Mission Possible: have fun and get things done!

by: Vanessa Ingram 

Throughout the United States there are numerous cities and small towns that are plagued by poverty and are in need of help. Unfortunately, few students are truly aware of this and the positive impact they could have if they were to volunteer their time. The Mission Possible program through CCASL is a great way for students to find out the impact they can have on people in need, while forming close friendships with their fellow students as they complete the journey together.

For more than 14 years, CCASL has offered a program called Mission: Possible to Gonzaga students. In this week long program that occurs during spring break,  groups of 10-20 students travel to sites around the country and serve local communities by volunteering their time and effort to help people in need.  Each site is coordinated by a student leader with the support of at least one University Advisor who is either a staff or faculty member. In addition to volunteering and working for the trip, students form close friendships with each other and have a lot of fun traveling and learning together.

Here are the Mission Possible Sites for 2013:

·      Boise, Idaho

·      Browning, Montana

·      Denver, Colorado

·      Jonestown, Mississippi

·      Knoxville, Tennessee

·      Neah Bay, Washington

·      Portland, Oregon

·      San Francisco Bay Area, California

·      St. Louis, Missouri

·      Tacoma, Washington

I had the privilege of coming to the end of the year student meeting for Mission Possible participants. For the duration of the meeting, students shared laughs and inside jokes reminiscent of memories from a childhood summer camp. Along with the laughs, these students also shared heartfelt moments as they realized the impact they had on the people that they helped. It became clear that these dedicated students had the time of their lives while volunteering their time to help those in need.

Student interested in this program should come by the CCASL house in the beginning of the school year for more information or watch the morning mail for the opening date of registration in order to sign-up. Remember, there are a limited number of students allowed per site. Last fall, spots filled in the first 15 minutes, and even overflowed onto a wait list. So mark your calendar and plan to sign up early! 

Stay tuned for more posts and personal stories of Mission Possible participants.