CONWAY — Fifteen Alpha Sigma Tau sorority sisters from the University of Central Arkansas in Conway and two of their moms will build homes and other construction projects, conduct worship services and lead a vacation Bible school for the children of Sumpango, Guatemala, during a week-long mission trip July 23-29.
“I hope that I will be able to serve the girls as much as I can serve the community,” said Ali Cothern, who is a junior from Searcy and the leader for the trip.
This will be Cothern’s fourth trip to Sumpango in as many years; however, this is the first year for the sorority to participate, and though several in the group have previously taken mission trips, this will be the first international trip for many of them.
“I’ve done mission trips in the U.S., but I’ve never gotten to go to foreign countries,” said Haley Hilliard, a senior from Greenbrier. “This will be an awesome opportunity.”
The trip, part of a larger mission, is sponsored by Next Step Ministries, a U.S. based nonprofit organization that sends students on mission trips all over the world. Their vision statement is, “To be a platform where short-term mission trips collide with long-term community development.”
Some of the things the group will do in Sumpango include building houses for community members, working in the church built by Next Step Ministries and caring for children at the Hogar Madre Anna Vitiello Orphanage for children with HIV/AIDS.
“You really get to see how these people live, how dangerous the situations they live in are, but with that, they’re always so positive and so uplifting,” Cothern said.
Though this may be a new experience for most members of the sorority group, they are ready to jump in and help where they can. Hilliard said she looks forward to both the physical work and connecting with the community.
“I like getting dirty because it makes me feel like I’m actually doing something,” she said, “but then I like talking to people and making relationships.”
Morgan Lefler, a sophomore from Conway, said she is nervous about the trip, but she’ll be ready.
“I know God will get me to where I need to be to prepare me,” Lefler said. “I’m really looking forward to experiencing the culture and the people.”
Gearing up for the trip includes more than mental preparations, however. The cost of the trip is roughly $1,700 per person. Next Step Ministries’ portion of the price is $649, which includes transportation in Guatemala, as well as food and housing arrangements while there. The rest of the group’s expenses will be for passports, immunizations and airfare.
To help cover costs, the group has conducted several fundraisers, and more are in the works. Cothern said that while participants are responsible for paying for their portion of the trip, the fundraisers will benefit the group as a whole.
“Some have been successful; some have not,” she said. “My goal is for the girls to not have to pay out of pocket.”
So far, the group has had fundraisers at several Conway businesses, including pumping gas at the Bears Den convenience store and setting up a table at HipSway, where the sorority received 20 percent of the profit from sales.
“We’re trying to do where each person gets their own fundraiser started,” Hilliard said. “That way, we all put in our percentage.”
Future ideas include having a rummage sale and a car wash, and conducting fundraising nights at area restaurants such as Chipotle and Chick-fil-A. The group has also sent out letters to Alpha Sigma Tau alumni asking for support.
“I feel like that will be a big help because they’re typically known to get involved with the younger college students,” Lefler said.
Cothern is confident the group will have the funds in time for the trip, but she said her main goal is to be a good leader and to make sure the group stays focused on the mission.
“I just hope everyone will be able to give themselves fully and forget everything back home and everything that we’re going through there, to be able to fully give to [the community] and fully serve them,” she said.
After three trips to Sumpango, Cothern said, it’s like her second home, and she looks forward to going back. She added that prayers for the trip are always appreciated.
The other women planning to take the mission trip include Cothern’s mother, Michelle Cothern of Searcy; Kendall Leggett and her mother, Tracie Leggett, of Mount Vernon; Gabrielle Lucy and Rachel Efken, both of St. Louis, Missouri; Bailey Martin of Crossett; Chloe Brinkley of Conway; Kristen Jones of Hot Springs;
Lauren Westwood of Booneville; Milli Prickett and Morgan Plumley, both of Benton; Sydney Caldwell of Monticello; Sydney McCallister of Perryville; and Zoey Rofkahr of Van Buren.
The group is open to new fundraising ideas and donations. To help, contact Cothern at amcothern01@gmail.com or (501) 593-9983, or the UCA Alpha Sigma Tau chapter.