Students reach out during spring break

Submitted Photo

 

With spring break around the corner, Outreach is providing opportunities to get out and serve.

The Oklahoma Christian University Outreach program sponsors missions within the United States that send students to serve people where help is needed. This year Outreach is sending students to San Antonio and Quinlan, Texas, Little Rock and Newport, Ark., and partnering with Rural America Ministries for a trip to Cordell, Okla.

Senior Megan Mitchell started the Boles Children’s Home mission trip in Quinlan, Texas, last year for Outreach.

“Some people go to churches and some people go to vicinities, ministries and stuff like that,” Mitchell said.

During this specific Outreach trip, students will not only be doing maintenance work, but also helping with the children.

“The trip benefits children’s ministry majors, education majors and child development majors because we’re going to be doing play therapy with some of the kids,” Mitchell said. “That’s really helpful for us because we can see different ways to handle the kids and stuff like that, and we’ll also be cooking for the campus and just doing whatever they need us to do.”

By going on the Outreach trips, students seek to help change the lives of those around them.

“I know last year it was really touching to go and see those kids really cling to you, and those kids are struggling because they’re coming out of broken homes and they’re coming out of jail and they’re coming from all kinds of different places and they have to go to this one central place,” Mitchell said. “So for us to go and just play with them, it really helps them know that there’s people out there that do love them.”

According to Mitchell, the mission trips benefit not only the organizations, but the students involved as well.

“I think that it’s good for us, and it helps us grow and show God’s love to people,” Mitchell said. “Because sometimes I think people forget that we do show God’s love and that’s who we’re supposed to be, but we’re also supposed to be servants. So we’re just going to go and we’re going to serve with open hearts.”

Some of the past trips have gone to Memphis, Tenn., but the main focus now is the one in Quinlan, Texas. The price for the weeklong mission trips this year is $60 and will cover gas, the T-shirt and food.

Senior Cameron Mara is going on the San Antonio trip with Memorial Road Church of Christ for the first time this semester, where students will work with Habitat For Humanity.

The San Antonio trip has been a part of Oklahoma Christian for 20 years.

“This is my first mission trip with OC, but I know other people that went on mission trips while they’ve been here,” Mara said. “I know a lot of people who went to Mexico last year with Edmond and everyone always talks very highly of it, and that they grew a lot spiritually. Almost everyone that I knew last year is going back again this year.”

Mara said that instead of taking a vacation for spring break, he would like to do something more fulfilling.

“This year I made a commitment to myself that I would do something more than just vacation for a week,” Mara said. “It’s just a waste of time when there are more important things you could be doing.”

The price for going on the trip is $140 and will cover most of the meals and the housing. Missionary in Resident Kent Hartman has previously gone on this mission trip.

All of the trips are organized and led by students.

“They help organize the trips … they’ll work with the leaders in those places,” Hartman said. “So that’s what we talk about student-led and organized.”

Hartman has his own experience from going on mission trips when he was a student at Oklahoma Christian.

“We went to places that I’d never been before,” Hartman said. “We were encouraged to do things I hadn’t done before and it really makes you really trust in God and to develop good relationships with those you’re working with.”

Hartman also has his definition of a mission’s success.

“If students go and they help people, that’s successful,” Hartman said. “… Not all of the trips have the same sort of feedback. With [the San Antonio mission trip] you can meet some people that you know as a result of what we did, that person came into contact with someone who was a Christian, who studied with them and now they’re Christians today.”

Students can sign up for the Outreach mission trips at the table by the cafeteria.