The discipleship classes, aiming to teach pupils how to live through Jesus’ message, brought their students to various charity organizations throughout the metro area to educate them on the importance of reaching out to others in their community.

This class, required for juniors, informs students on the importance of following the life and teachings of Jesus. “To follow Jesus is to serve others and connecting this with Jesus’ message is what this class is about,” Mr. Joel Loecken, BSM religion teacher, said.

Students visited Hope for the City, Sharing and Caring Hands, Courage Center, and Prodeo Catholic schools to observe how they can reach out to those in need in their communities but also to witness the vast struggles of those suffering in their own community. “Through the field trips, students learn the depth of challenges very close to us and the powerful ways that people are responding,” said Mr. Loecken.

As this class also has a requirement of at least 35 volunteer hours, these tours will also help students find locations to meet this requirement and to do service on their own.

These examinations of both the struggles of the community and the aid of others deepened students’ understanding of what the class attempts to teach. “It was a really positive experience and it gave us a first hand experience of the amount of poverty in the metro area,” Isaac Hogen, a BSM junior, said.