Written by Cheyenne Klein. Media by Jack Wang.[divide]
Students of Greenville College do me one favor and get out of the country! The college is presenting us with new mission opportunities now more than ever. Faith Nava is the new leader of the World Outreach and Missions Department and has lined up a lot of new trips. The Dominican Republic (D.R.), Spain, Mexico and Guatemala will all be welcoming Greenville students this summer!
Both programs in the D.R. and Guatemala are in partnership with Students International (S.I.). I can personally say that this is an amazing organization because I worked with them in Nicaragua last fall. They are truly dedicated to sharing Christ’s love through meaningful action. Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Edwin Estevez is actually organizing this trip. Students can choose to work in the Sports, Education, Media or Social Work sites. The trip will also focus on teaching local kids soccer and showing them Christ’s love. Dr. Estevez, his wife Jessica Estevez, and Faith Nava will be leading the trip.
In Antigua, Guatemala, students can work in Health Care, Education, Sports, Special Ed, Veterinary, Media and Carpentry. Students will get to experience the culture even more by living with Guatemalan families while they are there. The trip takes place from May 27th to June 16th. A GC graduate who works with S.I. will be leading the trip.
I can tell you quite a bit about the Mexico City program, because I am going myself. This program is called Avance and is through the United World Mission. Students get to stay with host families for 2 whole months! The first 4 weeks are spent taking Spanish classes in the mornings and meeting with other youth leaders in Mexico for times of discipleship. For the last four weeks, students are set up with ministry opportunities such as interning at churches, teaching in schools, or even serving at safe houses for girls rescued from prostitution. Students in the past have led worship, led bible studies, or taught ESL classes with the churches they worked with. Both Dr. Mauricio Nava and Faith Nava will be taking part in the program. The trip is from June 3rd to July 31st.
Madrid, Spain is also welcoming Greenville College students. This is a study abroad program led by Free Methodists pastors and leaders. Students can work in areas such as Education, Worship, Children’s Ministry, Food Pantry, and Evangelism. Students here will also get to stay with host families. Students can choose how long they would like to be involved in this program. Many students will stay 4 weeks. Spanish majors must stay at least 8 weeks to fulfill their study abroad requirement.
Again, I urge you to guarantee yourself a life changing experience by going on one of these trips. Share Christ’s love and expand your worldview. See what faith looks like to people of different cultures. Meet people in extreme poverty and be blown away by their amazing faith. Join me in Mexico City! Contact Faith Nava with any questions you have at faith.nava@greenville.edu.
