helloHOPE Service Week Recap: High School Students that Inspire Hope
Each year, the high school students from Cornerstone Preparatory Academy take the week before spring break to go on an IMPACT trip. The purpose of the week is to provide the students with the opportunity to lead, learn, and serve outside of the four walls of their school. Students sign up for the trip that best captures their specific interest or passion — from a service opportunity in another country to a local project and nearly everything in between. We had the privilege of offering a local helloHOPE service week for the students, and it filled up with a truly incredible group.
We quickly learned that every student had signed up for the helloHOPE opportunity because they had either been affected first-hand by medical adversity or had a heart for helping others walking through medical adversity. They came to us with eager hearts that were ready and willing to serve.
So what did we spend the week doing? You may have seen some of the happenings on our Instagram or Facebook feeds over the week, but in case you missed it, here are some of the things these amazing teens accomplished:
Batch-cooked meals for their school’s cross country coach who is battling cancer.
Bought and packed goodie baskets for families in their community facing medical challenges.
Prepared and served hot breakfast (and what a spread it was!) for a local Ronald McDonald House.
Received training on how to encourage and pray for people facing difficulty — and had a chance to put this into practice!
Brought fun activities to a local specialist’s waiting room (face painting, coloring, games, and more) to make the wait extra fun for the families and staff.
Spent the day observing and playing with the kids at Jacob’s Ladder Neurodevelopmental School and Therapy Center and talking with one of their champions of hope.
At each and every place we went, these students left their mark. The doctor’s office was buzzing with excitement over the extra joy they brought into the waiting room. The Ronald McDonald House families repeated how thankful they were for an early, warm breakfast. The team at Jacob’s Ladder commented about how much their students had been looking forward to spending time with their “new friends.” It’s no exaggeration to say that each place the teens served was filled with the hope and heart of service they brought.
Reflections on the Week
We wanted to get a glimpse of how the students were processing the week and share those insights with our readers. After the Ronald McDonald House breakfast, we asked each of the students to write out something that had impacted them. Here are a few highlights from what they wrote:
“The beautiful ladies I had the privilege of sitting with were different than how I expected a family to be when a loved one is fighting against an illness such as cancer. The mother and daughter both seemed as if they would not let their struggles get to them or how they had viewed life. Both ladies had been very thankful and seemed energetic and joyful! The one thing that I am sure not to forget … is that no matter what situation you are in there is always hope and light in the darkness.” - Kelsie
“Hope has many different meanings. Hope for me is a word that shows me that I need to rely on Christ for His help and be able to let Him have control over things. When I started out this week of impact I was kind of nervous because I was not sure of how I could serve the Lord and help those in need of hope. I have quickly seen hope in many of the people I have met this week so far.” - Miriam
“Being a patient at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, I can say that I have experienced a certain degree of what the families at the Ronald McDonald House are going through. Serving breakfast at the Ronald McDonald House allowed me to “see it from the other side.” What I mean is that I got to be part of that volunteer group that I see at St. Jude. I got to help in allowing those families have a rejuvenating breakfast before going into whatever turmoil their day presented. It is truly an amazing thing to be able to provide that kind of relief for those going through such adversities.” -Ilya
“I was devastated to see such young kids having to go through this with their families, or even themselves. Although many of these families’ hearts were breaking, you could still see hope in them.” - Mackenzie
“The Ronald McDonald House had one thing in it that was more welcoming than the rest of the house combined: the hope of those living in it.” - Trey
I simply love the fact that these students — who had set out to deliver hope through practical help and a listening ear — were also encouraged and impacted by the people they met that had hope in the midst of their circumstances. This was such a tangible example of our value that “a diagnosis isn’t everything,” and I think each of us walked away from the week encouraged by the stories of the people we met and by the hearts of the people around us.
We’d like to send a giant thank you to Cornerstone for partnering with us for the week and to each of the students that helped. Each of you inspired us to serve wholeheartedly and continue working to spread hope in the medical community.
—
There’s nothing like connecting with a hope-filled story of someone that’s been where you are. Do you or someone you know have a story that you’d like to share with the helloHOPE community? Click here to join us in spreading hope!