Two Women on a Mission

Written by Betsy O'Leary

Photo by Riyen Helg

Two seniors at Southeastern Louisiana University, Hallie Kent and Maddie Grippi, have an incredible story to tell. Hallie, the daughter of Douglas and Amy Kent of Amite, is a Health Sciences major, and member of Phi Mu sorority, and Maddie is majoring in Health Systems Management and is a member of Alpha Omicron Pi sorority. They recently returned from a life-changing trip to Kenya where they shared the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the Kenyan people.

This opportunity of a lifetime arose from the students’ affiliation with Greek InterVarsity, a Christian-based group that addresses the intersection of faith and Greek life. Members since their freshman year, they met another InterVarsity student from LSU who told them about the opportunity for select students to travel to Kenya over Christmas break.

Both applied, never dreaming they would be accepted. But they learned they were chosen to partner with the Kenyan group Focus, the African counterpart to InterVarsity. The students then informed their parents they would be traveling halfway around the world. Hallie’s parents had trepidations about their only daughter going to Kenya for six weeks. But they respected her faith and believed God led her to this opportunity.

We’re Going to Africa!

Maddie admitted her own parents didn’t think that she would really go. But once she got her travel visa and vaccinations, they knew Maddie was fully committed to the trip.

Both girls had concerns over the language barrier and how they would be received as White foreigners in Africa. While they had participated in Bible studies, neither had experience actually preaching the Gospel.

Both girls lived with Kenyan pastors and their families in Africa and felt an overwhelming peace they were where they were supposed to be. Maddie stayed in Nairobi the entire time, living in the slums where extreme poverty, drugs, prostitution, and violence were commonplace.

She noted that the people she encountered were very open to learning more about the Lord. One man called her “mzungu,” which is Swahili for “white visitor.” He said if a mzungu came all the way to Kenya to preach to him, that must be God.

Hallie stayed with a pastor’s family near the country’s Ugandan border. She went door-to-door seeking people with whom she could pray She also preached in marketplaces and churches alongside Kenyan university ministries.

Culture Shock Upon Coming Home

Neither was prepared to experience culture shock upon returning to the USA. Yet, they found returning to the fastpaced American lifestyle took some adjustment. They brought some Kenyan practices home with them. Hallie appreciated the way Kenyans value their relationships rather than the timeline.

She vowed to make more time to talk and interact meaningfully with others. She loved the Swahili greetings Kenyans share with one another to begin conversations —

“Bwana Asifiwe!”

That means “Praise the Lord,” and exemplifies the Kenyans’ complete devotion to and reliance on God.

Their main takeaway was to continue to incorporate gratitude and trust in God in their daily lives here in Louisiana — and wherever their futures may lead.