As a senior double majoring in Management and Marketing, it is an understatement to say that these first few months of class have been hectic. Juggling eighteen credit hours while working twenty hours a week at my new internship has been my life since the semester began. Although both are extremely important for my future, they haven’t been what I’ve enjoyed most about my life at Loyola this year.

My favorite aspect of this semester has definitely been my experience serving as an Ignacio Volunteer. Preparing for my second trip to Jamaica with the Ignacio Volunteers has been a great way to unwind and relax while the rest of my life is moving crazy fast.

Last December, I  had the opportunity to serve as an Ignacio Volunteer working with the poor and mentally disabled children of Kingston, Jamaica. Needless to say I was excited to have been given this opportunity, but I had my reservations as well. I thought that giving up half my Christmas break and spending it away from my family would be the most challenging part of the trip. Little did I know, the hardest part of the trip was having to return to the regular life back in America. It was so hard to bear knowing that I wouldn’t be able to return to this beautiful country and continue to help those in need. This was my motivation to apply and volunteer again- This time as a team leader. After an application and interview process, I was chosen to lead this year’s group  in Jamaica!

This upcoming December I will return to Jamaica with both a new group and a new outlook. Through the process of leading the group in preparing for Jamaica, I’ve found so far that the experience is completely different than when I was a regular member of the group.  Although being the group leader is time consuming and comes with a lot more responsibility, it has been amazing for my personal growth and leadership skills.

I am so excited to travel to this beautiful Caribbean country and live among its people with this new perspective. I also can’t wait to see my team do great things while learning and growing individually as a result of this experience.