QUICK FACTS ABOUT THE JOSHUA PROGRAM
The JOSHUA program is a ministry of Urban Mission Ministries ( an ecumenical Christian social service agency founded by the United Methodist Church in 1959 in Steubenville, OH.
The Urban Mission exists to serve as a concrete witness of Jesus by serving the needs of the poor and disadvantaged.
It does this by:
-Supplying groceries and meals for all who do not have sufficient or adequate food;
-Providing temporary shelter for homeless families through the Hutton House;
-Providing leadership development and programming in and for the African American community through the Neighborhood Community Development Center;
-Improving the housing of low-income households through the JOSHUA program;
-Providing spiritual care through weekly bible studies and Mission Rejoice worship services.
The JOSHUA (Journeys of Service Helping Upper Appalachia)Program was established in the summer of 1990 as a work mission program sponsored by the Urban Mission.
It began as a dream of several concerned pastors, professors, and community members who observed the deteriorating conditions of houses and property in the Steubenville area. Together they established an experience for youth and adults, who would come from various parts of the country to help make a difference in the living conditions of low income community members.
What developed was the ministry of JOSHUA. Numerous adult and youth teams from all over the country have come to participate in JOSHUA over the years. Each team brings their own contribution of money, equipment, materials, and talents to work on their assigned projects.
Homes have been scraped and painted, community parks have been rejuvenated, handicap ramps have been built, and windows replaced. There has been clean up and restoration after flooding, porches repaired, insulation and dry wall installed, and many other accomplishments and projects.
In 1997, the Diocese of Steubenville and St. Anthony’s Parish gave the former St. Anthony’s Convent to the Urban Mission to provide housing for our work teams. This house has space for groups of 60 people, which includes comfortable sleeping rooms, a kitchen, dining room, showers, and restroom facilities. This opens the opportunities for work teams to come to share in the JOSHUA program year round.
HOW TO PARTICIPARTE IN THE JOSHUA PROGRAM
Each fall the JOSHUA programreceives calls from interestedyouth group leaders, pastors, and teachersto reserve their spot in the JOSHUA program for the following summer. Spots fill up quickly so groups are encouraged to compete an application and send in their deposit as soon as possible.
If you group wishes to serve through the JOSHUA program in the coming year, these are your next steps:
Contact the JOSHUA program to request an application and reserve a week:
- Email:
- Phone: 740.282.8010
- Website:
Complete the JOSHUA Work Group Application and return ASAP to the Urban Mission office c/o JOSHUA Program at 301 North 5th Street Steubenville, OH 43952 or through email: . A $1,000 deposit is also requested at this time. Checks can be made out to the Urban Mission JOSHUA Program.
Upon receipt of the Work Group Application, your group leader will receive the JOSHUA Handbook to review with additional group leaders and participants
- This handbook will include information regarding: fundraising, coordination of trip details, review of travel costs, background checks for leaders, group insurance, daily schedulepacking, guidelines, transportation and housing arrangements, construction skills assessment, team building, spiritual readiness, dietary needs, local culture, covenant,etc.
Two weeks prior to your arrival at the JOSHUA Program, please provide the JOSHUA Program with any updated contact information, trip roster, background check information, meal preferences, and project forms. These can be emailed, faxed, or sent by mail to the JOSHUA Program.
One to two weeks prior,please ensure all participants complete a liability release form, medical information form, and covenant form. Two copies must be made. One for the group leader to keep and one for the JOSHUA Program to keep. (Documents will be shredded once the JOSHUA Program ends.)
Upon arrival to the JOSHUA Program, please bring all copies of the participant forms along with one check including all “per person” fees made out to the JOSHUA Program.
WHO CAN COME TO JOSHUA?
Youth
Youth who attend the JOSHUA program must be twelve years of age or older.
Adults
One Adult supervisor must be provided for every eight to ten youth who attend. Adults should have a keen interest in developing their youth spiritually, emotionally and physically.
*Groups average from 10 - 60 If there are more who wish to come than the allotted spots available, contact the Urban Mission to make special arrangements.
LEADERSHIP
JOSHUA offers site supervisors for each construction site or mission site. Because of the amount of projects going on at a certain time, however, they are not always readily available for immediate questions or concerns. Adults traveling with each group should have a working knowledge of how to teach youth various construction skills and safety procedures.
