This year the opportunity presented itself.  An organization in which I am a member called The Links, Incorporated, offered a global mission trip to Montego, Bay Jamaica to work with children and their parents.

Here’s some background on our organization.  The Links, Incorporated is a community service organization and is one of the nation’s oldest and largest volunteer organizations consisting of over 15 thousand women of color with 285 chapters in the United States and the Bahamas.  I am a member of the Little Rock Chapter where we do a large amount of community service work right here in Little Rock — reaching many children and families in need.  The Jamaica trip was part of a global mission and offered to Links members from all over the country who were interested in going.  About 200 of us made the trip.

We were assigned to work at three different schools.  I was placed at Mount Zion Primary School consisting on kindergarten through fifth grade students.  Of the three, it was located in the most impoverished community.  As I reflect on the work we did, there were many accomplishments.  We provided each student at all three schools Kindle Fire Readers already loaded with apps.  Our primary goal was to provide them with a source for STEM education – science, technology, engineering and math.  We had a workshops teaching the students and their teachers how to utilize them.

I was amazed to see that students didn’t have proper fitting shoes and most of them looked very old.  Before our mission was completed, every student was fitted for and given a brand new pair of shoes to take home.  We also had about 9 dentists who attended  who were members of our organization.  Their job was to provide dental screenings for each student.  In addition, the children were give tooth paste, brushes and floss and taught how to properly brush if they didn’t already know.

We created a market place of donated items where parents could find free things for themselves and their families.  And while there was never a days work that wasn’t meaningful to me — I was especially touched when I was given the opportunity to read the book “Chrysanthemum” to the Jamaican children.  The book focuses on anti-bullying.  Apparently bullying among students is a problem there just like it is here in the States.  Each student had a copy of book in front of them and read along with me.  Some of them ready aloud.  Afterwards, the students were given a piece of paper with a heart on it that read “before you speak be kind and smart. It’s hard to fix a wrinkled heart.”

Perhaps that says it all.  Across the miles, children’s hearts touched in a positive way because of simple acts of kindness from the hearts of grown ups.

Bucket list item – check.  Mission work – check.  Another mission trip in the future? – check mark coming.