SOWER Projects? So, What’s a SOWER? SOWER is an acronym for Servants On Wheels Ever Ready. We joined SOWERS in the fall of 2021. SOWERS has provided us with the opportunity to Travel with a Purpose, Share our Talents, Meet new Friends, See the USA, ( and eventually some of Canada ) while traveling in our home on wheels.

The mission of the organization is to provide volunteer workers to Christian Orgranizations such as Youth Camps, Conference and Retreat Centers, Homes for Abused and Neglected Children and Adult Recovery Homes. By doing so, these organizations have additional resources available to put toward furthering their missions. The host ministry provides RV hook-ups, work supervision and some tools. The SOWERS provide the skills and labor. Commitments are for three weeks, but SOWERS can stay the fourth week if they like to rest, to explore the area or to travel to their next location.

Here’s a link to the SOWER website if you want more information or if you’re interested in becoming a SOWER https://sowerministry.org/. The SOWER office provides a list of projects available, their location and their needs for SOWERS to choose from.

We’ve built bunkbeds, remodeled cabins, helped in kitchens, housekeeping and laundries, acted as tour guides, and painted in lots of areas , both inside and outside. Below are just a few photos of some of the work we’ve done as SOWERS. We were house parents at the Florida Sheriff’s Boys Ranch for a couple years before joining SOWERS and returning there twice on SOWER projects.

Our very first project was at Camp Westminster in Conyers, Georgia https://www.campwestminster.org/ . Camp Westminster is a Camp, Retreat and Conference Center about 25 miles outside of Atlanta. We were there in November, an off-season, for them so they weren’t into their busy time yet with only a few scheduled retreats, so we helped them prepare for their upcoming camping season.

While we were at the camp in Conyers, we were able to visit Stone Mountain Park. And, we climbed the mountain and made it to the top!

We’ve done twenty projects since our first one at Camp Westminster about 2 years ago. We cannot financially give to every group or organization we feel that are worthy of our support but we can give of our time and talents. Dave probably has more talents than me for these projects. He has always worked with his hands, both in his manufacturing job and in his home improvement business, so he has the skills and many tools needed for most of the projects where we’ve worked. Sometimes places have sewing needs, kitchen and dining halls needs, help with landscaping, cleaning or painting.

For each project, a SOWER group leader (GL) is chosen. Usually, this is someone who has participated in at least three SOWER projects. Through a series of events, we’ve became the group leaders at our second project. This was probably because it was the first project for the other five couples. That was in Vero Beach, Florida at a camp now called Realife Vero Beach https://realife.org/ We’ve become friends with the other SOWERS that were there and still stay in contact with them.

We’ve done several projects in Florida, a few in Alabama, one in Michigan, one in Missouri, one in Colorado, two in North Carolina, one in Tennessee and one in Georgia. I was looking at the current project list to see if there was a specific area where projects are most prevelant. I really can’t tell. I think there are more projects in the southern part of the country than in the north. One thought is that most of the SOWERS are retirees. Most don’t like the cold so they become “Snow Birds” and head south in the winter. They also don’t like “Hot”, so they head north in the summer. I think typical weather is a definite factor in the location of projects. The northern states do seem to have less project locations. SOWER projects are obligated to provide RV sites for the SOWERS. RV aren’t suited for traveling on snow and ice and most aren’t insulated either. Since most RVs aren’t fully insulated, northern winter projects and deep south summer projects aren’t that prevalent or popular with SOWERS. The projects in the central part of the US are not as numerous in other parts. I’m not sure why that is. We haven’t experienced a project in Canada yet. We do have plans to travel north on the east coast in 2024 and aim for the western part of the U S in 2025.

We have seen so many perks in our time as SOWERS. SOWERS learn to work together as a team, learn to communicate well with each other, with the host and with the new people we meet in our travels. Group Leaders learn leadership skills. Since SOWERS are adults, mostly retirees with a variety of experiences. They don’t need “micromanaging”. If Group Leaders have been used to that, they eventually learn that micromanaging is not necessary. And, SOWERS that are used to working totally independently, soon learn to work together. SOWERS all have different skills, so “Skill Sharing” is also a great perk for everyone. All this together, make being part of SOWERS a great experience.

SOWERS is not the only organization that does this. There are several others. I can’t remember them all, so I won’t name any of them here. A google search should find them for you . We’ve met some of the other volunteers in ourtravels. One thing we’ve noticed is that that RVers “traveling with a purpose” seem to stay with the RV life longer than those that take off to go camping, see a few sights and check off some items on their bucket list. They soon get bored with the travels. When we get to a location, that we choose for a variety of reasons, we spend four days a week working on a mission project, getting to know the other volunteers there, the host there, the staff and then explore the area while we plan for our next location.

The best parts of traveling in an RV, in our opinion, are several. We sleep in our own bed each night. When we change locations, we do have to secure things before traveling down the road, but we don’t have to pack suitcases whenever we want to go somewhere or remember what to take with us, because we take everything. We don’t have to eat out every meal and when we do eat out, we have a refrigerator where we can put the “to go box” of the leftovers. There’s lots of great reasons to travel in an RV. You probably have reasons of your own.

As much as this post was about SOWER projects, the main point was really of the benefits of “traveling with a purpose’ whatever that might be. Here’s some possibilities, you may embrace. 1) Cultural Immersion – travel to immerse yourself in new cultures, traditions and languages 2) Educational Exploration – Use your RV travels to visit historical sites, museums and national wonders 3) Wildlife Conservation efforts 4) Food and Cuisine – Explore diverse culinary traditions and attend culinary schools or classes, are just a few, and of course, spend time with family .

As mentioned above, outside of our volunteering, we do get to explore the area we visit. Here are just a few of the pictures of our “tourist activities”.

Do what you can and make the most of all your travels. Be reasonable and responsible but don’t delay those adventures and fun times too long. Until the next time….

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