Leaders should consider making sure there is at least one adult for every 8-10 members and they should have the ability to supervise and direct the project site.
Teaching your workers, prior to their arrival, how to use necessary tools and instructed on how to perform minor repairs, also safety instructions and precautions, would also be a great benefit to you.
In addition, while the JOSHUA program has individuals available to provide daily and weekly devotions, we also encourage group leaders to choose a few adults/youth who can lead group devotions as well.
JOSHUA is first of all a ministry and secondly a work mission. Devotions should include a discussion time concerning what happened during each day, prayer for those whom you are serving and meditation on scripture. We offer a number of devotions for you use prior and during your time at JOSHUA.
OUR SAFE SANCTUARIES POLICY
Safe Sanctuaries practices ensure a higher level of safety for children and youth in our ministries and also protect the adults who work with young people. If your church or group has not yet begun to address these issues, we strongly urge you to bring this need and these resources to the attention of your leadership.
JOSHUA requires that all adult workers with youth must have undergone a thorough criminal background check, done by the home group. No adult will be allowed to participate without a background check. JOSHUA does the same on all of its employees and JOSHUA volunteers. Background checks are valid for 3 years, and then must be repeated.
JOSHUA Safe Sanctuaries Practices:
-All adults 18 and above, whether a group leader or not, are required to have undergone a background check before going on a JOSHUA trip. However, high school seniors who turn 18 before their post-graduation summer of service are exempt from the policy of background checks.
-JOSHUA will consult a national sex offender database to ensure we are not placing volunteers in homes of known sex offenders.
-Adults and youth will have separate showering times, per Safe Sanctuary guidelines and direction of the staff.
-No youth will ride in a car alone with an adult. There must be more than one adult or more than one youth present.
-In each sleeping area, there must be at least 2 adults of the same gender as the youth. These adults will sleep in a separate corner from the youth if possible.
-JOSHUA does not condone or tolerate sexual harassment in any form.
*JOSHUA will honor any additional “safe sanctuary” practices of your church/school/organization.
Resources for criminal background checks on adult volunteers with youth:
- has screening tools available at discounts for Church Mutual insurance customers. Free booklet and video/DVD.
- this is the screening tool that ASP primarily uses
JOSHUA PROGRAM FEES
PROGRAM / LENGTH OF STAY / ADMINSTRATIVE FEE / PER PERSONFEE
Retreat / Day Only / $75
Retreat / Overnight / $75 / $20
(Per Person
Per Night)
JOSHUA Work Camp / 1 week / $1,000 / $180 without meals (with t-shirt)
$200 with meals
(with t-shirt)
JOSHUA Work Camp / Weekend / $200 / $50
(Per Person Per Night with meals)
The Administrative Fee includes all materials for projects. It is non-refundable, however, it may be transferred to another date.
Dates are reserved upon receipt of a group’s Application and Administrative fee. Final payment including all “per person fees” for your group should be brought with you upon arrival at the JOSHUA House.
Checks must be payable to: Urban Mission JOSHUA Program. We request that all “per person fees” be included in a single check from the group to the Urban Mission JOSHUA Program upon arrival.
Beginning in 2014, “per person” fees will be determined on whether a groups prefers to have their meals provided by the JOSHUA program or by their group.
The following options are provided to your group for your 2014 stay:
- OPTION ONE: The Urban Mission will provide all lunches and dinners for the group. (The group is responsible for breakfast.) Choosing this option will result in an additional $20 per person (total cost per person = $200). Groups will eat on site or at the Urban Mission’s Unity Kitchen located just minutes away from the JOSHUA House.
- OPTION TWO: Groups can bring their own food and provide their own breakfast, lunch and dinner meals. Many times a group brings a few cooks to help prepare and serve each meal.
Please notify us of your option at least two weeks before your arrival.
Groups are expected to clean the house at the end of their stay. If this is not done to the satisfaction of the JOSHUA House Supervisor a $25.00 fee will be charged.
JOSHUA HOUSE FACTS
-10 Bedrooms furnished with fans, bunk beds, & mattresses (sleeps up to 60 people)
-1 Kitchen furnished with cooking utensils, dishes, silverware, mixer, microwave, toaster, two stoves, two refrigerators and freezer.
