PORTERSVILLE — Portersville Christian School students are ready to demonstrate their faith, and area charities and residents will benefit.

Friday is the school's annual day of serving when its 216 students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade put away textbooks and roll up their sleeves on behalf of others.

Elementary students participate in an in-house project.

The 115 Portersville students in grade seven and higher will take part in off-campus community service projects, said Lee Saunders, Portersville head administrator.

Saunders said, “It gives our students an opportunity to go out into the community and exercise their personal faith in serving other people.”

Saunders said there are eight projects this year:

Performing odd jobs such as cleaning and painting at the City Rescue Mission in New Castle.

Helping sort and fill boxes for Operation Christmas Child at the New Life Baptist Church in New Wilmington.

Christmas decorating and visiting with residents at Passavant Retirement Center in Zelienople.

Taking part in a cookie bake-a-thon at the school for the local Meals on Wheels group.

Preparing and delivering meals to Meals on Wheels recipients in the Portersville and Prospect areas.

Packing merchandise at the World Vision warehouse in Sewickley.

Going to the Trinity Living Center in Grove City.

For the senior class, going to Grace Youth and Family Foundation in Butler to work with students there.

“We let the older students choose the project they want to go to, and the rest are divided up into teams,” said Saunders.

Teams are taken to their assigned locations by the school's buses.

“It's a school day project,” Saunders said. “They come to school, have homeroom and then 8:30, 8:50 they leave. Then they are usually back here between 2:45 and 3 p.m.”

“We've had contacts with each one of these places over the years during other projects,” he said.

Saunders said Friday was chosen as the day of serving because “it's about this time of year that these groups need extra help for Christmas.”

For Hannah Sloboda, an 11th grader at Portersville Christian, this will be her fifth day of serving, and she has a favorite assignment.

“In eighth grade we went to Operation Christmas Child and packed shoe boxes for the program. It was really cool to know that we were part of a big operation sending shoe boxes to kids around the world,” Sloboda said.

“I like doing this a lot,” she said. “It's all part of a bigger picture. Whatever we do helps the kingdom of God, so I think it is worth it.”

Her classmate, James Magiapane, agreed.

“I think it is a good opportunity for us to get involved in the community,” Magiapane said.

“Last year, we stayed at the school, and we were able to make meals for shut-ins in the area. I thought it was really fun because we were able to feed people in the area,” he said.

Friday will be the first visit from Portersville students to Trinity Living Center, 400 Hillcrest Drive, Grove City, said Suzanne Carr, activity director at the 116-resident facility.

Carr said, “We are going to organize a clothing cart for some of our residents.

“The students are going to go to Thrifty Threads, a secondhand store in Grove City, and shop for the residents based on their needs,” Carr said. “Then the center staff will wash the clothes and primp them up. And the students will take the cart and go from room to room to hand out the garments.”

Carr said, “The students provide a service, have a visit and see a need and provide for that need.

“Our goal is to make the center a home,” she said. “And part of that is to bring children into the house and form relationships.”

Saunders said the students know community service is part of the school curriculum.

“They are committed to it. They do a good job when they go,” Saunders said.

He added the school also stages a two-day work-a-thon for its students in the spring. One day, he said, students go to different sites and one day they all go to Pine Valley Bible Camp in Ellwood City to refurbish it.

During its spring break, the school also has a group mission to the Dominican Republic where students build churches, work with doctors and dentists and aid refugees, but Saunders said that trip is voluntary because of the costs involved.