16 honduran Students and Hondurans competed in basketball games during a 2019 spring break mission trip. During spring break 2019, a group of Harding students went on a week-long mission trip to Honduras through the Journey Mission Camp organization. The group distributed supplies,built cots, and conducted vacation Bible school sessions for the local children, but they were unprepared to compete in a game of basketball on their trip. Wilmer Espinoza, the man who led Journey Mission Camp, surprised the group one evening with an arrangement for the students to play basketball with a local community team. The game started as an ordinary pickup game but grew as more people lined up to play against the visiting Americans. When the game ended and the groups parted ways, the Hondurans challenged the Harding students to a rematch. They planned another game, and when they met again, the Hondurans brought food, cameras and crowds of people. The simple game of pickup basketball had become a full competition complete with referees and substitute players. The game wa broadcast on television, and the Harding tudents wore their mission shirts as makeshift jerseys. Senior Cameron Dodick said he believed the game strengthened the relationships between the mission team and locals in a way routine conversation would not have. "I feel like we've built relationships with these people," Dodick said. "Even the kids that were there were watching us, they were cheering outside." The game concluded with a victory for the Harding students, and the Hondurans presented them with a handmade trophy. Senior Elaine Savage said she was grateful to be part of the mission trip. "We went to go and serve those people, but they taught me o much in the way. ... They are so hospitable and so kind," Savage said. "And they came ... and served us, and so I'm very grateful that the Lord allowed me to experience that and that he taught me all of those things through that." Senior Marissa (Countess) Longley, a co-leader of the trip, said she hoped more Harding students would take the opportunity to participate in missions and serve others. "You can't go and change the entire world, but I believe that you can change the world for one person." "You can't go and change the entire world, but I believe that you can change the world for one person," Longley said. "And so whether that's through a basketball game or sitting down with someone and talking with them via a translator or your own skills, I think expanding and encountering other cultures and God's people is a really good perspective and look into heaven." story by Elizabeth Shores Harding students and Hondurans pose after a pickup basketball game March 13, 2019, at Journey Mission Camp in Honduras. The basketball game was broadcast on television in Honduras. I photo courtesy of Kylie Jones
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