Mobile, AL
May 29 – July 26, 2024
Includes housing and a $2,500 stipend.
The Mission
As a QuadW Missional Intern in Mobile, you will be building relationships with various ministries that work to strengthen families and enhance the community. With all of its diversity, Mobile hosts many opportunities to cultivate lasting change and transformation.
Ministry possibilities with children, transient populations, impoverished groups, and more give interns the chance to develop projects that they see as most beneficial when building bridges between nonprofits and the community. Interns will be partnering with Spring Hill Avenue United Methodist Church in historic Midtown Mobile and will be housed at the West Side Mission—an old church that has been adapted for housing and various ministries. Working with two well known nonprofits, interns will lead a kids camp designed by the interns to address insecurities around child care and supplement any missed educational opportunities during the summer.
Interns in Mobile can expect:
Working in one of two groups serving at summer programs with the following community partners:
The Dumas Wesley Community Center provides services for low-income families, at-risk youth, disadvantaged seniors, and homeless women and children.
The Inner City Mission provides a six-week summer program that provides hands-on activities and experiences that stimulate the camper’s cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development for children ages 5 to 12 years old for the community of Taylor Park.
The Site
The QuadWMI Mobile site has many unique traits. For one, its presence as the oldest QuadW site means it has an enduring and familiar presence in this community. A second thing is the dynamic of a plethora of cultures mixing together which leads to fascinating insights when approaching any situation. Additionally, for all that Mobile has going in its favor, there is also one critical need that the city still wrestles with—education. Educational opportunities are not equitably accessible and childcare is very expensive in this area. This leaves open a great opportunity for our interns to support the education system, enhance childcare, and advocate for better opportunities for all Mobilians.
Spring Hill Avenue UMC has been in the Mobile community for almost 150 years. During that time, it has prioritized community action and ministries that make a difference. We have a long-standing relationship with what was once a struggling public school. We support the community through a local food pantry. And, we engage the community through our contributions to local nonprofits that contribute to those in need. This church has much more to offer and we are looking forward to that happening with the help of our interns!
“I feel like I truly found God and myself through this QuadW Internship. I began to see God in places I didn't think possible. I also got to touch so many lives and see the impact of it.”
Jayson W.
Summer Intern in Mobile, IN
Site Director,
Katy Wrona
I'm Katy Wrona and grateful to be the Site Director for Mobile, AL. I serve as the Executive Director of Communities of Transformation. I am a native of Pittsburgh, PA. I was trained as a United Methodist Missionary and my service brought me to Mobile, Alabama 9 years ago. I believe in a holistic, relational approach to poverty alleviation that guides my work with serving families in our communities. I have a Bachelor's Degree in Chemistry from Lycoming College in Williamsport, PA.
I am an active member of St. John United Methodist Church and love the community I have built in Mobile. I have two adorable cats, Augustus and Octavia. I am the proud aunt of my nephew, Cannon.
A fun fact about me is that I swam and coached swimming for 15 years altogether. I love being in the water and being part of a team. When I first started teaching swim lessons, it opened the door to how much I love teaching kids.
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My two years as a Global Mission Fellow, a missionary of the United Methodist Church, shaped a lot of my ministry today. I was supported and fed into by church / ministry leaders who provided the foundation of how I now pour into other young adults serving. I learned how to serve differently in those two years and redefined poverty and poverty alleviation during that time. I believe we can be transformed by healing and strengthening the four relationships in our lives; God, Self, Others, & Creation.
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I was born and raised in the United Methodist Church. My mother is a pastor in the UMC and I learned so much from her. It was through a VBS camp as a child that I asked Jesus to be my Lord & Savior. It was from that moment on that I worked to learn and grow in my relationship with Him.
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There are several issues that guide my mission today. I believe everyone should have access to resources (food, education, transportation,etc.) and if there are systemic barriers in place, it causes families to work that much harder to overcome poverty. As a young women leader, I advocate for rights and leadership opportunities for women and young adults. I believe in affordable housing and volunteer with Habitat for Humanity to support their efforts to provide homes at cost to families in our community.
Transform communities — and yourself.
The QuadW Missional Internship lifts communities and unites people around common values and beliefs. Our interns and program leaders work to embody Jesus in everything we do, making change in our communities and uplifting congregations all over the world.
