There is never a shortage of work to do at the Upper Perkiomen Community Life Center.  So when Rev. Deb Timmons of Pennsburg United Church of Christ asked center director Scott Roth if he needed help, she was met with an enthusiastic, "Absolutely!"

        To commemorate the spirit and ideals of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., several students from Upper Perkiomen and Boyertown school districts came out Monday to lend a hand at the East Greenville center, which celebrates many of the same principles stressed by King.

        "I think the problem that we have in the United States is that we aren't a community anymore," said Roth.  "We want paid professionals to do everything and the reality is that we don't know our neighbors.  I believe that every human being should at least give five to ten hours a week of their life to the people around them.

        "The art of neighboring doesn't exist much anymore.  I think when people get out and start doing things for others it really changes your perspective and it really gives you more of a purpose beyond going to work and paying bills."

        The students, all a part of the confirmation class at Pennsburg UCC, were asked to give a certain number of hours to volunteer before being confirmed.  Some performed organizational tasks like making sense of the large utility closet at the facility, which was home to everything from parade parking signs to event flyers, while others took down holiday decorations, worked in the center's popular community bike shop or helped with weatherproofing a small greenhouse on the property.

        And the teens said they were happy to give their time and efforts.

        "I love working with tools," said Victoria Mest as she tried her hand at cleaning parts of a bike tire at the center's community bike shop.  "It's fun helping other people."

        "I think it's really fun because I always wanted to be able to take apart a bike," said Zachary Mest.

        "I had the day off and it's a good opportunity to get out there and help do some community work and to see what they do here at the community life center," explained chaperone and parent, Scott Mest of Boyertown.

        Timmins, who has been lead pastor at Pennsburg UCC for about a year, said the work, like the church's free community meal it offers the first Monday of each month, is all about reaching out to help others.

        "We came out because it celebrates Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday.  We are serving his vision of peace.  Our congregation is very community-minded…It made sense for us to get out and serve our community rather than go to the city and get stuck in traffic."

        The center has, over the past two years or so, grown in leaps and bounds.  Not only does it serve the Franconia Mennonite Conference and Upper Perkiomen School District's desire for a positive activity hub for teens in the area, it's also home to the Upper Perkiomen Robotics Club.  A modular structure in the rear of the property also serves as a bike shop, Bike and Sol, which has taken in over 100 bikes in the past year for repair or as a donation.

        "The community is responding and saying they want the bike stuff," Roth said.  "We had 10 different kids this summer come in and work on bikes for the first time.  People just started bringing bikes in to get them fixed.  We didn't even advertise.  It really grew a lot faster than we expected.  It's been good." 

        The shop features a co-op program for volunteers where they can learn to fix their own bikes and get used parts for free, as well as get new parts at cost.  The center also sponsors an "Earn a Bike" program where, after 15 hours of volunteer work, volunteers can build their own bike for free.

        Roth said the center, which charges fees for repairs, has seen so many bikes come in many are now being stored at Java Good Day Café and the Upper Perkiomen Community Thrift Shop.

        This year, Roth said he hopes to see the center and its branch, Love Upper Perk, continue to improve its offerings, like Baconfest, Fourth of July fireworks and Halloween and Christmas parades, as well as get into the community food concept. 

        The center is in talks to develop community green spaces into gardens, which would offer free food to people in need, as well as looking for people willing to open up their land for volunteers to garden on, Roth said.

        In a small greenhouse on the property, the center started an aquaponics program which involves farming fish and vegetables together.  The food, like cucumbers grown this past year, grows faster and with less work in the water than traditional gardening, Roth said.  Plants benefit from the ammonia given off as waste by the fish.  While it is largely an urban technique, the director said he sees a lot of benefits from it.

        And largely in tune with Dr. King's call to unite and work to make this country a better place to live, the center is also in talks with Make it Rain, a Harleysville-based non-profit.  That organization is building an online volunteer database where volunteers could see where needs are in their community and respond to them.           

        As he has a lot on his plate, Roth said he appreciates each and every volunteer and what they bring to the table. 

        "It's been awesome to partner with Pennsburg UCC," said Roth of the volunteers who came out this week. "I'd say about 99 percent of the work at the center is done by volunteers.  None of this operates without them."