Give Kids the World Village was inspired by a little girl named Amy. Amy was diagnosed with leukemia and her wish was to visit the theme parks in Orlando, Florida. Sadly, organizing the travel plans took too long and Amy passed away before her wish could be fulfilled. The purpose for the Village is to host critically ill children and their families and provide a magical experience for these kids.

Kentucky Wesleyan has had the honor of volunteering in the Village the past four years by sending students through what is called the Sophomore Experience on a week-long service trip in which students raise money to travel to the Village as a group and volunteer. This year I, along with ten other Wesleyan students, will travel to Orlando on December 9th for a week of serving and attending to the needs of the children and their families.

Rebecca McQueen, Dean of Student Services here at Kentucky Wesleyan, is the trip coordinator and will be traveling along with us and Scott Kramer, VP of Executive Initiatives and Retention, to Orlando to serve as volunteers. When asked her thoughts on the trip, Dean McQueen shared, “The time we spend at the Give Kids the World Village is my favorite week of the year; I look forward to this more than anything. I as well as the students going on the trip will be able to gain new perspectives as to how blessed we are to have our health. Also, it is always nice to see college students willing to give up a significant part of their winter break to serve others. The acts of love and support they will carry out each day for these children clearly represent The Wesleyan Way.”

We will be responsible for serving meals, operating rides, working parties, delivering food, working in the beauty shop and the ice cream shop, etc. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to visit and serve at Give Kids The World and look forward to the relationships we as students will develop, not only as a group but also with the children and families staying in the Village.

I encourage interested students to inquire more about the volunteer opportunity and hopefully attend a future trip when Kentucky Wesleyan returns to Give Kids the World Village next year.