2015 Spring Service Projects Report

g n i v r e S Christ

Spring Service Projects

Across the Street, Around the World

Spring Break 2015

Haiti

by Kelsey Brouwer ’16 United Christians International | hungryforlife.org/partners/united-christians-international For the fourth year, Northwestern students worked alongside missionaries Kristie (De Boer ’95) and JeanJean Mompremier. They helped teach English to elementary students and were English-language practice-partners for university students. Athletes on the team taught soccer and volleyball skills to youth, and nursing students hosted a blood pressure clinic.

Shining example It was so encouraging to see the light that JeanJean and Kristie bring to their community—not only Jesus’ love, but also education and health services. We got to see them being the hands and feet of God and were privileged to participate for a little while.

Going the extra mile Among the people who inspired us was Ephesian, who served as one of our translators. He came from miles away every day to talk to us and translate for us. Kristie also inspired us. She was kind, selfless, energetic, compassionate—godliness just radiated from her.

Immaterial comforts Our experience in Haiti enabled us to see that many people in the world live with few material comforts, and yet they are completely content. As Americans, we tend to place our trust in our material wealth and resources, but none of us who visited Haiti can forget the joy amidst poverty we witnessed. As a team, we talked about how to follow their example and trust God more fully.

To learn m Northwes ore about tern Colle ge Campus watch vid Ministry & eo of stu dents experien ces, visit ’ nwciowa .e du/faith

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The Netherlands

by Callie Nordahl ’15 Shelter Youth Hostels | shelter.nl For 17 years, Northwestern students have spent spring break alongside staff and volunteers at Shelter City and Shelter Jordan in Amsterdam. The hostels seek to demonstrate hospitality and Christian love by providing clean, affordable and welcoming accommodations for travelers. Team members worked in the hostels’ cafés and spring-cleaned the rooms. They also led evening activities and Bible discussions for guests.

Lighting up Amsterdam—especially the Red Light District—is known for its social freedom. It was difficult to witness the way some people indulged in this “freedom.” On the other hand, it was encouraging to see how God was working through organizations like Shelter Youth Hostels to shine a light in the darkness.

Diving in The best part of serving in the Amsterdam youth hostels was the opportunity to build relationships.

Each person we invested in—whether the hostel management, staff or guests—taught us something about ourselves, faith and life. The hostel atmosphere encourages fast, yet deep, relationships, so we all dove right in and made great new friends.

Opening doors The focus of the hostel’s ministry is evangelism, and conversations and relationship-building are keys to evangelism. Our experience in Amsterdam encouraged us to be bold in our faith and trust in the Lord so we can evangelize whenever God opens a door to that opportunity.

Nicaragua

by Courtney Tucker ’16 The Moravian Church For the 13th time, a team returned to Bluefields, Nicaragua, to minister to the community served by Reformed Church in America missionaries Rev. Adrian Bobb and Dr. Bernardeth Kelly-Bent. The students painted and repaired and spruced up the Comedor, which serves daily meals to kids. They also hosted a VBS. Hungry for attention The children who flocked to the Comedor—or really flocked anywhere we were—proved to be both the best and most challenging part of our Nicaragua experience. We soaked up every moment with them, playing soccer, tossing Frisbees, racing with them on our shoulders, painting together, and simply sitting as they climbed on our laps, legs and backs. The hard part was leaving them after a week, knowing they face poverty, malnutrition, and dysfunctional families and lives.

Best dresses One of the best experiences of the trip was taking nine orphans from the Tabitha House shopping for church dresses. It was thrilling for them and us as we helped them try on dresses and choose a favorite.

Short and sweet Our team can confidently affirm the value of short-term missions. In addition to all we were able to accomplish in one short week, nothing compared to the close relationships we quickly built with the kids, Adrian and Bernardeth, and each other.

Short-term missions are an encouraging experience of God’s faithfulness for longterm missionaries, the volunteers and the supporters who enabled the trip.

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Jonesboro, Arkansas

by Keaton Hettver ’17 CityYouth Ministries | cityyouthmin.com CityYouth Ministries is an afterschool ministry that provides a “safe haven” for kids where they can play games and get homework help and a free, nutritious meal before being transported home.

Team members cleaned, painted and organized at the center each day and spent their late afternoons and evenings interacting with the kids.

