Because We All Started Somewhere: My Testimony for Joplin, Missouri

You'll have to forgive the personal nature of this post. But as we all know, the intersection of our professional and personal worlds is often murky. So here is my study abroad story and testimony for Joplin, MO.

What I don't say in the video is that Joplin is about an hour from where I grew up in Kansas. Because my dad lived and worked in Joplin most of my life, I've spent a considerable amount of my own life there. In fact, my grandma still lives there (though her house is severely damaged from the tornado). Joplin, for all intensive purposes, is home and it's where my study abroad story began. 

Thanks for watching. Information on how to donate money, items, and time below.

Here's a list of relief efforts happening online and a list of ways to donate your money, household items, and time from USA Today for the victims of the Joplin, Missouri, tornado.

Here's the video of the Joplin Mayor with Anderson Cooper.

And if you're interested in learning more about MSSU, here are some helpful links:
Missouri Southern State University, their international mission, great study abroad programs, and a special shout out to Chad Stebbins, Direct of International Studies, for allowing a naive freshman like me to study abroad.

You changed my life.