Students look forward to Spring Break every year, whether they are going to bask in the sun at the beach or travel around the world on a mission trip. From March 19 to 25, students traveled to various places during their well-deserved break.
One mission trip that Wesleyan offered was a trip to Ecuador. While on the trip, senior Barrett Ramey said that they, “Served Pastor Manuel and his family. They are from Ecuador, and are missionaries there. They have plans to build a bigger building for their ministry that will include a doctors/dentist’s office, room for kids to play, bathrooms, and other offices and meeting rooms. They have been looking for a plot of land to build, and had to wait a long time for the land to get approved. We dug out very deep holes and trenches in the ground both for plumbing and for the foundation of the future ministry building. We also got to visit villages and schools, and play games with children there.” The Ecuador team was not the only mison trip that Wesleyan offered. This year students and faculty served their spring break in Atlanta, Ecuador, Guatemala, Jamaica, Chattanooga, the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua.
Another mission trip that both middle school and high school students went on together was to Chattanooga, Tennessee. Chattanooga team member and eighth grader Nichole Azar said,”that she hoped she can connect with the widows and get to know them. I hope that I can learn from them because they know a lot about their faith. I also want to take advantage of the time that we spend with them because they need our help.” Over the course of the week, the Chattanooga team worked “with Widow’s Harvest Ministry helping widows around their house. We helped ladies who cannot help themselves with the upkeep of their houses. We did lots of painting, yard work, and even roofing,” said junior Ashley Pierce.
Other students, not going on a mission trip with Wesleyan, traveled to various places around the world. Sophomore Ryan Gomes spent his spring break in Orlando, Florida. Since Gomes once lived in Orlando before he was a new student in the eighth grade, he said, “[I] chose this spot for his vacation because I haven’t seen my friends in three years and I wanted to see them.” Freshman Holden Wilder traveled with his family to Belize for the second time during his spring break. Wilder says he went to Belize this year “because it’s a pretty place and good to fish and I have a service project there.” Teacher Anna Myrick traveled to Destin, Florida with her daughter, Mary Beth and husband, Mr. Myrick. Myrick said, “We have gone to this location many times to stay in the condo that Chip’s Grandparents own. He has been going to this spot since he was a little boy, so it is fun to see Mary Beth enjoying the same spot that her dad used to vacation to as a child.”
Some students continued to brave the cold for Spring Break to ski and snowboard like freshman Lauren Hill. [[Hill traveled to Whistler, Canada to snowboard with her family. Hill said, “My dad chose Canada because we’ve been to most mountains in the West and he wanted to try something new.” Another student that traveled to a cold destination was sophomore Jared Wildermuth. Wildermuth traveled to Val D’Isere in France for the second time with his family. Wildermuth said, “We love France and we love skiing and it’s the best ski resort [there].”
As students left their spring break destinations for the week, they were not ready to get back into the school groove. Sophomore Davis Chapman, who went to the Bahamas during his break said, “I am going to miss spring break because it was a lot of fun but I am excited to be back with my friends again.” Throughout students and teacher’s spring break, they took their free time to either serve people during many mission trips, skied and snowboarded the slopes or relaxed in the hot sun. This year’s spring break was one to remember but students are already anticipating their break next year.
