Name: Viktoria Gillon
Year: Junior
Major: Strategic Corporate Communications
Minor: Psychology
Number of Mission Trips: 3
Viktoria became involved with mission trips when she heard about Living Water International through a company called With This Ring, where men and women can turn in old jewelry to help pay for clean drinking water.
The team drills wells about 200 feet deep into the ground while also teaching the community about hygiene. The drilling process takes about 4 days to complete. After they perform a dedication where a Bible lesson is held. Viktoria describes this as the most emotional day because these people are seeing clean water for the first day in their lives.
The day of dedication is not only the most emotional for the people of Central America but also for the volunteers themselves.
Viktoria described this as a day of clarity for herself: “THIS is what I am supposed to be doing, I am not meant to be anywhere else but right here.” She also explained that this was the hardest day for her because she has to say goodbye to all of the people that she has built such strong relationships with: “The people of Central America are truly the most beautiful people I have ever met.”
The clean water is something that will forever impact their lives. With clean water, children won’t be sick nearly as much and will be able to attend school, wives and mothers will be able to take care of their families and men can successfully plant their crops.
Through this experience Viktoria is always sad leaving behind people she knows because she may never see them again. She only hopes that in the process of giving them “living” water through Living Water International, that she also gave them the “Living Water” of Jesus Christ.
