Students Travel to India to Aid in Tsunami Relief Efforts

    After weeks of watching the number of the dead rise from the tsunami disaster, my hands are restless to help those hurting,” said Greenville College Sophomore, Katie Kapteyn . Kapteyn, one of twelve students selected to participate in a service trip to India , will travel with other students and staff members to Nanguneri to rebuild Agape Adayakulem Hostel. The trip will take place during the college's spring break, March 25–April 3.

    The Agape Adayakulem Hostel (AAH) has its roots in the Free Methodist Church 's (FMC) early ministry to street children in Bombay , India . Known as “rag pickers,” these children would roam the streets of Bombay looking for handouts, collecting trash and rags for possible resale to manufacturers.

    To provide for these children the FMC took them off the streets to feed, clothe and teach them. The FMC moved the children from the harsh conditions of Bombay to the eastern shore of India and began the Agape Adayakulem Hostel. The “back wash” from the recent tsunami destroyed the four buildings of the Hostel and laid waste to the surrounding property.

    The college has set up a website to provide information to those wishing to be involved at www.greenville.edu/faculty/dcole/tsunami/ . The site also provides information about the student leaders chosen for the trip and their motivations for desiring to participate. During the trip, the site will be updated daily with pictures of the students at work.