Home sweet home!
Ministry begins in Montevideo, Uruguay
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| University students and campus ministers get together in the meeting room at the new La Ruta campus house in Montevideo. |
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| The new Globalscope campus ministry in Montevideo, Uruguay, is only a couple months old, but the La Ruta team is already making university students feel at home in the big, comfortable house they’ve rented as their ministry center.
“The most awesome thing about our facility is that it’s an old house with a very homey feel,” said team leader David Ossa. “There is plenty of space for students to hang out and feel at home. That’s a necessity in Montevideo because many of the students come from outside the city to study. There is room at La Ruta for them to make this place their home away from home.” |
 Uruguay team members hang out on the steps of their brand new campus house in Montevideo. |
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| Do you want to help open doors to faith for university students in Uruguay? The team wants to build a library of Bibles and Christian books in the campus house for the students’ use in their explorations of faith. Their goal is to raise $500 to buy 30 Bibles and 20 Christian books. Click the button below to read more and donate today! |
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Trading Places
El Pozo visits Illinois group that served in Mexico
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| A two-year relationship between El Pozo, the Globalscope campus ministry in Puebla, Mexico, and Encounter, a Christian campus ministry at Illinois State University, Normal, IL., led to a big idea: reciprocal mission trips this spring between the two ministries nearly 2,000 miles apart!
“Since 2014, a group of students from Encounter has come to El Pozo to spend spring break learning about Globalscope and Mexico while serving alongside our staff and students for a week,” said Kami Burns Reed, the El Pozo team leader. “This trip has become a highlight of the spring for our ministry, and students from both groups have formed lasting relationships that have impacted both of these campus ministries.”
This year, Kami and the team made the decision to return the favor by taking a group to serve alongside students from Encounter at the university and in the Bloomington-Normal community.
“We couldn’t wait to reverse the paradigm of Americans coming to Mexico for mission trips,” said Kami. “Mexican university students can go to the States for a mission trip, too!” |
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| Back and forth
The adventure began in early March when 20 students and two staff members from Encounter made their annual trip to El Pozo.
Twenty students and two staff members from Encounter at Illinois State University visited the El Pozo campus ministry in Mexico in early March.
“They did some remodeling projects at our campus house, hosted an open mic night, visited the home for the elderly and the orphanage where we volunteer, and supported us in so many ways,” said Kami.
Then the “trading places” phase began, when Kami, her husband Jordan Reed, and three El Pozo students who raised their own funds for the trip – Serge Arévalo, Alexa Grosjean and Rebeca González – flew to Illinois for a week of service at Encounter.
“We served the Encounter community by painting their campus house and helping host two big events – which included Mexican bingo and salsa dancing lessons – as well as joining their usual campus ministry events, adding a touch of Mexico to everything they did,” said Kami. “We also served with Encounter students in the Bloomington community, helping host a dance for senior citizens and serving at a ministry for the homeless.
“We host lots of mission trips at El Pozo, so it was so much fun to be hosted by our Encounter friends,” added Kami. “We can only hope that our time there was as much of a blessing to Encounter as it was to the five of us.”
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| The three El Pozo students agree that the trip to Illinois was a life-changing experience for them.
“I was blown away by God’s provision for the finances of the trip, by the relationships I formed so quickly, and by the example of faithfulness among the student leadership at Encounter,” said Rebeca.
As she prays about how God will shape her future, thanks to what she has experienced through El Pozo and Encounter, Rebeca is “more inspired to be the person I have always known I wanted to be.”
“Serge, who has graduated and is transitioning into the working world, is inspired to share the love he has found through campus ministry with others who aren’t connected to a community,” said Kami. “And Alexa is pursuing options for an internship in campus ministry following her graduation.”
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| The team deeply appreciates those who prayed and made financial contributions for the trip.
“We are grateful for your love and support of all our endeavors, but especially a new one like this that didn’t always seem possible,” said Kami.
“While spending time at a new campus ministry, students can realize that they are part of something much larger than the campus house they call home,” she added. “Students can learn about the kingdom of God and how they can find it wherever people are loving God and one another, and realize that they, too, can be used to share the love of God with students not so different from themselves.”
Photo below: A team of five from the El Pozo campus ministry in Puebla, Mexico, visiting their sister campus ministry, Encounter, at Illinois State University in Normal, IL., in March.
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Preparing for launch!
New Australia team scouts Brisbane, makes connections
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| Eric Schlipf and his future teammates for Globalscope-Australia aren’t the only ones who are encouraged and excited about the 2017 launch of the new campus ministry after their recent scouting trip there; the Christian community in Brisbane is excited about the idea, too!
Four of the team members – Eric, his fiancée Emily Abernathy, Elaina Thompsonand Kasey Rutkowski – made a second scouting trip to Brisbane in early March to meet with churches and Christian organizations, scope out the local neighborhoods, and dream about the future of the ministry. They were accompanied by three other prospective team members and Beth Jarvis Silliman, the team leader of the Globalscope ministry in Tübingen, Germany, who went along as an adviser for the fledgling team. |
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| Exploring Brisbane
“We spent two days on the university campus asking students about their lives, how they meet friends, and where they live,” said Eric. “We also spent a day exploring Brisbane. We learned there are a lot of fun and free things to do that will benefit us as young people and campus ministers.
“We spent another day wandering around the neighborhoods adjacent to campus to dream about what sort of campus house we could rent and where we might live in the future.”
But the most encouraging thing about the trip?
“We found a church that is willing to sponsor our visas!” said Eric. “I had eight meetings throughout the week with churches, Christian organization leaders and other connections and ALL of them were encouraging and beneficial.
“Everyone we met was excited about the thought of Globalscope coming to Brisbane!” said Eric. “They realize that the university students here have a big need to see the model of a Christian community in action.”
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| Would you like to be a part of this exciting new ministry to university students in Brisbane, Australia? You can donate to the four members of the team by clicking on the button below. |
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New face in Globalscope!
Fields director will work from Atlanta
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 Mark Jackson, a former team leader for the Globalscope ministry El Oasis in Santiago, Chile, has recently returned to CMF as the new Globalscope Fields Director.
“I am primarily responsible for ministering to and overseeing teams in action on the field,” said Mark. “I will also be involved in recruiting, consulting, development and training for Globalscope personnel, as well as select business-as-mission initiatives, all from my new home and office in Atlanta.”
Mark and his wife Elisabeth met at the Georgia Tech Christian Campus Fellowship and married in 2007. They are graduates of Georgia Tech and worked with El Oasis from 2007-2010. Mark later worked in business and engineering for five years in Oregon before his return to CMF this year.
“I’m thrilled to be back at CMF, supporting others who are living out their calling on the field,” said Mark. |
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