In June 2024, a team of Lancaster Bible College students and professors from the Communication & Media Arts Department traveled to the Dominican Republic on a short-term missions trip. Their goal was twofold: To encourage the school at Batey 35 and the work it does in educating the “sugar cane kids” of La Romana, as well as documenting the stories and impact of the school using their communication gifts.

“We often talk to our students about embracing the way they have been wired,” said Dr. Michael Freeman, the Program Director of the Communication Department. “God provides our students with specific talents, gifts and passions because He intends to use those to grow His kingdom. Being able to watch our students come alongside an existing international ministry and use their communication skills to not only raise awareness of what God is doing there but also see how their gifts enhanced the impact of the short-term mission trip as well is a powerful depiction of that truth.”

Freeman had hoped to take a group of LBC students to the Dominican Republic for several years. This summer, his dream became a reality.

Joined by colleagues Ryan Geesaman, LBC Academic Dean for the Arts & Sciences, Communication & Media Arts and Music Worship & Performing Arts departments, as well as Thom Scott, Assistant Professor in the Communication & Media Arts Department, Freeman guided students as they worked to capture the ministry and impact of the Batey 35 school.

“I love when young people experience real poverty in other countries,” Scott remarked. “It’s a life-changing encounter as they gain a deeper understanding about the depth of poverty in other countries and see how so many adults, and especially children, are happy and thankful despite their circumstances.”

The group visited the Batey 35 school, which has a mission to provide Haitian immigrants with an education and to hopefully break the cycle of poverty for the students and their families. The school serves “the sugar cane kids” who live in one of the bateyes, which are shanty-town camps where sugarcane cutters and their families live. These people have very little, and finishing their education is considered a great achievement, as it paves the way for them to get better jobs and leave the isolating sugar cane plantations.

“What students got to witness was Christian community, hospitality and generosity from families who had nothing and gave everything,” Freeman added. “I hope [our] students saw that children are children everywhere. I wanted students to see that the goodness of God is not defined by our circumstances. Sometimes it is much easier to see Him move when you have to fully trust in Him every day.”

Emma McMurray (’26), one of the nine LBC Communication & Media Arts majors on the trip, was initially hesitant about traveling to a different country. However, as her professors hoped, the experience in the DR became life-changing for her.

“Before we were supposed to leave, I didn’t want to go on the trip,” McMurray shared. “I was dreading it and wanted to drop out. However, I am so thankful that I went; it was truly life-changing, and my eyes were opened to a much bigger world than just the United States. The Lord showed me that we have so much to be thankful for and that we should not take anything for granted because there are people out there who truly don’t have anything. It gave me a whole different perspective on life.”

The LBC student travelers worked on several communication projects, including photography, videography and writing to encapsulate the ministry of the Batey 35 school and life in the sugar cane plantations.

“I was able to take some pictures around the bateyes to capture what the families’ lives looked like,” said McMurray. “I am also writing an article about my own personal experience in the DR for [LBC’s] FOCUS Newspaper.”

Added Freeman, “One of the really cool projects our students got to work on was taking portraits of each of the children at the Batey 35 school. This was the first time that all students were given a portrait of themselves. This was a special way to demonstrate that each student was unique and valued. Another team of LBC students were able to capture the story of one of the school’s graduates to be able to demonstrate the value of education. This student has gone full circle and has become a teacher himself.”

Faith Crawford (’25), also an LBC Communication major, found opportunities to use her skills of interviewing when talking with teammates, kids and translators.

“At LBC, I’m one of the radio show hosts for the Charge ‘N Go Morning Show,” Crawford said. “Interviews are always a favorite of mine on the show because I love to listen to personal stories. Having small conversations on the trip felt a little like interviewing them about how God is working in their life. The longer I would listen, an abundance of questions would follow. The interpreters, teachers and teammates I talked to helped me grow in the communication aspect of interviewing.”

Outside their communication work, the students helped to lead crafts, games, Bible lessons and worship at the Batey 35 school. They also spent time visiting, praying and sharing food with the people in the sugar plantations.

“At least three people came to know Christ in the bateyes, and the conversations I was able to have with people were truly incredible,” said McMurray. “Only God could have orchestrated that.”

The students were also able to meet several practical needs of the ministry as well as gift the children at the school with their own Bibles.

“Through money raised by our students, a number of needs that became evident during the trip were able to be fully funded,” Freeman shared. “Each student was able to receive their very own copy of the Bible in their own language. Not only will this allow students to better study the word of God, but it will also allow these Bibles to be taken back into the various communities these students come from.”

The weeklong missions trip was only the beginning of cross-cultural mission opportunities for the Communication & Media Arts Department. The trip to the Dominican Republic, which was in partnership with Christ’s American Baptist Church in Spring Grove, Pa., where Freeman attends, paved the way for future LBC students to experience, serve and use their unique creative gifts.

“I am eager to see how our CMA students create stories and chronicle events that communicate the successes of Batey 35 school in a way that connects with hearts who want to help in the mission,” Scott shared.