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All 3 teams of student manager missionaries return home from life changing mission trips to Africa.
Minneapolis, MN. August 5, 2015 – Student Managers working with collegiate athletic programs throughout the country have returned home after spending 3 weeks serving at orphanages in Uganda, Zambia, and Ghana. Each individual has been recognized by MOAM as a future leader of sport, and was awarded the opportunity to join MOAM for the fully funded mission trip. MOAMs team of mini missionaries provided support to 3 Rafiki Foundation orphanages during their 3 week ‘holiday’ from classes. This break often leaves Rafiki’s orphanages very short-staffed with as little as 2-3 full time missionaries left to direct the orphanages of approximately 100 children ranging from ages 3-18 years old. MOAM was blessed with this opportunity to help fill this void through providing 3 weeks of sports camps, and other support as needed at each village. Highlights of the trips for the student managers included the opportunity to provide 1 on 1 mentoring/goal setting sessions with each of the older children in Uganda, building a new driveway in Zambia, and joining each cottage of children for nightly devotions in Ghana. Thanks to donations from professional and collegiate sports programs throughout the US, MOAM was also able to leave the villages with over 800 pounds in donations of sports apparel and equipment. Despite the great support MOAM’s teams were able to provide each orphanage, it remained very clear that MOAM’s missionaries could never give more than they received from the children and overall mission trip experience. Each student manager has shared their new perspective through several blog posts. An excerpt from each individual can be found below. “This trip exceeded my expectations. I knew playing sports with the kids would be fun. But the fellowship with the other managers and the time we spent in the Bible in such a unique place was incredible.” - Ben Wright “Being over in Zambia was, and always will be one of the most incredible opportunities in my life.” – Shane Maloney “These children, instead of being left to die of preventable diseases or starvation, were given life. And I, who at first appears to have nothing in common with these children, (healthy, living in the United States with parents who love and care about me) was given life too. I was hand-picked to go to Uganda. And I was shown true life. I was shown a life characterized by servant hood. A life filled with selflessness and love and joy. A life worthy of Jesus’s sacrifice.” – Katie Wilkins “I had a boy share the story of how he came to Rafiki with me. He came to Rafiki with many cuts on his head as his parents had been trying to kill him. He then shared about how he had come to Christ and even forgiven his parents. His whole story just left me completely speechless.” – Scott Goode “The Rafiki children’s faith is so strong and they’re prayers are so thoughtful and kind that I was in awe every single night of their faith in God.“ – Brittany Arlington “Looking at what God has done with MOAM and the individuals involved, and will continue to do is amazing and without question deserves praise to God.” – Ryan Francis “I 100% want to work in sports administration and this trip gave me a first-hand opportunity to combine sports and service, which is now an area I will pursue more aggressively when on the job hunt!” – Joseph Kuykendall About Managers On A Mission (MOAM): MOAM is a non-profit that collects new and gently used sports apparel from coaches and teams on both college and professional levels around the country. MOAM develops the future leaders of sport through mission trips, service projects, and scholarships with a Christ centered focus on maximizing the platform afforded to the sports industry. The vision of MOAM is to see the world positively impacted by the faith, talent, and resources of the sports industry. To learn how you or your program could help MOAM please visit MOAM’s How To Help Page, Sponsor Page, or Contact Us. About Rafiki: The Rafiki Foundations mission is to help Africans know God and raise their standard of living. Rafiki’s 10 Training Villages in Africa provide childcare programs, bible studies, widow programs, and much more. Each village provides medical, educational, and living services to vulnerable children and orphans as well as train churches in their community.
