Photo courtesy of Katie Cook

Senior Erin Foley was part of last year’s Habitat for Humanity Spring Break Alternative trip.

By Aaron Hummel
Collegian Freelancer

Lice shampoo might seem like an odd item to include in a spring break packing list, but to the nine Hillsdale students traveling to Monterrey, Mexico, to serve orphans over spring break, it's just one of several items they are planning to bring with them.

While many students and faculty are preparing to enjoy spring break resting in pleasant climates and comfortable homes, two groups of Hillsdale students will spend their time and money serving the needy in South Carolina and Mexico instead.

“I want to go to Mexico not just to help the kids there, but also because I want to be changed myself,” freshman Alisa Harris said. “I think it'll be a good reminder to focus on others and meeting their needs, instead of focusing on my own needs.”

The group will fly out of Detroit on March 19 and will return March 25. They will spend the entire time in Monterrey, Mexico, the 79 th most populous city in the world, with 3,416,000 inhabitants, according to www.worldatlas.com. Monterrey is located on the eastern side of Mexico, near the southernmost tip of Texas.

Senior Rebecca Nagel is leading the group. She said she expects that they will spend about half their time repairing or building things for the orphanages and half their time playing with the children. She believes the students going on the trip often benefit more than the children.

“The biggest thing that I think comes out of this trip is learning servanthood,” she said. “I think this is a trip that almost has more impact on the people that go than on the people down there because most of us have no experience serving in that kind of atmosphere and serving so much.”

Nagel also said she is confident that her group is in God's hands.

“I feel like I can't worry about anything because God has provided everything up to this point,” she said. “So I feel like anything that goes wrong, God is going to work through it because He has with everything else and I've been blown away by it.”

Both Nagel and Harris said Hillsdale students can help by praying for them as they prepare for this trip and while they are down in Mexico.

In addition to the student-led trip to Mexico, the Hillsdale Habitat for Humanity chapter is driving to St. John's Island, S.C., for the third consecutive year to help build houses for impoverished families in the Charleston area.

Sophomore Krisanna Hefty is the student leader for the 27 students and three adults going on the trip.

She explained that the best thing about last year's trip was meeting the family for whom they were building the house.

“They came and introduced themselves before the workday to the group and then they worked with us,” she said. “It was really cool to see what type of family was going to live there.”

Hefty said she expects the Hillsdale group to be one of four other college Habitat for Humanity chapters living and working on St. John's Island during the week.

The group will work Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and then relax on the beach or in Charleston for the remainder of the day. They also plan to visit Savannah, Georgia, and Washington, D.C., during the trip.

To Hefty, the time is well spent.

“It's fun, it's cheap, and you get to do a selfless act that's beneficial to the people,” she said.