Spring Break serve trip- March 24-28, 2025
Day 1
Today our team began our adventure with a mission trip serving in our own city! We are partnering with different local organizations who are already doing good work in KC. The goal of this experience is for students to see that you don’t have to travel far away to serve others. We can be about the good work of taking the Gospel from ’Neighborhoods to Nations’ right in our own city!
Our day started by partnering with KC Parks and Rec Department. We helped with a trash clean up event on Paseo Blvd. Spending 1.5 hours walking up and down the Paseo with trash bags goes by fast. We picked up some very interesting items and gathered nearly 5 large trash bags of trash!
We stopped for a quick lunch at Winstead’s and then enjoyed a tour of Abundant Life Crossroads campus. Before leaving Crossroads, we prayer walked around the area. We then left for our final serving location for the day-Police Athletic League (PAL).
PAL is an incredible organization run by the KC Police Department. They serve at-risk youth by giving them a place to play sports and receive academic tutoring. After a tour of their awesome facility we then got to work painting their front entry way. The fresh paint helped insure that everyone who comes through their door feels welcomed and at ease. We had a great day of serving, and our group was definitely worn out from all the work accomplished!
Day 2
Day two serving in KC was wild, and these students did an awesome job of serving wherever needed. We spent our morning and late afternoon serving at Shelter KC, and volunteered the rest of our time at Harvester’s.
To start the morning, we grabbed coffee and pastries at Messenger Coffee on Grand (we love the rooftop views!). While walking from the car to the coffee shop, we struck up a conversation with Mark. Mark is a homeless man who had just been displaced and kicked out of a storage unit where he kept his belongings. He was a bit aggravated and upset at the situation. Despite this, he had an incredible spirit and joy that was evident because of his faith in Jesus. We listened to him, prayed with him, and invited him to lunch at Shelter KC for lunch.
After a tour of Shelter KC’s facility, students wiped down sleeping mats and served lunch to 60+ individuals. Students then ate with the men in the shelter and got sit and pray with Mark, the gentlemen we met earlier in the day. Mark had even invited a friend to come with him! Hearing the stories of the men was heavy as many of them have struggled with addiction and prison time. Yet there is evidence of redemption and healing in their story and that God is at work in their life.
Day 3
This day was our longest day of the week – over 12 hours! After some breakfast and devo time at Blip Coffee (one of the coolest coffee shops around!) we began the day back at Shelter KC. This time we did a neighborhood clean up in the surrounding block, picked up trash and cleaned up the outside of their facility.
After serving lunch at Shelter KC, we made our way back to Harvesters where we sorted and bagged corn. Let’s just say we were up to our ‘ears’ in corn!
We celebrated Vivienne’s birthday at Shelter KC in the afternoon. We had cupcakes and played card games with some of the men who are in the addiction recovery program there. For dinner our team split up. Half the team went to Hope Center to help them with a big event and the other half stayed to serve dinner at Shelter KC.
Students were tired, but they would say it’s a ‘happy tired.’ Despite the long hours, this team has had great attitudes, shown a lot of humility, and have been very open to however God wants to use them. They want to continue serving at Shelter KC even after this trip ends, and are already making plans for how to invite their friends and small groups to join them!
Day 4
Today was our final day serving in KC and we ended our trip by going to two new places on the Northeast side of the city. Our first stop of the morning was Eleos Coffee, which is also the same building where Refuge KC has their offices. Carson Myers, the director of Refuge KC, gave us an overview of the refugee need in Kansas City, and then gave us a tour of the neighborhood where they do ministry.
A main stop along the way was a Buddhist Temple, where we were able to go inside and meet with the temple monk to learn a bit more about their religion and practices. We were also able to stop at several locations where Refuge KC teaches English class, does community events, and partners with refugees in the community so that they all know they have a friend who is a follower of Jesus.
After stopping at a local Vietnamese restaurant for lunch (delicious!), we made our way to Healing House, a recovery ministry for men and women who are getting free from addiction and abuse. They own 15+ homes and apartment building in the Northeast neighborhood where men, women, and families can stay during their recovery process. Our group did some work projects for them, cleaning up debris and moving old furniture and boxes. It was hard labor, but it was a big blessing to the small maintenance staff team who would’ve had to do these projects on their own otherwise.
Students ended their trip at the KC Wheel, playing mini golf and riding the ferris wheel. They took in awesome views of the city they had just spent the last four days doing ministry for. Praying that these experiences stay with them and that this is not the last time they serve the city they call home. I am hopeful that the individuals and organizations they’ve come in contact with the past few days will be catalysts for not only their faith in Jesus, but that they’d see their school, friendships, and own neighborhood differently because of this experience.