Fifty Ole Miss students traveled to Haiti during spring break with Ole Missions, a new campus organization.
The organization was created by senior public policy major Caroline Loveless last summer with the goal of partnering students with global humanities efforts.
Trip coordinator and junior international studies major John Pierce chose to partner with Mission of Hope, a Christian charitable organization based in Haiti.
Students pose for a photo with Haitians during spring break. (Photo Courtesy: Wesley McFall)
“Mission of Hope seeks to help Haiti develop and become sustainable, which is something that is extremely important when seeking to work with an organization on a mission trip,” Pierce said.
Junior English major Conner Adkins was interning for Mission of Hope when Pierce presented the idea of a partnership with the organization. Adkins agreed the partnership would be ideal for a student mission trip.
Pierce said Mission of Hope allows individuals to sponsor a Haitian child, providing the child with food and an education.
“The children go on to graduate high school and reinvest the knowledge they’ve acquired back into Haiti,” Pierce said.
Each mission trip participant was required to pay the costs of his or her flights and lodging in Haiti, but the University covered the costs of equipment such as paint rollers and brushes. In addition, Ole Missions hosted a fundraiser at Mr. Feather’s at the beginning of the month to help with funds.
Last week, the team worked on installing water filters, planting trees and making personal relationships with Haitians.
“Painting houses was an important activity because Haitians take great pride in the appearance of their houses,” Pierce said.
The water filters the students installed will provide the families with up to 10 years of clean drinking water, according to Ole Missions.
For Pierce, the most memorable part of the trip was having a group of students who chose to give their time to people in need instead of going on a typical college spring break trip.
“The compassion they showed throughout the week is something I’ll never forget,” Pierce said.
Among the students was sophomore Wesley McFall, who chose to go on the Ole Missions trip because the trip worked directly with Mission of Hope, which she said she had heard was a remarkable organization.
“The most memorable part of my week was experiencing the different culture and being able to talk to and get to know the Haitian people,” McFall said.
Ole Missions is committed to working to enhance sanitation, nutrition, health care, education and economic situations in various communities.
Since its start, the organization has led trips to Nicaragua and Haiti, and is planning another trip this summer.
Each year, the organization aims to lead three mission trips.
– Claire Harper