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 People keep asking, “How was Uganda?” and I am never sure what to say. It is hard to summarize such a powerful and impactful three weeks into a sufficient answer. I keep replying with “Good” and if I’m feeling really adventurous I’ll respond with, “Good, it was a great experience.” And that’s true. The trip was good. And the trip was an incredible experience. I’m just not sure how to use words adequately enough to describe what we experienced in Uganda. It was beyond description. I can describe what I did, but I’ve yet to find the words and phrases to explain what I felt. But for now I’ll simply write out three major things that I learned or was reminded of while on the trip. Joy and sports are universal Never will I forget the literal squeals of joy from a child simply dribbling a basketball. Joy is part of the human experience. As is sports. No matter the language, culture, or religion of people, sport is something that can bring people together. The first day there was hard because they didn’t know us and we didn’t know them, but through sports we bonded and created friendships that I’m sure we will never forget. Everyone deserves a chance to play As we figured out the schedule, there was a considerable amount of time we had to fill. Someone brought up the fact that the children would just want to scrimmage, and I said something like “If they want to play, why we don’t just let them play?” Then our leader Drew raised a point that struck me profoundly. The reality is that these children rarely have the opportunity to learn the game. Often, they don’t even have the basics down for some games, and that since we were there, we should teach them what we knew. This way, ultimately, they were able to enjoy the game even more. Sport has such a cool role in society everywhere. And everyone regardless of their situation deserves a chance to truly play. To learn and improve so that they may enjoy playing even more. God is God and Ministry is Ministry No matter where you are, you’re called to serve. For our team, we were called to serve in Uganda for three weeks. But even though we were called to serve in a different continent, we still served the same God. Even after a full day of traveling we were still under the same God. God is big and His love is big for us. But furthermore, His call for our lives is big. Regardless where I find myself, I’m called to serve. As I return to my dirty, stinky laundry, I am called to serve. As I sit on long bus rides and find myself awake at unruly hours preparing for a game the next day, I’m called to serve. It doesn’t take a couple plane rides to be called to serve but rather a willing heart. You never know where He will lead you, whether it be Africa or elsewhere, but God is God. And to God be the glory. One night at devotions we read Psalm 48, and verse 10 stood out to me. It reads, “As your name, O God, so your praise reaches to the ends of the earth.” So your praise reaches to the end of the earth. That’s true. Hard to fathom, but true. Whether it be Africa or here in North America, the same God, our creator is worshiped and praised for all He has done and will do. Looking at what He has done with MOAM and the individuals involved, and will continue to do is amazing and without question deserves praise to God. Only He could plan this small adventure we experienced in Uganda within His grand plan. -Ryan Francis, Student Manager, Liberty University CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Ryan's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory!  For the past few days we’ve been working on clearing and smoothing out dirt for a driveway in the village. We have the six oldest boys helping us make progress during our free time, and it is a wonderful opportunity speaking to them about life. Jason, Ben and I have been sharing experiences of our lives to them and trying our best to pull out the classic father teaching moments. Whether its relating why in the world moving dirt two inches is important to integrity or why their education is so meaningful, it’s funny how I can put myself in their shoes. Thinking back to all those moments when my dad had me out back pulling weeds or doing yard work and always complaining in my mind but never out loud. Really is odd how that changes with age! Thinking back, I really did cherish all those moments I had spending time with my dad. I started thinking the other day; these kids here simply wont have any memories of such. All the times I played catch or went fishing or anything like it, absolutely none of the kids here have that. I know that it is all over the world and even at home but it has never hit me like it does here. Maybe it is because of the numbers or simply because there is nothing for them to cover up anything with here. Back home there is always something to be occupied with or engulfed in, here they just have each other. Some may think I am crazy to say that my fondest memory of spending three weeks in Africa will be swinging an axe—but to have the opportunity to allow these boys to have a memory of me like I do of my father is priceless. As time nears its end here for our trip, we are already beginning to reminisce. For our last day here--tomorrow—we have planned a field day event! It immediately takes me back to elementary school. Field days always marked the last days of school, a goodbye to that grade level. For us here in Zambia, our field day will mark our farewell to the children and workers we have fellowshipped with for the past three weeks. Leaving this village will be bittersweet. We will finally be able to freely go out and grab something quick to eat or not have to worry about the power being cut off randomly. However, we are leaving with the impression for what the Rafiki organization is all about. Rafiki is a Swahili word for friend—that is just what we are leaving behind. These children are no longer strangers to me; they are no longer orphans to me or anything else other than friends. That is how it will always be. -Shane D. Maloney, Kansas State University CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Shane's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory!  