SEOUL, South Korea—A 42-member team of student athletes, cheerleaders, coaches, trainers and staff from Dallas Baptist University spent fall break in Seoul, South Korea, leading sports clinics for children and youth, ministering to homeless people and sharing their faith.

DBU Student Assistant Coach Justin Pinckney runs along with children during one of the basketball camps hosted by the DBU Patriot basketball team.

The trip was the latest effort in DBU’s Global Sports Mission Initiative. In recent years, the university has sent sports teams to Guatemala and Peru on mission trips.

“The Patriot Athletic Global Sports Mission Initiative was created to allow our student athletes the opportunity to experience other cultures by living and serving as cham-pions for Christ abroad, which is exactly what the basketball players and cheerleaders did,” DBU Athletics Director Ryan Erwin said.

“It was a blessing and truly amazing to watch these young men and women serve and share their faith in Christ as they used their God-given talents to minister and spread the word (of God) among the people of South Korea.”

Rising early each morning, the group traveled the city, experiencing the bustling urban life of Seoul and ministering along the way. Clinics provided Patriot basketball players and cheerleaders opportunities to share not only their athletic knowledge, but also their testimonies of God’s grace and love.

“It was truly amazing to be able to teach these young students the fundamentals of basketball while sharing the love of Christ,” said Braxton Adamson, a DBU basketball player.

Teaching cheers.

Cheerleaders worked diligently to teach special cheers to students, encouraged them throughout their practice and invited them to join them in the limelight by performing at the basketball games DBU played during their stay in South Korea.

“I was so proud of the girls that week,” DBU Head Cheer Coach Skyla Alvarado said. “They were able to bless hundreds of lives through their teaching, while also providing a great service for these schools.”

The students also delivered meals to homeless people and prayed with them.

The DBU mission group attended worship services at Central Christian Academy’s Wonchon Baptist Church and Suwon Central Baptist Church, where they heard a sermon by former pastor Billy Kim, past president of the Baptist World Alliance and head of the Far East Broadcasting Company.

In prayer at OSAN U.S. Air Force Base.

“Grateful for our commitment to make this journey, the Korean Christians in turn inspired us by their passion for Christ,” DBU Basketball Head Coach Blake Flickner said. “All over South Korea, thousands of believers go to early morning prayer services six days a week. The churches are full, and their enthusiasm was contagious.”

The DBU men’s basketball team played three official games during their time in Korea, in addition to playing in the sports clinics. They competed against Kyung Hee University and Chung-Ang University, as well as an all-star squad from OSAN U.S. Air Force Base.

“We thoroughly enjoyed playing the various teams, and we learned several things that will make us better for the season ahead,” Flickner said. “However, basketball was a very small part of our experience.

“The trip was memorable because of the fellowship and worship we were able to enjoy with believers from halfway around the world. The clinics we held provided a great opportunity for our players to share their testimonies and to be a witness to the next generation of young people in South Korea. I was very proud of our student athletes and the love they showed to these kids.

“I trust that the young South Koreans were encouraged and challenged in their faith, but I also know that we have grown tremendously through the experience.”

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