Savannah Cooper | Staff Writer
Baylor Urban Missions takes the phrase “Love thy neighbor, as thyself” to heart. As a population insulated by the “Baylor Bubble” they take the opportunity to love our Waco neighbors.
Bobo Spiritual Life Center is hosting an interest meeting for Urban Missions on Thursday Aug. 31 at 5 p.m.
Baylor urban mission offers students the chance to serve weekly in the greater Waco area in a variety of capacities. They’re opportunities to tutor students, urban gardening, visiting nursing homes and much more.
Assistant Director for Missions, Holly Tate is looking forward to these meetings and providing information to interested students.
“At the meetings, they’ll be videos and pictures from past missions, and we want students being able to see themselves there,” Tate said.
Interest meetings will be hosted in the Bobo with student leaders who have first hand experience at their perspective table they’re representing.
Each urban mission program is free to join, offers carpooling and is led by experienced students in that particular field of ministry. To get the best of the program, it is suggested to be a familiar face each week so those you’re helping can develop and grow with you throughout the semester.
As an organization, urban missions hopes to impart three things upon students who work with their program. Those three principles are understanding what it means to serve in a place of need, establishing contributions that will improve the overall quality of life in the greater Waco community as well as 38 student leaders who are trained to conduct ethical leadership practices.
In addition to urban missions, the Bobo offers mission trips that allow students to serve within the U.S. or internationally.
While urban missions helps grow the community, mission trips takes it a degree further with not only international cross cultural experience, but also significant personal growth.
Project Coordinator, Jill Scott explained how joining such programs expands a Baylor student’s education to something far more tangible.
“Education is more than memorizing facts and statistics, its also about real people with real needs that can build on your faith and put it into practice,” Scott said.
Reaching out and impacting the greater area around you is quite the reward for those who invest their time in it well. As an overall goal, urban missions wants student to learn to love, live and serve in the Waco community.