The Beauty of Perspective Did you know even the poorest of individuals today still have more than most 'high class' individuals had just a few centuries ago, in terms of physical possessions (i.e. car, tv, computer, size of house, etc.)? This means today we must all consider ourselves very fortunate and blessed, right? Unfortunately that is not quite how our perspective seems to naturally operate. In my last Sunday at Grace church before flying to Africa, Pastor Daniel Henderson defined discouragement as a "temporary loss of perspective." These words hit me hard on that Sunday, and have hit me even harder since arriving in Uganda. In worldly terms, the children of Rafiki have great reason to be discouraged. Many of them have been abandoned and born into the worst circumstances imaginable. These children are orphans who have come from some of the most tragic situations we can imagine, and face some of the grimmest realities we can fathom in terms of life expectancy, educational opportunities, etc. However, I can say with 100% certainty, that they are truly the most joyful and content individuals I have ever been around. So how is it they can not only forgive, and move past the tragic situation they were born into, but also rejoice and exemplify joy in it's purest form? They've conquered their spirit. These children have come to know Christ, and fully embraced the fruit of the Spirit God has promised to all believers. Their joy is not based on external, temporary items like getting a new toy, recognition, food, or money. It comes from their internal and ETERNAL identity in Christ. The book of Genesis tells us God gave man dominion over the whole wide earth. Dale Carnegie points out this includes dominion over everything. Over my self. Over my thoughts. Over my fears. Over my mind. Over my spirit. Proverbs 16:32 adds that "He who conquers his spirit is mightier than he who taketh a city." What a powerful opportunity we have to control our very own perspective. My perspective is vastly different than the children here at Rafiki because of what I have been exposed to with the fortune of growing up in a great family in a first-world country. I understand there are infinite blessings to this, but unfortunately, this perspective all too often tricks me into believing my joy and my spirit is controlled by external idols- such as making money, having a lot of friends, or even the success or stability of Managers On A Mission. Fellow mini missionary, Katie Wilkins, already shared this in an earlier blog post, but it captures my thoughts and heart all too well not to share it again. It is from Katie Davis, a 22 year old woman who has moved to a village here in Uganda and adopted more than 20 kids. "I've had people ask me why I think Africa is so impoverished, but these children are not poor. I, as a person who grew up wealthy, am. I put value in things. These children having no things, put value in God. I put my trust in relationships, these children having already seen relationships fail, put their trust in the Lord. This nation is blessed beyond any place, any people I have ever encountered. God has not forgotten them. In fact, I believe He has loved them just a little bit extra." Lord Jesus thank You for the work You are doing through the Rafiki Foundation. Help us all to fill the God-sized hole in our hearts with You alone. -Drew Boe, Founder, Managers On A Mission CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Drew's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory!  Driving down the bumpy dirt road through an unforgivingly impoverished compound of Zambia’s capital city, Lusaka, will put a scare into any traveler. It really frightened me to know that areas like this were places that these kids came from. Knowing that the kids came from such poverty and are now at a village with plenty of food, water and clothing, one might say the kids are saved. These necessities for surviving do not compare to the greatest gift they have received since coming to the Rafiki village, an eternal life with God. These kids have had almost no oversight during games and sports previous to our arrival. The limited staff here is always busy serving the kids around the village in other ways and not able to lead the kids during playtime. It can be frustrating for us when the kids are not following instructions, being a poor sport, or playing too aggressively. We’ve often asked God to keep our hearts patient. God has given us many opportunities to provide correction in their attitudes and actions. Simple solutions like shaking hands before and after games goes a long way in teaching them to respect others. This week the MOAM team along with the six oldest boys have been working on building a circle driveway in the village. While working, we talk to the boys about what it means to work hard, provide for a family, and be a leader in the community. Although the boys may complain about working hard while the other kids play, I was happy to learn this has been one of their favorite experiences. When I told them that we might be selecting a different six boys to help us the next day, they begged me to let them continue to work. I know God has used us in a powerful way to show the kids, especially the older boys, what it means to be a Christian adult living for God. I pray that the experiences we’ve had and the lessons we’ve taught them will stick with the kids forever. In a similar way the kids look up to us, Shane and I look up to Jason. Through our nightly bible studies where we dive deep into each other’s lives, God has used Jason to work with us in a special way. I pray that the time we’ve had together will continue to shape us long after our trip concludes. “The righteous will live by faith.” –Romans 1:17 -Ben Wright, University of Michigan CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Ben's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory!  