This was the 15th Northwestern SSP team to serve at CityYouth Ministries.

On a hopeful track Jonesboro is literally divided in two: Whites live on one side of the tracks, and non-whites live on the other side. Kids from the other side learn quickly that their dreams and aspirations are just that—dreams. One little boy told us he wished he was white because things would be better that way. But there is hope, and CityYouth nurtures hope because it’s an organization that encourages these kids they can overcome the obstacles of their circumstances.

Embracing Jesus The greatest thing about serving at this site was seeing the Holy Spirit at work among the kids. Many of them didn’t come from Christian homes, so to see them eagerly learning about God was amazing. We tried to love the kids as Christ loves—to bond with them and live out the love of Jesus through the way we spoke and interacted with each other and them.

Compton, California

by Delaney Dugger ’16 Emmanuel Reformed Church | erc.la Team members partnered with Emmanuel Reformed Church and Faith Inspirational Baptist Church to serve the community of Compton. Students painted and repaired homes and a school in Compton. They also tutored kids at an afterschool program, served food at the Salvation Army’s Love Kitchen, and visited Celebrate Recovery, an organization that serves recovering addicts.

Fresh perspective We painted in a school in Compton, and it’s amazing what a coat of paint can do, not only for the physical space, but for the mood and energy of the teachers and students. Little kids would come to watch us. They asked what we were being paid to paint, and when we told them we were doing it for free, they couldn’t believe it. The high school students asked us if we were getting school credit, and when we told them no, not only were we not getting school credit, we were actually giving up our spring break, they were speechless.

Welcome worship Worship at Faith Inspirational Baptist Church is nothing like what we are used to. We were given front row seats as visitors, and when members of the congregation were invited to greet each other, it went on for 10 minutes as we all got hugs from people in the church. We were also inspired by the pastor’s sermon about picking oneself up and turning oneself around because—he challenged his flock—“You didn’t drop out of school all of a sudden. You didn’t end up in jail all of a sudden.”

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Jacksonville, Florida

by Caitlin Hagerty ’16 2nd Mile Ministries | 2ndmile-jax.com Team members volunteered at two elementary schools in the Brentwood community of Jacksonville, assisting the classroom teachers and tutoring students. They also worked with an elderly Brentwood resident who maintains a garden for the neighborhood. Students painted a mural on the garden fence, spread mulch and prepared beds for plants.

Tough love It was eye-opening—and even a bit shocking at first—to volunteer in schools where corporal punishment is still acceptable and employed by the teachers to maintain discipline. Over the course of the week, though, we saw the genuine love the teachers have for their students. It was clear through their words and actions how much they want their students to succeed, not just in their classrooms, but beyond them as well.

Seeking justice We participated in multiple conversations about justice. We learned more about how important justice is to God and how, if we are to pursue God’s heart, we must have hearts for justice too. We were challenged and convicted to seek justice in Jacksonville, back at Northwestern, and in our lives beyond college.

Annville, Kentucky

by Jessica Sawatzky ’15 Jackson County Ministries Jackson County Ministries is a collection of organizations that serve vulnerable residents in Annville. Team members helped with restoration projects at Lincoln Hall, an historic building JCM is renovating into an arts and crafts skills training center. They also served at JCM’s Annville Christian Academy, a K-8 school where they led chapel and interacted with the students.

Weathering challenges The ability to adapt and be flexible is crucial during mission projects. The weather was less than ideal during our week in Annville, so we served the ministry in ways that were unexpected but still valuable. We were reminded how often we humans plan things to a “T” only to find God has a different agenda.

Powerful stuff We were impressed with the JCM staff. The variety of ministries they offer in the Annville community and their level of commitment was inspiring. As we listened to their stories, we had no doubt God is doing big things through them. We were grateful for the opportunity to be part of it for a short time and pray JCM will continue to be blessed by both short-term mission teams and dedicated long-term volunteers.

Standards of Excellence in Short-Term Mission Northwestern College Campus Ministry is committed to Standards of Excellence (SOE) in Short-Term Mission. The SOE criteria were developed by representatives from many U.S. mission agencies, schools and churches who send short-term missionaries. The common set of standards helps ensure that individuals or teams sent by U.S. organizations are excellent.

