While at Lee University, I was required to complete 80 hours of community service. I was given many opportunities through the classes I was taking to fulfill this requirement. At first, I saw these opportunities to serve as yet another thing to check off of my to-do list. However, soon these required hours became voluntary activities in which I no longer counted as service hours, but would go and do because I enjoyed forming relationships with the people I was serving.
I had the opportunity to teach English to children of refugees in their homes, helping them with homework. This started as a service requirement, but turned into a friendship with mothers and their children. I also had the opportunity to teach a 10 week English class and taught around 15 immigrants and refugees English weekly. These students became friends, and I really enjoyed getting to see them grow in their language abilities.
Within the Intercultural Studies department at Lee, students take a 10 week internship to another country. I took my internship in the summer of 2023 and went to Zambia, Africa. Through this internship, I experienced so many challenging, yet growing circumstances I would have never experienced if I had stayed in the United States. I continued to learn how God was growing my heart for coming alongside people, discipling, and equipping them with the tools they need to be successful where God places them.
There were so many experiences and opportunities that I was given to serve in multiple different ways while I was at Lee University. I was able to learn so much about God, myself, and others through this service. If I had to describe what I learned overall in one sentence, it would be that God has called me and given me a heart to come alongside people, discipline them, and equip them with the tools that they need in order to be successful where God places them.
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