We are finishing our 2nd week in Uganda, and are having a great trip so far. We have one more week left so pray that we finish well. It will definitely be a sad thing to leave the village and the kids. The kids here are amazing because they have such joy in daily life and in the Lord. They take nothing for granted and have such a mature perspective on life. I think I have heard the phrase, “Thank you God for the Gift of Life,” more in the last two weeks than I have in the rest of my life combined. The kids have such a real conviction that each day we are alive is a gift from the Lord. They do not take material things for granted either. When you eat dinner with them, they finish their food quickly, and do not leave so much as a crumb on their plate. For example, if rice is part of the dinner, every single piece of rice will be gone from their plate. We have had the opportunity to sit in on various cottages’ nightly devotionals, and it is a true blessing to be able to hear the kids talk about the things of God. Their prayers sound like the prayers of pastors or theologians. These children have an incredible knowledge of the Bible. The children are also incredibly tough. When we are playing sports with them, they do not cry when they fall down or are hit by a ball like almost every other young kid I know would do. They just get right back up and start playing again. I have to think this comes from the fact that so many of these children have experienced so much real emotional and physical pain in their lives. I wish I know more of these children’s backstories, but the ones I do know are amazing. One brother-sister duo that lives in the village came to the government’s protection after the brother when he was four years old carried his then two year old sister many miles to the hospital when she was sick. A pair of twin brothers that live in the village survived a mud slide that destroyed their village and killed both of their parents. It is so awesome to see what Rafiki (the orphanage) has done in these children’s life. They are getting an excellent education and are developing wonderful relationships with Jesus. The kids are so grateful and joyful because of this. I have much to learn from these children when it comes to having joy in the Lord. I hope in this final week we are able to make a lasting impact on these kids’ lives through encouraging them in their faith and their schoolwork. Keep us in your prayers that we will have a healthy, safe, and impactful last week here. -Mac Goode, Texas A&M University football CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Mac's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory!  Week two has been another great one for Team Ghana. We got into the sports camp portion of our ministry this week by putting on a two-day basketball camp, two-day volleyball camp and a final day knockout tournament. As a college basketball manager and a high school volleyball player I thoroughly enjoyed teaching the Rafiki children about two awesome sports that have been a huge part of my life. It was great to see all the kids' positive attitudes and willingness to learn throughout the week. As part of the camp, each morning we went through a short devotion covering topics such as prayer before competition, hard work, attitude, teamwork and losing with dignity---all from a biblical perspective. The devotion portion of the camp impressed us all because of how knowledgable the kids already were on the various bible stories and lessons. They taught me a thing or two because they were so specific with their explanations! Another very neat part of the week was getting to travel outside of the village with some of the kids (and young adults) of Rafiki to see them play a neighboring village in a soccer match. It was a long afternoon because it was an old-fashioned doubleheader with the younger kids playing first followed by a match between the high school-aged kids. It was a wonderful cultural experience to see the kids elegantly play the sport they all adore. It was also impressive to see how the conditions did not bother the kids one bit, they were just thrilled to glorify God through the game of soccer. First off, the field was all dirt with many divots and holes and secondly, it was not abnormal for a wild goat or chicken to scurry across the field while the match was going on. The younger Rafiki kids were missing some of their more experienced players so they lost to the team from the opposing village but the older Rafki kids won a great match 4-1--they claim they have yet to lose a match in two years. Soccer is these kids life so win and lose, everybody was all smiles afterwards because they spent an afternoon doing what they love. Also of note is that Brittany and I got to showcase our managerial skills by handing out water to the Rafiki team at halftime and after the game! How cool is that for a Managers on a Mission trip?! On Saturday, our team had the privilege of journeying outside the village towards the coast and touring the Elmina Slave Castle in Cape Coast, Ghana. To hear of and visit the various areas of the castle and learn of the treatment of the Ghanaians many years ago during the slave trade was both sobering and disheartening. One of the toughest and most confusing parts of the visit was visiting the church inside the castle where the workers (this specific castle was controlled by the Dutch and Portuguese) worshipped our Lord and Savior while many men and women were held captive just a few floors below and the workers thought their actions to be just. "How could they believe in the same God we do but do such heinous acts?" was running through my head and I am sure the head of many others. While processing all of this, I used the inspiration of the Rafiki children singing beautiful hymnals every day and kept thinking of the hymn, "They'll Know We are Christians by Our Love". With this hymn and its poetic prose in mind, I, as anyone could, began to realize that loving others as Christ loved us is the one of the most important ways to live and profess our faith as Christians. This is also specifically relevant to Team Ghana because as a MOAM group, we have been going through the book of Philippians on this trip as our bible study. Philippians 2:5 reiterates this very point, "Make your own attitude that of Jesus Christ." The castle workers did not do this but we can learn from the past and do what the bible says in Philippians 2:5 on this MOAM trip and for the rest of our lives. Relating this to what we have done and yet to do with Rafiki, the most important and valuable thing is to simply love the children and missionaries of Rafiki the same unconditional and endless ways God loves us. As orphans, love is something the children seek and yearn for everyday. They will not know we are Christians JUST by the amount of basketballs we leave, clothes we give or times we play with them but rather by doing all the aforementioned things WITH a Christ-like love. It is one of the simplest things we as Christians are charged to do but one that I and others struggle to do. We get caught up and distracted by so many other things that we forget to love one another or at least love one another the way our Father ALWAYS loves us. -Joseph Kuykendall, James Madison University CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Joseph's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory!  