Students, staff, alumna volunteer in San Francisco
FOR RELEASE: Monday, March 20, 2006
Huntington, Ind. "Seven students, two staff and one alumna from Huntington University ministered in San Francisco, Calif., during spring break. The team shares a moment on the Golden Gate Bridge overlooking San Francisco - (left to right: back row) Betsey Bean, Joanne Miller, Nicole Fain, Kelly Daniels, Aubri Long; (middle row) Nicole Callaway, Megan Condry, Amanda Brody; (front row) Naomi Woods, Sarah Lang.
In collaboration with the Center for Student Missions, the group volunteered with several different food banks, a food distribution center, an after school program, and an HIV/AIDS center. This effort was led by Nicole Fain, assistant director of campus ministries, and Joanne Miller, staff advisor to the University's Joe Mertz Center for Volunteer Service.
This was a fantastic trip, Fain said. The group excelled in their relationships with each other, the work they were assigned, and their openness to new ideas about poverty and homelessness. Going in to this trip, these students were not best friends but became close by serving together and serving each other. At every site we visited, supervisors were amazed at the amount of work they accomplished and the quality with which they excelled. I am anxious to see how what they experienced and learned affects their ministry in Huntington and future vocation.
The team spends time in Golden Gate Park with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background - (left to right: back row) Betsey Bean, Nicole Fain, Megan Condry, Amanda Brody, Kelly Daniels, Nicole Callaway; (front row) Naomi Woods, Aubri Long, Sarah Lang, Joanne Miller.
The team left last week and returned this weekend. The following students were participants:
Kelly Daniels, a senior from Amherst, Ohio, double majoring in educational ministries and family and children's ministries
Betsey Bean, a senior exercise science major from Olivet, Mich.
Nicole Callaway, a junior social work major from Bryan, Ohio
Naomi Woods, a junior history and political studies double major from Hillsdale, Mich.
As one of their service projects, team members worked at the Haight-Ashbury Food Program. Pictured are (left to right) Sarah Lang, Betsey Bean, Naomi Woods, Aubri Long, Nicole Fain, Kelly Daniels, and a Haight-Ashbury Food Program worker.
Megan Condry, a sophomore from Celina, Ohio, double majoring in educational ministries and family and children ministries
Aubri Long, a junior middle grades education major from Van Wert, Ohio
Sarah Lang, a junior public relations major from Findlay, Ohio
Amanda Brody, an alumna from Lexington, Ky.
Comments from Betsey Bean, a student who went on the trip:
We had spent the day working at the Haight Ashbury Food Program, preparing and serving food to the hungry in San Francisco. It was heartbreaking to see young kids my age who were most likely runaways and were hungry. They would barely look at you in the eye. It was also hard to see an entire family " a mother and father with two young children come to the soup kitchen. After we were done serving, we had the opportunity to talk to the director of the food program. She shared her personal story for us. She had once been a successful professional, but after getting involved with drugs, she found herself homeless and hungry. She walked into the soup kitchen 12 years ago, standing in line for food. She started volunteering regularly, eventually got cleaned up, and now directs the program that helped her get back on her feet. It was so neat to hear her story and her passion for helping those in need. It was truly inspiring.
Volunteering in service projects and mission trips allows individuals to use their time and energy to help others. There are always valuable services provided by volunteers on these trips, however, I believe the most beneficial aspect of these trips occurs in the hearts of those who serve. Most people expect to be a blessing to the people they are serving, and hopefully they are. However, inevitably, in my experience, I am the one who is most blessed by serving others. Volunteering for service projects and mission trips helps to cultivate an attitude of service in all other aspects of life. Mission trips especially help people to realize how fortunate we are compared to most other people.
