every department has basic work that able-bodied and minded students are able to accomplish, freeing up the more experienced employees to work on longer-term improvement projects. The Accounting Department typifies this exquisitely. Here there are two students, collectively working 50 man-hours a week, who enable the Accounting Department to improve its archival system and handle invoices quicker, and the students get valuable work-experience at the same time. The work/study system is quite remarkable!
We posted a similar article highlighting the students who work in the following departments: Mail Processing, Maintenance, and Living Education. Check those out if you are interested in learning more!
Kaleb Johnson is a student in the Living Education-Charlotte Program. He graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville in the spring of 2022. In addition, Kaleb enjoys writing, video-making, trying new activities (anything and everything), playing chess, and debating (it’s not arguing!) with people. He currently works in the Living Education department producing written content & videos and helping with a variety of other projects.
Author: Kaleb Johnson | Student, Living Education – Charlotte, 2022-23
Estimated reading time: 3 min.
The Mail Processing Department (MPD) forms a critical part of the Work. MPD sends out booklets, semi-annual letters, Bible Study Course lessons, and Tomorrow’s World magazines to thousands of people worldwide. The department ensures that everyone receives their literature in a timely manner and reduces cost wherever possible to help God’s Work be efficient and effective. This year, two students work in the MPD: Dawn Rude and Jontavius Mincey.
Jon’s tasks include stuffing envelopes by hand, operating a mail-inserter machine, and delivering mail to employees in the office. Recently, the MPD worked tirelessly on the project of sending out as many semi-annual letters themselves as possible to defray costs. While he had experience in similar events already, Jon has learned some unique skills, like how to operate a mail-inserter, which apparently involves a lot of unjamming.
Most fun part of the job? “Probably being around Mr. Bonjour (the MPD director). He makes everything a lot more funny and enjoyable to be around.”
Most challenging part of the job? “If you make a mistake with the mail, you have to go back and redo them all. That is a lot of extra-work and irritating.”
Dawn also works at stuffing envelopes and packaging literature. At the beginning of the year, she worked two days a week doing landscaping at the dorms. However, the MPD decided they could use her all five days a week to help out. She takes care of many labor-intensive tasks like wrapping books and sorting literature requests, which allows the department to run smoothly. She briefly operated the mail-inserter but “didn’t like the fact that it jammed so much.”
Dawn Rude’s Main Roles in the Mail Processing Department:
Most fun part of the job? “Oh, definitely getting to talk to people during work. Sometimes, you’ll just be sitting there, stuffing envelopes with booklets or DVDs with someone next to you, and we’ll just have some pretty crazy conversations. It’s nice.”
Most challenging part of the job? “Probably staying focused when you don’t have anyone to talk to or headphones to listen to something. It can be a little repetitive and that can get to you.”
The Mail Processing Department defrays costs of sending literature by handling as much of the printing, inserting, and labeling process as they can. This department operates just like a high-functioning business: it is about getting results in a cost-effective and fast way. Students get experience working in a fast-paced environment, operating machinery, meeting deadlines, and just manual labor like inserting envelopes. All of this experience can directly translate into countless warehouse and production-related jobs. More importantly, the Mail Processing Department saves the Church money by handling much of the necessary printing and mailing. There is, essentially, an endless amount of work they could do, and every bit of it would be valuable. The more students help and contribute, the more God’s Work can do!
We have done two other work/study related Student Life posts before. One is about working in the Maintenance Department. The other is about working in the Living Education department. Check them out if you are interested!
Kaleb Johnson is a student in the Living Education-Charlotte Program. He graduated with a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville in the spring of 2022. In addition, Kaleb enjoys writing, video-making, trying new activities (anything and everything), playing chess, and debating (it’s not arguing!) with people. He currently works in the Living Education department producing written content & videos and helping with a variety of other projects.