On Wednesday, August 25, 2010, Florida Hospital College of Health Sciences (FHCHS) closed for the day to "walk the talk." One aspect of preparing students to be leaders in healthcare is to incorporate Service Learning into any degree completed at FHCHS. In the evolution of developing the philosophy of Healthcare as Ministry, one of the things that the College asked itself was, "Are we as faculty and staff willing to do likewise?"
As a result, 200 faculty and staff participated in a "Service Day" project at Camp Thunderbird in Apopka, FL. Shuttles transported this group to the camp where a wide variety of projects were available – from making crafts with the clients to performing much needed maintenance on the physical facilities of the camp. Camp Thunderbird is a not-for-profit facility that provides services to adults and children with developmental disabilities.
Yoouhenky Hickman, College recruiter, summed up her feelings on the day this way:
"What was planned to be a day full of great activities and fun for the campers at Camp Thunderbird, turned out to be a life changing experience for me. I spent the day helping in the arts and crafts section. Being part of this team gave me the chance to play and do fun crafts with several campers. I got to experience love, trust, and gratefulness through them. Seeing how happy and appreciative they were for the small things we were doing for them filled my heart with warmth and happiness, and helped me realize that truly there is no greater joy than to be of service."
The essence of Healthcare as Ministry is touching humanity for God, and the faculty and staff of FHCHS are willing to lead by example. Jesus left us the greatest example, so that we will do as He did: show His love and compassion to those who are hurting in this world. "And the King will answer, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me." (Matthew 25:40) At all levels, FHCHS faculty and staff model Healthcare as Ministry to showcase to their students that a career in healthcare is a career in service. FHCHS is preparing the future leaders of healthcare one student at a time and is modeling what service to humanity is all about.
View a few more photos of the event on the Florida Hospital College of Health Sciences Facebook page.