Training, resources, peer input, data collection and accountability are all components of SOE membership. As a member, Northwestern is serious about doing short-term mission well— from preparation through follow-up.

soe.org

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New Orleans, Louisiana

by Carissa Tavary ’17 Urban Impact | urbanimpact.org For the 19th time, a team of Northwestern students traveled to New Orleans to serve at Urban Impact and Castle Rock Church. They painted a house and cleaned an abandoned lot in a neighborhood near the church. They also tidied the church grounds.

Walking and talking One of our favorite “excursions” was a prayer walk around New Orleans. We literally just walked through the streets and prayed for the people we saw. As a team, we realized that we often aren’t really thinking about who we’re praying to or the magnitude of what it really means to pray to the almighty God. Prayer is powerful. It moved people to tears when we asked to pray for them or pray over them.

Spring planting Our SSP experience showed us the important role played by shortterm missions. A week is a short amount of time, but it’s enough time to plant seeds. Then we count on the next short-term team to water those seeds—and the next, and the next—just as we watered seeds sown by teams that came before us. Our experience also reminded us the world is a broken place of poverty, racial injustices and hurt. It especially taught us the world needs more of God. Whether we’re in New Orleans or Orange City, people need to hear the gospel.

Opelousas, Louisiana

by Kayla Foresman ’15 Hope for Opelousas | hopeforopelousas.org Northwestern was the first college to send a service team to Opelousas in 2008, and teams have returned every year since. In addition to tutoring in Opelousas schools, students also painted a house in the neighborhood and cleaned at a women’s shelter.

Learning limitations It was hard to witness and grasp the reality of the poverty experienced by the kids we met and their families. In the schools, there isn’t a lot of confidence in the students’ chances for future achievement.

Instead, they’re practicing to pass a statewide standardized test and overwhelmed with a new curriculum. The combination of underfunded schools and loving teachers who sometimes need to show tough love was a whole different educational environment than many of us are used to.

Sowing hope As we spent time with Hope for Opelousas staff members, students and other people in the community, we were inspired by their efforts to nurture and sustain hope even as they deal with poverty, violence and fearfulness. Their eyes still light up at even the slightest blessings or successes. The faith and trust they have in Christ and his love for them was readily evident in each person we met. It humbled us to witness their gratitude and joyfulness.

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Grand Portage, Minnesota

by Caitlyn Van Es ’15 Coldwater Foundation | coldwaterfoundation.org Team members served both with Habitat for Humanity in Duluth and on the Ojibwa Reservation in Grand Portage. In Duluth, they built A-frame playhouses and painted a playroom for the Lincoln Park Children and Families Collaborative. In Grand Portage, they cleaned Mt. Rose Church and interacted with the church’s youth group and tribal elders.

Indigenous history A blessing of the SSP in Grand Portage is the opportunity to talk to and learn from wise elders on the Ojibwa Reservation. One elder, John, shared with us the history of the Grand Portage tribe as well as the European-American history that intersected with the lives of the Native peoples.

Open ears One of the lessons we hope will stay with us is the ability to listen without judgment. We want to do a better job loving others— especially people who are culturally different from us—by respecting them and listening to their stories with open and accepting hearts.

Lighting a fire Our SSP opened our eyes to the hurt and brokenness that can be found anywhere. Our eyes were also opened to real spiritual warfare that is taking place in communities not too far from us. We also saw hope lived by people trying to be a source of light in those communities. We learned short-term missions is not about coming into a community and trying to fix all the problems—that our role is just to be a ray of light and fountain of love for the people we meet.

Minneapolis, Minnesota

by Melinda Raak ’15 Urban Ventures | urbanventures.org This was the second year a Northwestern team volunteered at Urban Ventures, an organization that seeks to heal community and family brokenness in Minneapolis. In addition to cleaning at a church and Salvation Army shelter, nursing-student members of the team hosted health fairs and screenings at various UV sites, including the Center for Fathering. Other team members connected with SALT (Somali Adult Literacy Training) to interact with Minneapolis’s Muslim residents.

Needing hope One of the Urban Ventures volunteers shared his story of poverty, drug addiction and recovery as a way to help us better understand not only the systemic poverty in the inner city, but also the hope that is possible when even one person cares enough to help another. The cycle of poverty some families live under is nearly impossible to break, and family members often disappoint each other due to alcohol and drug abuse, but stories of people who’ve overcome these obstacles keep hope alive.