Yesu andikonda ine (Jesus loves me! This I know) Yesu andikonda ine, (Jesus loves me! This I know,) Amatero M’Buku lye, (For the Bible tells me so;) Akafoka mwana wake; (Little ones to Him belong;) Adzamlimbikitsa Mbuye. (They are weak, but He is strong.) Those are the words for Jesus loves me! in Bemba, one of the many Zambian languages spoken. I had the privilege to hear 4 year old Immanuel sing this song to me. He sang the first verse in English. As the second verse started others started singing along. Next thing I knew they were singing one of the verses in their Zambian language. I began to tear up as they were singing. The songs you here from these kids and mothers are beautiful. They can move mountains with the beauty of their voices. When we went to church they were the choir. I closed my eyes as they sang “More About Jesus Would I Know”. As tears ran down my face I thought I was hearing the voices of angels. You can hear the love for Jesus as they sing. I am not sure that I have ever experienced Jesus’ glory like I do when I hear these children sing. Every day that I am here I am reminded of Matthew 19:14 when Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” I know the love that Jesus has for children is real as I got to experience a piece of it this past Sunday. I also got to experience an amazing sight tonight. We brought the donations that so many people from across the country has been gracious enough to donate. It was an amazing thing to see. As we begin passing the caps, shirts and jackets out, we got to see the joy of the kids to get something from somebody from across the world who has no clue of who they are but still cares enough about them to send the stuff. To know that they are loved even outside of the village, I could not help but think how such a small gesture could go so long for these kids morale. Another blessing has been Shane Maloney and Ben Wright. They are the other mini missionaries who came with MOAM. Shane is from Kansas State and Ben from The University of Michigan. These two young men have been a blessing from God. To see their hearts for these kids and to serve our Father unconditionally has been a breath of fresh air. They have a heart that is bigger than even the country we are serving in. I know that they have been blessed by God to receive such a beautiful heart. I have been blessed to get to see their hearts for the past 2 weeks and have gotten to grow in my own walk with God because of these two gentlemen. I pray the Lord will continue to teach and mold us as we finish the next week of serving. -Jason Hubbard – MOAM/Mississippi State University CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Jason's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory!  Taste and See Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. – Psalm 34:8 For the last few days I’ve been reflecting on the goodness of the Lord. And on that verse. It’s a verse that keeps popping up, in my quiet times and as I read through God’s Word it’s so apparent that goodness is in His character, it’s His very nature. I’ve been meditating on the words ‘taste and see’. Taste and see. What does it mean to truly taste and see the full goodness of God? One of the hardest things since I’ve been in Uganda has been missing American food. And really it’s not even junk food. It’s like…pickles and string cheese. I miss that stuff. And on Monday when I was FaceTiming with my mom and sister, my sister almost ate a complete jar of pickles during the call. (Is an affinity for pickles genetic?) And I could almost taste them. My mouth was watering thinking about the first pickle I’ll get to eat when i get back in the states. (I know! Isn’t it weird what you crave when you can’t have it?) And I started wondering: Do you think that’s what David means in this psalm? He’s saying, “I have seen the goodness of the Lord – better yet, I have tasted it. I’ve had this mouth-watering, unrelenting, insatiable hunger to see the goodness of the Lord and it was finally fulfilled.” And now I’ve tasted and seen. And after David had tasted and seen there was no going back. Once you’ve tasted and seen the Lord’s goodness nothing else can even compare. A perfect God that would chose to be gracious and merciful and patient and loving to me? Me, who continually would rather chase after other things. What an unfathomable love. But once you’ve seen it – that goodness, nothing else could possibly satisfy you. I’ve seen that goodness here in Uganda. And these children have seen the goodness of the Lord in their lives too. These children who have 3 pairs of pants and 4 shirts know the goodness of God better than anyone I’ve ever met. It spills out in their prayers, and their laughs and squeals of joy, and it pours into me. Spending time with these children has changed me. Because, these kids, they’re smarter than I am. They realized this message that, at age 21, the Lord is still beating into my brain. He’s good. He’s so good. So much better than anything else I could ever dream of. I hope this week you get to taste and see that the Lord is good. Because when you taste it, you realize – man, this isn’t something I ever want to do without. So by now, I’m guessing you’re almost dying to see these children I’ve been going on and on about. Although I’ve been trying to really savor my time here and live in the moment, I’ve gotten a chance to take a few pictures. And I’m finally ready to share some of these wonderful kids in the village with you all. So here are some of the beautiful, joyful children you’ve gotten to hear so much about. My prayer this week is that the Lord would transform my heart to be more like these children. Because Jesus loved children. “And children loved Jesus. Children knew they didn’t need to do anything special for Jesus to love them. All they needed to do was to run into his arms. And so that’s just what they did.” – Jesus Storybook Bible -Katie Wilkins, University of Nebraska CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Kaite's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory!  