Since she was 12 years old, Mary dreamt of being a medical missionary in Africa, “I had no clue what that would look like, but it caused me to pursue nursing.” She seized every opportunity to live out her dream. She went to Guatemala and the Philippines for mission work during her teenage years, and while those were terrific experiences, Africa kept calling.
When Mary was 21, she booked a flight to Kenya to help friends with various ministries they were a part of. She quickly found there was very little for her to do. Disappointed, Mary came up with a plan for the remainder of her time in Kenya. It just so happened that Expansion International was conducting two back-to-back medical camps an hour away from where she was staying. The team picked her up on the side of a dirt road, and she joined them for the final stretch of her time in Kenya. Those next three weeks were “Glorious.”
Mary's experience with Expansion's medical mission team was just what she'd hoped serving in Africa would be like. Since her unexpected encounter with the team, Mary has been a nurse on two other Expansion medical mission trips.
Mary loves taking part in mission trips, and she also stays connected with these communities year-round. “I love that this work isn’t a band-aid solution. Things keep going after a mission trip is over. It is not a quick fix. We help build hospitals and clinics, we share the gospel, and we partner with children’s schooling to support them in secondary education. That’s why I am so excited to support a student. I imagine the kind of impact that student will have on the people in their community. It's enough to set my heart on fire for this work!”