Listening to stories One of the things we learned from Urban Ventures is how ministry effectiveness in the inner city depends on “missionaries” who are willing to live in inner city communities and invest time, talent and treasure in relationships and community building. Because our experience was short-term, we wondered what our impact was and how SSP should affect our lives back on campus. We concluded that in addition to living lives of gratitude for our many blessings, we should also be great listeners to other people’s stories because story-telling can lead to healing and hope.

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Cary, Mississippi

by Emily Wallace ’17 Cary Christian Center | carychristiancenter.org Cary community members apply to the Cary Christian Center (CCC) for specific help and then negotiate a reasonable financial or in-kind payment for services.

As volunteers for the multi-faceted ministry of CCC, Northwestern students worked at the “Treasure Chest” thrift store, sorting and tagging donations. Others worked on tiling projects in neighborhood houses and in the church. This is the 6th year an SSP team has served in Cary.

Mending fences While in Cary, we met Robert, who oversaw our work and chauffeured us from place to place. Robert is the man! As a black man in the South, he’s been the target of racism and discrimination. His response—the only thing he thought to do to disprove stereotypes white Southerners have about blacks—was just to love people, even if they didn’t love him back. He moved into white neighborhoods, and his neighbors put up fences. Instead of taking offense, he did their yard work without being asked and made them food when they were sick. Love is a powerful force.

Wild for worship Every morning we joined the Cary Christian Center staff and volunteers for devotions. We felt God’s presence as we participated in their passionate, exuberant worship—clapping and dancing spontaneously.

Uncomfortable truth It’s hard to really see the world and the needs of others from one’s comfort zone. While we were outside ours, we realized that the poverty we witnessed in Cary isn’t just confined to Cary. There are poor, hurting people in Orange City too—people we can minister to like Robert showed us, by loving them whether they love us back or not.

Mt. Olive, Mississippi

by Elle Helmkamp ’15 Mount Olive Ministries | mtoliveministries.com Team members—mostly education majors—volunteered at Mt. Olive’s Grace Christian School, teaching in grades kindergarten through sixth grade for half of each day. NWC students worked with Grace students who are behind their grade level, helping them catch up and gain confidence as learners. Northwestern students also tutored in an afterschool program, and a few taught art at another school in Mendenhall, Miss.

White privilege Mt. Olive and Mendenhall are both segregated communities where whites live on one side and blacks live on the other. In Mississippi, police officers routinely stop vehicles and check or search them. Our van pulled up between two police officers. Once they saw the van was filled with white college students, they waved us on. The truck behind us, however, was driven by a black man. The cops made him get out of his truck before searching both him and his vehicle. It was a clear demonstration of white privilege.

School safety In Mississippi schools it is common for students to receive spankings as classroom discipline. Still, it was even more shocking when one student developed a relationship with a team member and trusted her enough to share that she was being beaten at home. School was canceled one of the days we were in Mississippi, which was dangerous for this little girl. She counted on being able to come to the school because it was her safe zone.

Learning thankfulness Despite the fact that learning was difficult for the students we taught and tutored, they were so grateful to us.

Simple things, like being able to participate in art learning with hands-on activities, were so amazing to them.

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Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Northwestern College

101 7th Street SW Orange City, IA 51041 Change Service Requested

Lindale, Texas

by Molly Cunard ’18 and Morgan Tessier ’18 Calvary Commission | calvarycommission.org Calvary Commission (CC) is a ranch-like residence and educational center for ex-convicts who are born again and desire to spend time growing closer to God after they are paroled. For the 20th year, a Northwestern SSP team traveled to Calvary Commission to help with yard work, maintenance and other aspects of the CC ministry. Team members also led a worship service at a Lindale prison.

Transformation The women and men we met at Calvary Commission radiate God’s love and presence. They taught us that no sin is too great for God to forgive. As one woman told us, “Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.” But God can use anyone, no matter how far a person has strayed, no matter how damaged and damaging his or her life has been. God can change anyone into a disciple.

Worshipping with abandon Worship at Calvary Commission was freeing.

No one held back; the residents there worship with abandon. We were convicted about our own, sometimes restrained, worship. We talked as a team about letting go in worship and not caring what people think. The CC worshippers showed us how—given all God had done for them—they were unabashed in their enthusiastic bragging about God’s impact on their lives.

Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the people! Psalm 96:3

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