Open Hearts, Open Minds
D.R. trip veterans advise siblings on what to expect on WC’s spring trip.
The 87 Worthington Christian seniors who are traveling to the Dominican Republic from March 13 to 20 have a long list of items they should bring. Sunscreen, hand sanitizers, board games, and a dirty clothes bag are among the items.
Jamie Custer (WC ’24) and Michaela Colley (WC ’23), two veterans of the trip, are telling their siblings the most important things to bring on the weeklong journey can’t be placed in a suitcase or backpack: an accepting attitude and a generous spirit.
“Something (people) should take to the D.R. that’s not on a physical list is an open mind,” said Jamie, whose sister Mandy will be one of the students on the trip. “Even though I knew many people who said that it was life-changing, I didn’t want to get my hopes up and be disappointed. So, I went into it with a positive yet very clear mindset. This honestly gave me the best experience, which is what I wish for Mandy.”
“I would say come with an open heart for God to do work in your life,” echoed Michaela Colley, whose brother Jameson is also headed to the D.R. “Be emotionally prepared to see hard things but also to see the amazing power God has working through the people and children in the Dominican.”
The 1,700-mile journey from Columbus to Santo Domingo will mark the first time Jameson and Mandy have been overseas.
“It will be eye-opening to see how different the D.R. is from our everyday lives,” Jameson said. “It also gives us the opportunity to learn about a different culture. It’s important as Christians to have seen a variety of cultures so we can relate to others.”
“This is definitely going to be a lot of firsts for me,” Mandy added. “Hopefully, it’s going to be such a fun experience. I know a lot of people who have gone on mission trips before and have had life-changing experiences.”
This will be Worthington Christian’s 22nd trip to the Dominican Republic since 2001. Only some cataclysmic world events have prevented seniors from making the journey. The school had planned a trip in 2002, but those plans were scrubbed after the 9/11 attacks on Washington, D.C., and New York City.
Michaela’s trip in 2023 was the school’s first since 2019 because of the Covid pandemic.
Mandy said she’s relieved she and her classmates get to make the trip.
“The D.R. trip is something most seniors look forward to,” she said. “Not only is it a mission trip, but it is also the last big class trip before we all graduate.
“The reason why so many people look forward to going is because of all the amazing stories we hear from past graduates. I have been looking forward to it because my sister had so many fun stories of all her ministry days.”
Eight teachers and one administrator will serve as the school’s leadership team, while a school nurse and a parent physician will accompany the group to facilitate the medical team in opening pop-up medical clinics in the villages.
This year marks the first time the trip will have a second-generation traveler in Luke Hermiz, whose mom, Jill Hermiz (WC ’01), was part of Worthington Christian’s first trip her senior year.
Dawn McMahon, a science teacher at the high school and one of the trip’s organizers, is making her tenth trip. She said, “As with most service-oriented trips, participants expect to be used by God as a blessing to others and return home feeling equally blessed by those they encountered.”
“The purpose of the trip is for students to get to know Christ on a new, deeper level and to join Him in what He is doing in the Dominican Republic,” McMahon said. “In this process, they also experience the Lord healing old wounds, restoring relationships, calling them toward next steps in their journeys with Him, and growing them together as a class.”
Students are divided into four teams to do various missionary tasks, such as sharing the Gospel with people in the sugar cane villages, working with local elementary school students, and worshipping with students their own age.
“They gain valuable perspective on what the body of Christ looks like outside of the United States,” McMahon said. “To stand and worship alongside other believers in different tongues and nations is a beautiful, life-altering experience.”
Another life-changing moment comes when the students visit Worthington Christian’s sister school, Ensanche Altagracia Elementary School. Throughout the year, each house at the Upper School sponsors two children at the Dominican Republic school, raising money and sending cards and letters to the students there. During the trip, the seniors finally meet the children they have been sponsoring.
Michaela said Jameson has frequently quizzed her over her time there.
“We’ve talked about it quite a bit,” she said. “He’s asked what the day-to-day activities look like.”
According to Michaela, missionary days are long, with students often working from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. At the end of the day, the students meet in small groups and reflect on the day’s events with each other before closing the day with a worship service.
Jameson is in a group that presents the Gospel message to local students through four songs and two skits.
“The hardest part about that is everything we are doing is in Spanish, so we have to know the songs in Spanish as well as the skits,” Jameson said. “We want to do it well and with enthusiasm because we want to show the kids how important it is to us.
“Michaela has said it’s amazing to see kids, who have so little, get so excited to see people they’ve never met before.”
That voice of experience that Jameson hears is an advantage he has had that his sister didn’t. Since the trip was canceled from 2020-22, Michaela didn’t know many classmates who could guide her through what to expect.
“It was hard for me to envision what this trip would be like because there was no senior class ahead of us to (share) what their experiences were like,” she said. “I was extremely excited and anxious since that was my first trip out of the United States. Although it was very hot at times and not always the most comfortable, I wouldn’t change it for anything.”
Mandy and Jamie Custer have talked about the importance of learning about someone else’s culture and how crucial it is to grow in one’s own faith.
“By traveling to other countries, you get to see God’s creation and experience what other people’s daily lives are like,” Mandy said. “In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus says, ‘Therefore go and make disciples of all nations…’ On this trip, we can do that with each person we meet.”
Often, by the trip’s end, students come back to Columbus as a tighter community with their classmates. According to Jamie, working with the D.R. families and children created a different perspective for the trip participants.
“I had good conversations with people who I had gone to school with my whole life and thought I had nothing in common with. In reality, we did have lots to talk about,” she said. “You see a lot of people‘s true colors come out. The quieter classmates opened up in ways I’ve never seen before. People were engaging in difficult conversations as well as small talk.
“It was humbling and made me realize how blest I truly am. The Lord works in so many ways we don’t realize it, and one of them is relationships. That truly was evident in the way my classmates and I interacted.”
You can follow the Class of 2025’s trip by visiting the Senior Capstone page on the website and app.