Sturdy walls. Front porch steps. A bathroom sink. A home provides the backdrop to life — the structure that quietly keeps its inhabitants safe and dry, cool or warm. It's easy to forget all the comforts a house provides, until it is gone.

Some 850 teens from around the Diocese of Arlington traded the familiar surroundings of their own homes for a classroom floor, a communal bathroom and a school cafeteria. From their home base at King George High School, half an hour east of Fredericksburg, they traveled out to 110 homes that needed a little fixing up June 24-28. The annual WorkCamp is run by the Office of Youth, Campus and Young Adult Ministries and dozens of volunteers.

Related story:

Hands-on faith at WorkCamp