Youth in Northampton, England, Share Service Efforts with King’s Representative

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By Mary Richards, Church News

Youth in the Northampton England Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recently met a representative of the king of England, King Charles III, and were able to show him some of the things they are doing to serve others — also how they have a fun together during weekly activities, such as playing dodgeball.

The youth collected thousands of stamps for charity over a period of months. The stamps were donated to the charitable organization Oxfam and were sufficient for a well to be provided in Africa. Northampton, England, is about 69 miles, or 110 kilometers, north of London.

This effort earned a visit in March from the lord lieutenant of Northamptonshire, James Saunders Watson.

Watson is the king’s representative in the county and consequently the office has the first and foremost duty to uphold the dignity of the Crown.

In a Northamptonshire online news article, Watson said: “It was a delight to spend a very wonderful evening with youth groups from Kettering and Northampton at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Everyone was so engaged with all the activities from sorting stamps for Oxfam and the very active game of dodgeball.”

Around 50 young men and young women from the stake, ages 11-18, were there that night for the activity.

The lord lieutenant, following the example of the king, seeks to promote a good atmosphere and a spirit of cooperation by the encouragement given to voluntary services and to benevolent organizations, and by the interest taken in the industrial and social life of the county, explained the stake communications director, Debbie Twigger.

Kettering Ward Bishop Keith Reynolds said, “We were delighted that the lord lieutenant and his wife were able to attend this evening and meet our wonderful youth who meet together to strengthen their faith in Jesus Christ and live by His teachings to help others around them.”

The youth in the Kettering Ward previously collected stamps for Oxfam charity last Christmas and have continued to collect and donate since then.

After King Charles’ coronation in May 2023, youth and members of the Church throughout England served their communities through JustServe as part of the Big Help Out.

Other Service Projects from the Northampton England Stake Youth

The youth of the Northampton stake have been serving in many other ways to bless their communities.

As part of the stake youth Christmas activity in December 2024, the youth all spent some time writing Christmas cards to residents of four care home across the stake (based in Northampton, Bedford, Kettering and Huntingdon), as part of Postcards of Kindness.

In October 2024, the young women of the Duston Ward took part in a service activity supporting Baby Basics in Northampton. They put together a large basket full of all the practical essentials a new mother and baby might need over the first few weeks or months following birth. The baskets were filled with items such as diapers, toiletries, clothing and blankets, as well as a couple of chocolate treats for mom.

During a young women camp in August 2024, 32 young women ages 11-13 and their leaders hiked from their camp site in Hatton over to Northleigh House School, which specializes in helping young people with anxiety to realize and reach their potential. While there, the young women and leaders weeded, cleaned outdoor furniture, tidied the grounds and cleaned out the chicken coops.

Helen Boysen, the stake Young Women president, said helping with the chickens was the most popular choice. “The girls worked hard, had lots of fun and made a lasting impression on the staff there.”

Youth throughout the stake collected creme eggs in April 2024 for the North Ukrainian Association in Northampton. The stake youth committee decided on a target goal of 500 creme eggs in a month — and ended up with more than double that number. The eggs were sent to Ukraine along with other items donated by members of the stake.

Also in April 2024, a stake youth activity gave the opportunity to take part in service supporting Tools With a Mission. The Christian charitable organization collects unwanted usable tools, refurbishes them, sorts them into trade tool kits and sends them to the developing world for livelihood creation. The youth spent some time during the activity refurbishing various tools that were then passed onto the charity for future use.

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