Immersion Trips

The Spirit sends us out to live holistic lives, where Jesus and justice, belief and obedience, worship and social witness become an integral expression of the integrity of our faith.

Your Hope College education can include an immersion experience during Spring Break or extended summer service.Ours is a mission to both proclaim with our mouths and to demonstrate with our lives that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Locations

Domestic Spring Break Trips

Baltimore, Maryland

巴尔的摩是一个充满机遇的城市。它被称为“魅力之城”，因为它有一个独特的可爱的性格。它是费城、纽约和华盛顿特区等城市的小兄弟，这也造就了它强烈的弱者自豪感。Baltimore is home to world famous institutions like Johns Hopkins, but also has one of the worst crime problems in the U.S.

AtGrace Fellowship Church, we have a variety of kingdom partners that work to bring Heaven to Earth here to the city through their work as the hands and feet of God. As a part of this trip, we will have opportunities to see and participate in what God is doing in the schools, in homes, in the government, in businesses and other spheres.

Grace Fellowship Church started 40 years ago and now has grown to be the faith home of thousands from the Baltimore region. Join us to learn about the issues that plague great American urban centers like Baltimore and how you can be a part of their solution. Join us as we work as God’s partners to redeem and restore our city.

Chicago, Illinois

TheRoseland Community “Good News” Daycare Center位于芝加哥南部的罗斯兰社区。日托服务的对象是低收入的单身母亲，她们要么工作要么上学。在Roseland的这一周，我们的团队将在日托中心工作，为孩子们提供他们无法获得的经验，并通过各种外联项目为社区服务。世界杯英格兰队vs丹麦队足彩

See the team in action

Orlando, Florida

Theme: Christian Community and Development

Kaley Square Ministryis located in Holden Heights, a racially diverse, low-income community a mile south of the beautiful downtown. This trip has a strong emphasis on assessment-based community development, immersion in a new culture, personal growth and forming a Christian community. Students will have the opportunity to meet and learn from community leaders and engage in some restoration projects.

“By hearing each other’s testimonies and faith journeys, I was able to see the Lord at work in miraculous ways in the lives of my peers. By meeting and interacting with people in the communities we served in, I was able to see how the love of Jesus trumps any worldly hardship.” —Nina McAlvey ’20

Nashville, Tennessee

Theme: Urban Ministry

Center for Student Missions(CSM) will assist students to learn and gain an understanding of the issues in Nashville. Students will get a glimpse of the unique work that God is doing in Nashville. This trip is an up close view of the front line of urban ministry. Students will see what the community members face and walk alongside and support the efforts of people doing long term ministry.

Watch CSM Video

“Everybody was so on fire for Jesus, and the different things we did during the week allowed us to see how God can work in a variety of different settings.” —Caleb Tallquist ’20

New Bern, North Carolina

Theme: Disaster Response & Rehabilitation

World Renewis responding to disasters around the world. Hurricane Florence was a unique storm. It made landfall, swung south, and then circled back to the areas it had already hit. The town of New Bern, in eastern North Carolina, and several surrounding counties received more than 12 hours of sustained, hurricane-force winds during the storm. With over 4,000 homes in New Bern and more than 10,500 households registered for assistance with FEMA, the need for work teams to assist families who were uninsured or underinsured will go on for years. Students can demonstrate God’s love in a real and tangible way by serving with World Renew in the New Bern community working on home restoration projects.

More information about World Renew

Austin, Texas

Theme: Homelessness

Shifting the paradigm in understanding what it means to be “home.”

Mobile Loaves and Fishes Ministryoffers students firsthand the experience and power of community. Students will stay atCommunity First! Village— a 27-acre master planned development that provides affordable, permanent housing and a supportive community for the disabled, chronically homeless in central Texas. Additionally, Mobile Loaves & Fishes’ Community Works program provides micro-enterprise opportunities that enable formerly homeless men and women to earn a dignified income, develop new skills and cultivate enduring relationships as they take part in a restorative journey home. Students will have the opportunity to have their hearts, minds and hands be engaged with learning the meaning of “home.”

“My view of God and the love he has for his people has expanded incredibly through this trip. I got to see the way that he cares for the least of these and was encouraged by the strength of the faith of individuals that have nothing but God.” —Ellen Smith ’21

International Spring Break Trips

Dominican Republic

THeme: Community and Church development

TIME Ministrieshas been partnering with national pastors and churches to change lives and bring hope to local communities in the Dominican Republic. Students will have the opportunity to connect one-on-one with the community as they serve and help build a chapel for a local community. Students will also have the opportunity to see how God is working in the Dominican Republic through a medical outreach unit. This trip will provide a great opportunity for students to practice Spanish; however, eager English speakers are welcome.

“I loved forming relationships with the Dominicans I met through TIME Ministries. Hearing their testimonies was empowering and opened my eyes to see how big and universal our God is. It was amazing to see how there are many cultural differences between the DR and the US, yet we all serve the same God and He has been at work in many ways.” —Rachel Netz ’21

Mandeville, Jamaica

Theme: Empowering the Jamaica Deaf Adult Population

The centrally locatedJamaica Deaf Villagein Mandeville ministers with adult Deaf and their children. Students on this trip will have the opportunity to immerse in the Jamaican Deaf Village (JDV) and learn and serve in the JDV community.

“I was able to see God's love through the people and God's beauty through creation.” —Darlene Horn ’22

Montego Bay, JamaicaAll Greeks

Theme: Education for the Deaf marginalized population

TheCaribbean Christian Centre for the Deaf(CCCD) is a ministry that cares for the deaf of Jamaica. CCCD strives to nourish the next generation of Christian leaders by instilling students with a firm foundation of education, language skills, vocational mentoring, and encouragement in their faith journey. CCCD promotes participation in the Gospel through worship, outreach, and community. Students on this trip will have the opportunity to learn and use sign language as they interact and build relationships with CCCD students.

Watch Sheldon’s Story

“I was able to see God’s love through the people and God’s beauty through creation.” —Darlene Horn ’22

He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.” —Micah 6:8

More Information

Some trips may have high demand, and we may follow up with you about trip placement after you sign up. Please pray about the choices you make; we are excited about what God is going to do!

• All students are expected to attend bi-monthly meetings with their team both before and after spring break
• You are ultimately responsible for the total cost of the trip; fundraising information will be available
• Costs do NOT include immunizations, passports, food while traveling to and from location, or luggage charges at the airport

If your only reason for not registering is financial, you may contactNancy Smithto request an application for financial assistance to help with the cost.

Standards of Excellence

In keeping with the sevenStandards of Excellence in Short-Term Mission, Hope College is committed to the following:

• God-centeredness
• Empowering partnerships
• Mutual design
• Comprehensive administration
• Qualified leadership
• Appropriate training
• Thorough follow through