Shining Through the Clouds Growing up in small-town Kansas you count your blessings often. Embarking on the cross-Atlantic trip to Zambia I have seemed to quickly fall back into my old roots. There truly is no overstating it—we are extremely blessed in the States. Driving through the crowded streets of the capital Lusaka will keep any New Jersey driver on their toes. From the uncountable number of cars, pedestrians and to the city workers cutting grass with machetes, it was a sight to behold. As we made our distance from the city I quickly began missing the wheat fields of home. Cramped in a small SUV with bags packed to the ceiling full of donations we continued onward towards the village. After weaving through a clay road we arrived at the gate of the Zambian Rafiki village. At that moment any thought of home passed and as the gate slowly creaked open I saw a new page in my life opening. After eight days of staying in Zambia we accomplished our first goal of being able to manage seventy-seven children. The love and interest in anything new is truly inspiring. Never before have I seen anybody enjoy basic basketball drills to level of these kids. They had humongous smiles dribbling from the baseline to the free throw line while cheering for one another amongst their peers. Just imagine the smiles and fun when I finally brought all the fundamentals into use and introduced knockout. Never before have I seen Children enjoy a game to the level of them. The strength of the mommas here in the village is incredible. It constantly reminds me of my own grandmother who would care for me to the end of the Earth. For these mommas it is a job, it is their occupation to nurture their cottage of ten or so children. As my grandmother says- I raised my own, to them let it be. These makeshift mommas cannot do that. They all have families outside here and then to spend their workweek nursing to orphaned young children is something that has struck home with me. These women are stern, enduring, soft-spoken yet they carry a big stick. I only pray to one day have some of the same attributes these amazing women have in raising up future leaders and children of God. Moreover, I believe I already have found the almighty takeaway from this experience—the power of a smile. A smile is the universal sign of peace, love and comfort. The first day we came we met a ten year-old boy literally named Happy. However Happy really was not happy—talk about irony at its finest. Today we introduced American football and how to properly throw. Initially teaching how to catch and then to throw. Happy was a pure natural throwing the ball, solid form and even a tight spiral. We had him step out in front of his peers and show just how well he was doing. At that moment Happy was—happy. He had a smile from cheek to cheek and practically skipped back in line after he threw the ball. I was astonished witnessing the joy of Happy and the smile on his face all thanks to the wonderful game of American football. After spending all week with him and never seeing him enjoy his surroundings and for something so simple to almost flip his emotions completely is special. God’s love is evident in all parts of the World. It is evident in all walks of life—no matter your color, wealth or Earthly possessions. It is an immeasurable love that I will be forever thankful and gracious for. Shane D. Maloney, Kansas State University CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Shane's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory!  Love Does Love does crazy things. Love jumps on planes to Uganda and sleeps under mosquito nets and rides hours in a hot van. Because love is never stationary. I’ve now been in Uganda for almost a week. And I love everything about this country. I love the people and the terrain, and the red dirt, and the sunrises and sunsets that will take your breath away. I love how cool it gets after it rains and I love the old basketball court – tattered nets and all. Before I got here I was trying to imagine all that it would be. I tried to imagine the children and what my days would look like here….but nothing prepared me for this. Because it’s better than I could have ever imagined. The children are beautiful and joyous and funny and so intelligent. Most of them speak at least 2 languages proficiently by age 5. Their native tribal language (mostly Lugandan) and English. They are in love with their lives and content and joyous with what they have. When they pray they never cease to amaze me. Yesterday in a group of 14-19 year old girls, one girl prayed that they “wouldn’t take advantage of the opportunities they’d been presented” and that “the Lord would bless the missionaries [i.e….us] richly”. This opportunity she’s praising God for is four, 20-somethings coming to her village to teach the basics of sports. (And let me tell you….we are in wayyyy over our heads with football [soccer in the states]). But they are so grateful. And their hearts are constantly filled with praises of thanksgiving to the Lord for His goodness. And I’m blown away that God would chose me to be here. And I feel so inadequate. Today I was reading a passage from Kisses from Katie…the magnificent story of a high schooler who felt The Lord’s call on her life to go to Uganda and who now, at age 22, has moved to Masese (a village not far from my own) and adopted more than 20 Ugandan girls. Read more about Katie Davis on her blog here.
