By Laura Acuff, Opinion Editor
While Spring Break Campaign 2009 planners initially hoped for about 60 leaders for 30 campaigns, the 50 leaders appointed for this year’s campaigns remains proportionate to the also lower number of finalized locations with 25 destinations on this year’s agenda.
“We wanted more locations and more leaders, but neither one really happened this year,” said SBC secretary Meredith Platt, sophomore vocational missions major from Midland.
Because the numbers, although lower than hoped, remained proportional, Platt said SBC still has plenty of manpower for this spring’s campaigns.
In previous years, students traveled to as many as 33 destinations for campaigns, according to Optimist archives. This year’s drop to 25, Platt said, was the result of several factors, including some potential hosts failing to finalize plans.
In addition to not scheduling some new locations, SBC will not send a group to Hawaii as in the past partly because of changing leadership in the church at Honolulu, which made making the decision easier, Platt said.
“It sounds bad, but when you’re short on leaders, you kind of have to be like, ‘who needs us the most?'” Platt said.
One new location this year is Regina, Saskatchewan, in Canada, joining places like Nicaragua, Honduras and Mexico on SBC’s list of international destinations. While SBC annually sends several groups out of the country, Platt said Europe is not usually an option largely because of expense and jetlaginduced fatigue.
Kasey Smith, sophomore psychology major from Allen, attended the spring break campaign to Virginia Beach, Va., last year and plans to colead a campaign this year to Patchogue, N.Y.
“I wanted to be able to help with what we’re doing this year and be a part of the process, so that more students can do it because if they don’t have enough leaders then people can’t go,” Smith said.
Campaign leaders attended an informational luncheon Saturday to meet each other and fellowship. The next step in the planning process includes leaders contacting host churches and organizations and planning itineraries and budgets.
Students interested in joining a campaign may view trip details and cost information at the SBC Info Fair set to take place Nov. 4. Tri-folds with details for each campaign will be on display in the Campus Center Nov. 3-6, and campaign signups are Nov. 6. Campaign assignments are based on a lottery system in which each student submits top choices.
Prices for each campaign vary, and Platt said students can expect to be provided with information on writing fundraising letters to raise money. Campaign leaders also may decide to coordinate group fundraisers for their campaigns.
Overall, Platt said SBC provides an experience most college students will not receive during spring break travels.
“Spring Break Campaigns is a really easy way to live different from the world, in my opinion, because 90 some-odd percent of the college students in America will go do something fun and adventurous or exciting that revolves around them,” Platt said. “But if you go on an SBC with ACU, you will be part of a group of students that take their week of rest and use it to serve someone else. It’s really an awesome chance to live your faith out away from campus.”