-2 dining rooms (seating up to 40)
-2 sitting/gathering room with couches, television, pool table, games, etc…
-1 female restroom with 5 showers, sinks and toilet stalls
-1 male restroom with 5 showers, sinks and toilet stalls
-Groups must provide all linens (bed & kitchen & bath), food, trash bags (45 gallon), cleaning supplies, and toilet paper and personal items.
JOSHUA PROGRAM MISSION OPPORTUNITIES
Home repairs include, but are not limited to:
-Painting exterior and interior of homes
-Dry walling
-Plumbing
-Decking
-Building stairs
-Building wheelchair ramps
-Demolition
Community outreach projects include, but are not limited to:
-Gardening through the local community’s Unity Garden
-Community clean up through the local government’s Parks and Rec Board
-Serving alongside church leaders at community Vacation Bible Schools
Urban Mission projects include, but are not limited to:
-Preparing and serving meals through the Urban Mission’s Unity Kitchen
-Packing and distributing food bags through Urban Mission Food Pantry
-Hosting a community picnic for local residents
THE COMMUNITIES WE SERVE
Appalachia
The JOSHUA program is located in the Upper Ohio Valley of Appalachia. The Appalachian region is unique in its geography as well as culture. Below is a helpful link for information regarding Appalachia and its people.
Steubenville, OH
Steubenville, Ohio is located along the Ohio River in Jefferson County, Ohio. It is the county seat of Jefferson County and is largely considered part of the Pittsburgh Tri-State area (only 30 minutes away.)
Bezaliel (Bezaleel) Wells and James Ross were the founders of the city. Wells, a government surveyor born in Baltimore, received about a thousand acres of land west of the Ohio River, and Ross, a lawyer from Pittsburgh, owned acreage north of his. The two men were responsible for the layout of the city.
Steubenville was platted as a town in 1797, immediately after the creation of Jefferson County. It was built on the site of Fort Steuben which was erected in 1786-1787 and named in honor of Baron Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben. Steubenville received a city charter in 1851.
Steubenville was once a thriving community, one of many located along a 30-mile stretch of the Ohio River from Weirton in the north to Wheeling in the south.
Steelmaking began as early as 1817 in Steubenville. In 1851, LaBelle Iron Works was established and soon became a leading nail factory. From 1875 to 1920 the US steel industry experienced explosive growth, making the Ohio Valley (and Steubenville) a world leader, as production expanded from 380,000 to 60 million tons annually.
Steel mills in the Steubenville area employed tens of thousands of workers. In addition, thousands of others went underground in the mines that dotted the hills to the east, south and west to dig out coal that ultimately powered the blast furnaces.
During its heyday, in the period of the 1940s-60s, Steubenville was popularly known as "Little Chicago," a nickname that, on the one hand, evoked the city's prolific industry and downtown bustle, while on the other hand suggested Steubenville's reputation for crime, gambling, and corruption.
This nickname was short lived. In the 1970s and 1980s almost all the mills and mines in the area had shut down. The industrial collapse led to Steubenville’s sharp decline. Its population peaked in the 1940s at nearly 40,000, but had already fallen to 31,000 by 1970.
The fall since then has been truly precipitous. Steubenville lost a higher percentage of its population between 1980 and 2000 than any other urban area in America. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 19,329 with an unemployment rate of 10.4 percent.
The slump has meant a big growth in poverty and hunger. In 2012, Steubenville’s median household income was $33,000, well below the state and national median of $48,000 and $52,700, respectively. Currently one in five individuals living in Steubenville, live in poverty.
But hope remains.
Resiliency and tenacity are traits ingrained in the souls of those who call Steubenville their home.
They are survivors – having overcome the shadows of their past.
They are victors – finding freedom in new life, a fresh start.
Today, Steubenville is a city working to find its identity.
When visiting Steubenville, one will see it lives up to its name as the City of Murals because of over 25 murals in the downtown area. It is also the home of Franciscan University, Eastern Gateway Community College, and Old Fort Steuben.
Steubenville is also the birthplace of legendary singer and actor Dean Martin, actress, producer and director Traci Lords, television commentator Jimmy "The Greek" Snyder, and Hall of Fame baseball pitcher Rollie Fingers.