My heart and soul long for the way these children know God. Not just Creator of the universe, but their own personal Creator. And I thought all along I was loving them the way God loves them….but maybe, it’s the other way around. Maybe, instead, they’re loving me the way God so deeply loves and cares for me. I hope you all have someone in your life like that. Someone who loves like Jesus. Because that changes everything. -Katie Wilkins, University of Nebraska CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Katies's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory!  Fun Tough Kids Over the past few days, I’ve had a great time teaching, playing sports and getting to know the kids. Although we’ve played soccer, basketball, volleyball, and kickball with the kids, they’re most passionate for soccer. Our afternoon soccer game is my favorite part of every day. The kids take off their sandals to run, kick and play and claim it doesn’t hurt their thick-skinned bare feet. Although they are always very well mannered, their competitive spirit shows on the field. It’s normal for kids to get kicked in the face when going for a ball, or to take a tumble on the hard dirt while chasing a ball but you rarely see them cry. They just stand up, wipe the dirt off, smile and continue playing hard. Their toughness on the field is clear, and it’s my goal to lead them to keep that toughness in all aspects of life including their faith. Preparing Ourselves Coming from backgrounds as equipment managers, we understand how important it is to prepare. Whether it’s planning out this week’s daily activities, or taking inventory of the gear, the preparation process helps us properly manage 77 kids. But to prepare our hearts to serve, we meet with the full-time staff, which includes missionaries, cooks, and groundskeepers every morning to participate in morning devotion. We sing a hymn and begin to look into God’s word. On Wednesday morning, we read a passage from Exodus 3 then talked about the tough times in Moses’ life. After Moses was exiled from Egypt he was alone and didn’t fear God. Like Moses, many of the staff members, children, and even us short-term missionaries, were lost and without God at some point. When Moses was on the mountain and saw the burning bush, he put his trust in God and he was able to achieve some great things. Like Moses, all the children and staff at this village are now saved and ready to achieve great things. During our daily morning devotions, I am able to focus my heart on serving the kids. The kids really seem to enjoy our company and our guidance because we are the first young male missionaries that have visited this village. We have only been on site for four days and we have not even started the core of our ministry. I hope that the next two weeks will be as meaningful and fun as this first week. Ben Wright, University of Michigan Football CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Ben's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory!  It has been such a blessing to be in the Rafiki Village in Ghana this week. After some complications traveling, (We missed our flight to Amsterdam!) Chris, Morgann & I finally arrived in the village on Tuesday evening. We were so excited to finally meet Joseph for the first time in person and couldn’t be happier that “Team Ghana” was finally united. We were all happy to finally be together but most importantly, we thank God for bringing us safely to Ghana and providing us with a comfortable place to clean up and sleep for the evening. On our first day together as Team Ghana, we had a “family breakfast” which consisted of cage free eggs (and when I say cage free, we are talking about Ghanaian cage free eggs where the chickens roam the streets), avocados (or pears as they call them in Africa), toast and some granola. I was beyond excited to finally meet the kids of Rafiki Village. At 8:45AM, we had assembly at the basketball courts and broke off into groups to start our day of GAMES (Games, Art, Music, Enrichment, & Sports). I worked with the Music group today and we played musical chairs and the imitation game. It was amazing to see how these kids treated one another with genuine respect and kindness. These children glorify God through their actions towards their peers- they are kind, thoughtful and caring. The children of Rafiki have more joy than I have seen in a long while- joy with the simple things in life that we often take for granted- like playing a game with one another. After witnessing this, it is starting to become so obvious why God has sent me on this journey. One of the most touching moments about being in the Rafiki Village this week is the evening devotions in the cottages. You are usually greeted by the children with beautiful singing as you walk into the cottage. It is amazing to see how much the children praise and love God. Their faith is so strong and they’re prayers are so thoughtful and kind that I leave in awe every single night of how strong their faith in God is. They are never bashful to lead in prayer or to raise their hands towards God when singing. Going to devotions has shown me that our faith is always a work in progress. God’s work in a Christian’s life is forever but most importantly, God is always present in our lives. “I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 1:6. It’s crazy to think our journey has only started and God has already shown us so many reasons for being sent to the Rafiki Village Ghana. I could write forever about what has already been happening in our lives here but I will keep it short for now. God is so good! God Bless, - Brittany Arlington, Team Ghana, University of Florida CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Brittany's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory! Never having the opportunity to leave North America, I only had knowledge of how big the ocean was. Now here in Uganda, I can confidently confirm that I have experienced how big it