Neighbors in the News

Planting the seeds of global concern

Lynbrook student among Misericordia U students take part mission to Jamaica

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Kerrie Hall, 20, of Lynbrook, was one of nine college students who took part in a mission to Jamaica.

“I really love missionary work because even the smallest thing can make a lasting difference in someone’s life who needs it,” she said. “If the only thing you accomplished in a whole day was a making someone smile, it makes a world of difference.”

Calling the experience “humbling,” Hall said that she was interested in going on this trip because of how groundbreaking it was. “This trip was the first of many yearly trips to incorporate Occupational Therapy in collaboration with other universities working towards the same goals as us,” she said. “What we accomplished in will be built upon by future teams — and I think that will really make a difference for the kids.”

Occupational therapy Professor Joseph Cipriani, Ed.D., O.T.R./L., said that his students exceeded his expectations during this a specially-designed service-learning trip to the island nation in May.

“From a therapy perspective, what made this trip different was that we took the opportunity to ask the caregivers in Jamaica what we could do to help, and developed plans of action to address particular issues involving specific residents and groups of residents even before we left,” said Cipriani. “It was very collaborative and designed to address long-term needs and provide training based on our students’ clinical and theoretical knowledge.”

It was not a typical mission trip. Upper-level OT students had to apply and be accepted into a three-credit class that Cipriani designed specifically around the one-week trip. He conducted a preassessment visit to the region early in the semester, and made contact with caregivers at the Mustard Seed communities, an organization that operates homes for severely disabled children and adults across Jamaica and around the world.

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