Summit Students in the DR
Recently, we caught up with Chad Buel, Summit Lake Mary Student Minister, to get the scoop on Summit Students’ latest trip to the Dominican Republic. For years, our brave Student leaders have been taking groups of High Schoolers to Barahona, DR, to serve alongside our friends at Children of the Nations (COTN)—one of Summit’s strategic global partnership organizations. Chad said this particular trip was special, though.
Here's why…In 2020, when COVID-19 lockdowns were introduced, Summit, like so many others worldwide, had to cancel our travel plans. 2020 through 2022 were hard years for many people, but they also were a letdown for some of our students who had looked forward to this trip.
“Over the years, this trip became a legacy.”
Chad was sure to stress just how much this trip meant to some of these students. “Over the years, this trip became a legacy. Middle Schoolers heard the stories from our older students, sometimes their older brothers and sisters. It’s not cheap to go, either. Some of these students saved money for years to go on this trip, and then, because of COVID, they couldn’t go. So, when things opened back up, we allowed those who missed the trip to come back as college-aged young men and women, now serving as leaders. They got to be a part of bringing that feeling of legacy back and imparting it to our new, younger High Schoolers.”
The reason Summit Students has taken part in these trips for so long is because the work Children of the Nations does is important. COTN is one of those longstanding partnerships Summit has the privilege to support through the 15% of our giving that immediately goes out the door toward important ministry opportunities both locally and globally. On these summer trips, our students get to experience firsthand COTN’s work as they seek to end the cycle of poverty there in Barahona. They’ve been active in some of the poorest villages, providing medical attention, tutoring, youth events, leadership development, and biblical training for children involved in COTN’s Village Partnership Programs.
“We know that we have a lot to learn, and there’s a lot we can bring home with us to give perspective.”
Chad emphasized that the team is just there to support what COTN is already doing on the ground. “We aren’t coming in and taking over. We know that we have a lot to learn, and there’s a lot we can bring home with us to give perspective. Some of these societal problems are unique to the DR, but others we can find in our own backyard.”
COTN has cited families’ suffering from a lack of basic necessities, including running water, sewage, and electricity, and a lack of access to healthcare facilities and affordable medical care as reasons for focusing on this area of the world. On their website, they also explain how the annual hurricane season endangers families and often destroys their homes and what few possessions they have.
Chad said he hopes that our High Schoolers’ minds will be opened as they see how people live outside of their bubble. He also hopes they have gratitude for the blessings they’ve been given. There are struggles in some countries that may never enter our minds, like how many children born to Haitian immigrant descendants cannot apply for citizenship in the DR. Without citizenship, these children cannot attend college or apply for jobs that would earn them a livable wage.
Chad said this trip was also special for another reason. It was Johnny Outing’s first time going to Barahona. If you attend Summit Orlando or have tuned in for an online service, you likely know Johnny already from his teaching on Sunday mornings or his frequent hosting online. Still, Johnny’s main gig is serving as the Student Minister at Summit Orlando. He’s been a big part of Summit for the last couple of years, both on Sundays and with our students. He can be loud and funny but also incredibly wise and introspective, but some of our students had more experience in the DR with COTN than he did. It would all be new to him.
When asked what he thought of the trip, Johnny said, "As someone who had never been on a trip like this, I was living in the tension of excitement and worry. I wanted to experience God through the lens of another culture, but I wanted to make sure we were doing it the right way. It became apparent as we immersed ourselves in the lives of others that my biggest takeaway was going to come from being close to the people. There’s something sacred about being in someone's home and sharing a meal with their community. It was surely being with the people that brought clarity to the ministry of this trip for me."
“There’s something sacred about being in someone's home and sharing a meal with their community.”
And this is what the legacy of this partnership with COTN has been all about–helping our students get a picture of just how big our God is. People all over this world, in so many different circumstances, worship and serve in the name of Jesus with all that they have and the best they know how.
Who knows? Maybe some of our students will be inspired to move to another country and start an organization that partners with communities and seeks to make life better for people in remote corners of the world! Maybe they’ll be inspired to do that right here in the United States. Even if all they bring back is a new perspective on how God moves and works in the world, often through ordinary people who simply said “Yes” to his calling on their lives, we believe their faith will be strengthened. This is the legacy we hope is passed down from one era of Summit Students to the next!