ABILENE—From local projects like building houses to international trips through Go Now Missions, Hardin-Simmons University offers students multiple opportunities to serve and make a difference in Christ’s name.
Throughout the fall semester, HSU’s Baptist Student Ministry community and church engagement ministry team partnered with Houses for Healing, an Abilene-area non-profit organization that provides temporary medical housing to individuals and families facing medical hardship.
During Stampede Week, an annual orientation for incoming students, BSM volunteers and a group of first-year students cleared land for new house construction.
“We have loved working with Houses for Healing and hope to build an ongoing relationship with them,” said Tanner Clarke, BSM director. “It has been an amazing experience doing some of the ground work for these homes. They serve such a good purpose and are just north of campus so it was a perfect fit for us.”
BSM also partners with Go Now Missions, Texas Baptists’ program that mobilizes students for one-week, summer and semester missions experiences. During spring break, BSM will participate in Beach Reach, providing free van rides, pancake breakfasts and a gospel witness to their peers who are carousing on South Padre Island.
“Beach Reach is a unique ministry that cares for spring breakers without judgment,” Clarke said. “We want to make sure they have a safe ride and are taken care of.
“The most important impact, though, is the eternal impact that Beach Reach has. Last year, 112 spring breakers committed their lives to Jesus for the first time.”
Students in the HSU physician assistant program will return to Peru next summer for a medical mission trip, and physical therapy students will promote mobility at home and abroad.
Locally, the physical therapy students build wheelchair ramps, assist with home repairs for the disabled, and evaluate and treat patients in Abilene. Internationally, they customize and distribute wheelchairs, walkers, crutches and canes for those who do not have access to basic mobility needs in Chaing Mai, Thailand.
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