OPINION
-
Kristen with youngsters from her previous mission trip.
Menard High School senior and Calvario Baptist Church member Kristen Portilla is an all-around good kid. She is constantly proving that with her hours of volunteer community service and missionary work. Kristen is involved in all the positive things a teenager in a small town should be and is the biggest cheerleader for her peers as well.
Like many of her peers, I have had the opportunity to watch Kristen grow up and become an outstanding young human. It is my fault for not mentioning her dozens of accomplishments and contributions from school, the Menard community, and beyond. It’s so many. I gave up. This girl’s got a lot going on and a very bright future.
Kristen has been given the opportunity to partake in a mission trip in Campinas, Brazil this summer. The trip will constitute the whole month of July. In Brazil, the group will partner with a church and tend to mission work and “share God’s word.” Kristen said there are several teams with different goals who will be traveling. Vacation Bible School, construction, evangelical, eyeglasses and other concerns will be met. Kristen, a Lady Jacket through- and-through, is excited that she will be on the sports team this trip.
This will be her second mission excursion to Brazil. She has also traveled to Uvalde for the last 3 years for mission work there. “I haven’t been on many mission trips, but my plan in the future once I graduate is to help in different countries and towns as well,” Kristen stated.
“Being granted such an opportunity to share my love of God with others including His word is absolutely life changing,” said Kristen, who serves as the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) president at MHS.
Kristen is currently holding fundraisers to help offset the cost of travel and preparation for this summer’s trip. Right now, she is offering 2 different designs on short or long-sleeved t-shirt and hoodies. You can see the designs at the end of this article.
If you’d like to support Kristen by purchasing a shirt, please email her at kfportilla8429@gmail.com for information. To donate, Kristen has offered her mom’s (Cheryle Spoons) Venmo as an option. Her profile is @cherylespoons. If you’d like to mail a check for Kristen, please feel free to use The News as an intermediary. A donation check should be made directly to Kristen Portilla, and mailed to: The Menard News, P.O. Box 248, Menard, TX 76859.
You can also contact me, Paige, if there’s another way we can assist in your wish to support Kristen. The office is 325-396-2243 and my email is paige@menardnews. com.
Menard has many good kids doing good things in the world, and Kristen is among the cream of the crop for sure. “I am extremely excited to go this year but will be needing some help,” she said. “Anything to help is much appreciated and I an extremely grateful.”
Again, if there is any way the news office can help you support Kristen in this endeavor, please let us know!