is. The ocean is so big it even takes huge airplanes hours and hours to cross. When we talk about Gods love, we often speak of the vastness of it. I think of the hymn, “Love Vast as the Ocean.” God’s love is even deeper and wider than an ocean. That’s hard to grasp! It has been evident already the first few days here in Uganda, how powerful and impactful His love is for everybody. As I experience Ugandan culture (a lot of beans, crazy driving, and a very hot sun) one thing remains the same cross culture and that is His love for us. There is so much joy and gratitude in this village. It’s amazing. And even though we live in different cultures, we still serve the same God. A God whose love is big and deserves big love back. I’m challenged by these children’s happiness and thankfulness for such love. This week as we closed one soccer (er, football I mean) session one of the girls prayed. She asked God that they not take us for granted. Man, that hit me hard. It challenged me to not take them or this opportunity for granted. It is easy for us to get wrapped up in things. It’s easy to say a hasty thank you to MOAM for such an opportunity. It’s easy to say a hasty thank you to Rafiki and the village here in Uganda. But when that girl prayed those words, it brought me to a deeper level of gratitude. Nothing here is deserved. But because we serve such a big God, who loves so much, we find ourselves placed in Uganda serving amongst others with a different culture, but same The children refer to us as “Auntie or Uncle.” It took a bit to get used to but it has now become a very special concept. You see, we are family. We are family in this village but in a larger picture we are all family in God’s eyes. Each person that surrenders their life joins God’s team and through that, becomes teammates/family to those who also confess that Jesus is Lord. So we are family to these children, more brother or sister than auntie or uncle but hey, that’s a minor detail. Most importantly, we all share a loving Father in God. -Ryan Francis, Student Manager, Liberty University CLICK HERE to learn how you could help fund future Student Manager Mission Trips such as Ryan's.
Or, Donate directly to our cause quickly and easily via our PayPal Account HERE. To God Be The Glory! Minneapolis, MN. May 4th, 2015 –
Managers On A Mission (MOAM) is excited to announce it is officially tripling the number of mission trips for this upcoming summer. After MOAM’s inaugural mission trip to Malawi in 2014, MOAM is sending three groups of student manager missionaries to Uganda, Ghana, and Zambia in 2015. The selected student managers will depart in June to spend 3 weeks assisting the Rafiki Foundation in providing educational and living services to vulnerable children and orphans. A primary role of the student manager missionaries throughout this trip is to lead the children through sports activities each day while they are on 3 week break from school. A brief video of MOAM’s 2014 mission trip can be found here. MOAM is pleased to present its 2015 Missionary Groups: Country: Uganda MOAM Leader: Drew Boe Student Managers:
Country: Zambia MOAM Leader: Jason Hubbard Student Managers:
Country: Ghana MOAM Leaders: Chris & Morgann King Student Managers:
About Rafiki: The Rafiki Foundations mission is to help Africans know God and raise their standard of living. They have ten Rafiki Training Villages in Africa and provide childcare programs, bible studies, widow programs, and much more. The Villages provide medical, educational, and living services to vulnerable children and orphans as well as train churches. About Managers On A Mission (MOAM): MOAM is a non-profit that collects new and gently used sports apparel from coaches and teams on both college and professional levels around the country. MOAM funds mission trips, service projects, and scholarships with a Christ centered focus by maximizing the platform afforded to the sports industry. The vision of MOAM is to see the world positively impacted by the faith, talent, and resources of the sports industry. To learn how you or your program could help MOAM please visit MOAM’s How To Help Page, Sponsor Page, or Contact Us. Minneapolis, Minnesota. February 1, 2015—Managers On A Mission (MOAM) is now accepting applications for the second annual fully funded Student Manager Summer Mission Trips to Africa. The selected managers will partner with the Rafiki Foundation and embark on this mission from approximately June 22nd - July 10th, 2015. Applications are available at www.managersonamission.org/mission-trips and are due on March 22nd. Last year, MOAM sent three students to Malawi on this three-week, life-changing Mission Trip. Past applicants were selected based on their strong essay responses to the questions asked. Already this year, donations have exceeded the previous years donations allowing MOAM to be able to send and support over three times as many student managers on this fully funded travel and lodging opportunity. The Rafiki Foundations mission is to help Africans know God and raise their standard of living. They have ten Rafiki Training Villages in Africa and provide childcare programs, bible studies, widow programs, and much more. The Villages provide medical, educational, and living services to vulnerable children and orphans as well as train churches. Selected Student Managers for the 2015 Mission Trip will be announced April, 1st. MOAM is a non-profit that collects new and gently used sports apparel from coaches and teams on both college and professional levels around the country. MOAM funds mission trips, service projects, and scholarships with a Christ centered focus by maximizing the platform afforded to the sports industry. The vision of MOAM is to see the world positively impacted by the faith, talent, and resources of the sports industry. To learn how you or your program could help MOAM visit our How To Help Page, Sponsor Page, or Contact Us.
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