Community Service Trips

In addition to volunteering each afternoon with children in eight inner city communities, two service trips take place each year. "It can be tough. The students leave their comfort zones on a regular basis," acknowledges Joli Anderson, Director of Community Service.

Jamaica

Each year, 10 volunteers are selected for a spring break trip to Jamaica, where students work in the squatter community of Ferry, the Marigold Orphanage in Kingston, and a Trench Town school in Kingston. A second group travels back to Jamaica each summer. This group not only includes both current students and alums who particpated in the trip while at Baylor.

Asheville, N.C.

During fall and winter breaks, community service volunteers travel to Asheville, N.C., where they work with the underprivileged - and spend the night in a homeless shelter.

From the Students

"If I could condense the Jamaica Trip into one lesson, it would be that the trip taught me to surround myself with what is important, to forget the petty assignments and expectations, and to satisfy others while fulfilling myself."

Aaron Benator '01

"I hate to admit it, but when I first went on the North Carolina Trip as a freshman, we were asked to think about what we thought the homeless shelter would be like. The first word that came to my mind was 'dirty.' It shocks me now that I felt that way and how ignorant I was. The insights I've gained are the biggest things that I will take with me from Baylor."

Blair Abelson '03