How old were you when you first decided to start going on these trips?
I was 10 years old when I first decided to go on my first mission trip to Kenya with my family. I went on my second mission trip to Poland when I was 13. Since then I have been on one every year with my parents and sister. My dad has been to Poland a couple of times and always talked about it so I wanted to see the amazing things for myself.
How did you know that this was something you truly wanted to pursue?
After my first mission trip I knew I wanted to serve alongside those in other parts of the world and be able to make a difference. The connections and experiences that I had were so great and made me want to go back even more. Being able to spread God’s word is something so important to me, and doing it in other parts of the world makes it so special and fun to do.
How long do these trips usually last and where do you stay?
These trips are usually about a week and a half. Each time we have stayed somewhere different. The first time we stayed in a cabin on the campground, the other times in a hotel that is a part of the camp organization called PROEM. PROEM is a missionary based organization. They have four branches which are PROEM Help, PROEM Education, PROEM Zako, and PROEM Growth. We focused on PROEM Zako which is where they offer a variety of camps over a ten week period in the summer to people from surrounding countries. PROEM is also where I got baptized which makes it even more memorable and special to me.
What do you do when you are there and does it change yearly?
My church, Mount Pleasant, serves during a basketball camp in the beginning of July. During our time there we always started with a morning devotion time, then moved into playing basketball, growing our team strength, and spiritual strength, following in the evening there was always an activity provided after another devotion session. This camp is designed to incorporate the gospel of Jesus as we play basketball. These students come from Poland, Lithuania, and Ukraine, and many of these students return from year to year. My involvement changes from mentoring, scorekeeping, or coaching throughout the week.
Are there connections with people you’ve made there that makes going every year so special?
The relationships I have made every year are long lasting. I have made so many strong connections and friendships with so many different people from so many different countries. These relationships mean so much to me and make it even more exciting to go back each year. I have some really strong friendships with some girls from Lithuania, who I keep in contact with daily. We make sure to talk everyday, exchange gifts every year and hangout as much as we can. Seeing the way God can work through so many people’s lives is truly so touching and wonderful to see which makes there even more reason to continue on these trips. These trips also help me to really strengthen and further my spiritual relationship but also help others develop theirs.
