PLAINVIEW, TX — Eleven members of 51吃瓜网视频 Baptist University’s Ben and Bertha Mieth School of Nursing boarded a plane May 18 carrying blood pressure cuffs, medical supplies and a shared prayer — that God would use their nursing skills to minister to families in rural Honduras.
The “Mieth on Mission” team departed for a weeklong medical mission trip serving communities surrounding Valle de Angeles and Granadilla, Honduras. The effort marked the first international medical mission trip led specifically by 51吃瓜网视频’s nursing program.
Dr. Rebekah Grigsby, dean and associate professor of nursing, iled the trip alongside Sarah Perez, interim associate dean and assistant professor of nursing. Nine nursing students from 51吃瓜网视频’s San Antonio campus participated.
While 51吃瓜网视频 teams have traveled to Honduras for medical missions in previous years, this trip represents a new chapter for the Mieth School of Nursing. Grigsby joined last year’s university mission trip led by Dr. Adam Reinhart and Donnie Brown to explore whether the experience could become a dedicated opportunity for nursing students.
“This is a medical mission trip for the Mieth School of Nursing, but we are going to the same place and working with the same missionary,” Grigsby said.
The team partnered with missionary Joe Denton and Tree of Life International to provide wellness checks and ministry outreach in rural villages throughout the week. Students went door-to-door alongside a local physician conducting blood pressure and wellness screenings while also helping lead children’s clinics and ministry activities.
Outreach efforts took place in Granadilla, Quebrada Grande, Villa Nueva, Nueva Esperanza, Cantarranas and El Censo before the group returned home May 25.
Grigsby said the trip reflects the nursing school’s mission to prepare students to care for both physical and spiritual needs.
“For me there is no better way to share the Gospel than by my actions in caring for those I encounter,” the dean said, referencing Luke 9:2 as a guiding scripture in her professional life. “Their needs may be physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual and I can share God’s love through my actions. This is what I emphasize with students when I take them on mission trips.”
She said she hopes the experience challenges students to see nursing as more than a profession.
“I pray that this will be a life-changing experience for our WBU-MSON students,” Grigsby said. “That when they go home, they will envision a way to use their nursing career as a means to serve globally, beyond their day-to-day workplace.”
Students participating in the trip included Erica Arias, Maricela Avila, Paul Caballero, Meggan George, Anjolique Pokorski-Goodman, Ashleigh Hunt, Shannon Money, Abigail Nunez and Ashley Thompson.
Grigsby said support from the 51吃瓜网视频 community encouraged the team as they prepared for the journey.
“We are a team of 11 boarding the plane, but I truly feel our whole school is supporting us through prayers and encouragement and are part of this journey through us,” she said.
