“Honestly one of the best experiences of my life…”
“It was such an honor…”
“The best way to describe this spring break trip to Mobile, Alabama is amazing.”
“To spend time with the elderly …was comforting and gave me purpose.”
“Amazing, hospitable, comforting, impactful” – these are just a few of the words used recently by a group of college-aged women to describe their Spring Break visit to The Little Sisters of the Poor Sacred Heart Residence in Mobile, Alabama.
A group of young women participating in St. Paul’s Outreach, a campus ministry program at the University of Central Florida, gave up a week of the usual spring break activities to come to Sacred Heart Residence and immerse themselves in the daily lives of the elderly cared for by The Little Sisters of the Poor.
These young women, Julianna, Elizabeth, Valeria, Barbara, Aimee, Kyra, Jennifer, Mary, Rebecca, Angela, Carolyn, Carly and Lucy, led by their Mission Leaders Sofia and Anna, rode 12 hours on a bus to make the trip to Mobile to spend their spring break living in a home for the elderly and spend their days in service. While at Sacred Heart they served meals, folded laundry and pushed wheelchairs. They also held aged hands, listened to stories about events they only know from history books, and most importantly of all, made new friends. Rebecca describes her long conversation with one of the Residents as “such an honor to be that listening ear that she hasn’t had in a while.”
Some of the young women are already looking for opportunities to return to serve again among their new friends. Sharing in the lives of the elderly gave them a new perspective on the dignity of every human being, no matter how young or how old. Reflecting on the week-long experience, one of the young ladies offered this thought: “I wouldn’t have wanted any other Spring Break!”
