I'M GOING TO HAITI!

You know those things in life that you've always wanted to do but just didn't know where to begin? Going to Haiti has always been one of those things for me. So I was so excited that the opportunity to go on a short "Vision Trip" to Haiti recently fell into my lap, and I'll be going along with my one of my best friends in early June. We'll be working with Mission of Hope, a Christian-based organization that serves adults and children throughout the most under-resourced parts of Haiti. While in Haiti we are visiting an orphanage and school and hopefully will be spending some time getting to know the local children and their families.  While my trip will be a quick one (just four days), I am certain that it'll be a powerful one.

Guadalupe getting silly!

In high school, I fell in love with mission work and discovered my passion for service after traveling to an extremely impoverished area of Costa Rica. The most notable thing I took out of my 3-week experience in Costa Rica was the pure happiness of the people we were working with despite their living circumstances. While I was in there, I befriended a girl named Guadalupe who was truly the sweetest seven year old on the planet. Her toothy smile and giggle could literally light up the room. I was shocked when I visited her home towards the end of my trip to find a tin shack with bed sheet walls which housed her family of six.  Despite their lack of material possessions or even a normal working "house," Guadalupe's family was one of the most positive and happy I have ever encountered. Meeting and interacting with them was an experience that was so incredibly humbling.

I am confident that working in Haiti will provide an abundance of other humbling experiences like the ones in Costa Rica and I can't wait to share more about my trip on the blog when I get back to the US!