Academy of Holy Names students bring fun for local migrant children in mission trip
PLANT CITY, Fla. - A Tampa area Catholic school's yearly mission trip to provide a week of service to a needy country is being spent at home this year.
Academy of the Holy Names Catholic School won't be traveling out of the country because of the pandemic, so they are staying home to provide a little fun and games for children in a migrant community.
Students from the Catholic school are on a mission to provide fun for children at the Plant City Migrant Trailer Community Park.
"I think it's great that they have the time to come out here," said participant Jose Flores.
Every year, the school has a service week called the "Rose Project." Students provide a week of service to a needy community.
"My freshman and sophomore year I traveled to San Juan, Texas, and I worked with immigrants coming from, like Central and Latin America," Chole Mintz, student Academy of the Holy Names Catholic School said. "But it was an awesome, awesome experience, and obviously with COVID, it's been kind of difficult to travel. So I'm doing like more local projects."
The point of the project is to show the students the importance of being charitable.
"With the privileges I've been given in life, it's awesome to be able to give these kids a little bit of joy for a day," Rowan Miller, a student with the Academy of Holy Names Catholic School, said. "And I just love seeing the smiling faces and, you know, just playing with them. It's just an amazing experience. I'm so glad we have this opportunity."
Juile Snyder, a Migrant Liaison for Hillsborough County schools, said the students are mentors and role models for the migrant children.
"Before these girls before they came here, we did talk to them about talking to the kids, telling them what things they do when they're in school, how important grades and studying and getting a good education is." said Snyder.
An opportunity for students to learn more outside the classroom.
"I think that's a very eye-opening experience and it kind of takes you outside of like that academy bubble and you become a little bit more empathetic. And I think that's also a huge part of learning and just becoming a good human person." said Mintz.
An experience, that is providing fun and friendship for the students and children in the migrant community. The students also painted a mobile home in the community.