This Spring Break I was blessed with the opportunity to attend a Service & Justice Experience in Thibodaux, Louisiana. After participating, I discovered how remarkable college service trips truly are. Here are 5 reasons why you should sign up for a trip next Fall:
1. There are so many great options to choose from.
Each Fall and Spring semester, about 15-20 trips are offered through Villanova, either nationally or internationally, driving or flying. As well as location options, you can also choose the trip that best serves your interests: Habitat for Humanity, Mission Trip, or Interfaith Experience.
2. You get to explore a new part of the United States, or a new country, that you may never get another chance to visit.
From Louisiana to Belize, each trip has a unique location that you may never get the opportunity to travel to again. You get to explore a new area while also encountering a culture and way of living outside of your limited perspective.
3. You will make long-lasting friendships.
Although the trips are only a week long, I can guarantee the friendships you make will go far beyond that. The second you return you’ll be experiencing separation anxiety from your new friends that you were able to learn, serve, and laugh with.
4. You learn to better appreciate what you have been blessed with.
After seeing a way of life and living under conditions that may be quite different from your experience at home, you can’t help but come back with a new appreciation for all the little things in life you usually take for granted.
5. You can bring back what you learned to Villanova.
One of the mottos our leader’s stressed was, “What is said here stays here, but what is learned here leaves here.” Everyone is so eager and excited to take their experiences and stories and share them with friends, classmates, and professors back on campus.