WILTON — Prepared to show love to the people of a downtrodden area of Halifax, Nova Scotia, 13 members of Calvary Hill Baptist Church will start off on a seven-day mission trip early Saturday morning.

“We have our passports, a 15-passenger van and a 4 a.m. Saturday start time to leave Wilton,” said church member and organizer Roy Bamford of Livermore.

The group has held lawn sales and received many donations to fund the trip and expect the Rev. Brad Somers of Halifax to have some painting and carpentry work for them to do when they get there.

Many of the church members know Somers, who is also Bamford’s son-in-law. Somers runs a ministry in the north end of Halifax, a poor area, with ties going back to the days of escaped slaves who made their way to Canada on the underground railroad during the Civil War.

They built shanties in the north end which the city later destroyed, creating project housing, Bamford said.

Expecting to help serve the homeless, drug abusers and poor, and hopefully put on a barbecue for children in the city housing, church members are mostly prepared to show their love.

“If you don’t exhibit that, you have nothing,” Bamford said.

Members of Calvary Hill are very active in mission and mission giving. Last year about 30-members took a 10-day mission trip to Guatemala and have previously gone to the Dominican Republic. This trip is made up of adults because school has already started, he said. Many teens from the church also went to Guatemala.

“People respond to openness and love. People who are neglected and uncared for are very moved when someone from another country expresses love,” he said. “So, we’ll see what the Lord’s going to do.”

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