ZACH HINEY, TRUMPET GUEST WRITER
Service trips offered at Wartburg College are one of those ways to get involved and live out the college’s mission statement to nurture students for lives of leadership and service as a spirited expression of their faith and learning.
Wartburg offers multiple service trips throughout the year to students who want to participate. The latest round took place over Fall Break and sent 44 students across the country to help with various service opportunities. The college averages 20 service trips a year, according to the college website.
One trip went to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.
Senior biochemistry major Rocio Amaro Marquez was one of the participants. This was the fourth service trip that she has gone on.
“My favorite part about service trips is getting to know the people we’re serving and listening to their stories,” Marquez said. “This helps me understand why they need us and what it is that we can do to help them best.”
Yellowstone wasn’t the only service trip that took place over Fall Break.
Another trip took students to New Orleans to help with relief work from the damage of Hurricane Ida. This trip was led by third-year biology and neuroscience major Gianna Witmer. This was her second service trip but first as a leader.
“Our group worked hard to accomplish the tasks at hand, but more importantly everyone tried to connect with the community we were working with,” Witmer said.
Her favorite part about service trips in general is all the students start out as strangers or acquaintances and come together to help at the site.
Even though different things are being accomplished at different places, the main purpose of the service trips is the same: Helping those in need with others in the Wartburg community.
The service trips will not stop after Fall Break. There will be three different trips over Winter Break and some more during Tour Week.
While the locations are unknown, Witmer said to keep an eye out for fliers around campus to see new information about these trips.
Service trips began in 1994 when the Catholic Knights led a small group to Philadelphia during Winter Break, according to the college website. The largest service trip involved 90 students on a trip to New Orleans in 2006 to help with Hurricane Katrina efforts.
If you’re interested in getting involved with service trips, you can email servicetrips@wartburg.edu or follow the group on social media platforms to stay in the loop.
Knight Wire 
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