Of all the ways students can spend winter break, several members of the Loyola baseball team chose to spend their holidays volunteering in Belize.

Seven members of the baseball team embarked on a nine-day trip to Belize to hold a baseball camp for Mayan children. The players served in the small, Mayan village of San Jose from Dec. 27 to Jan. 5.

The villagers of San Jose live without any electricity or running water. While the players were there, they stayed in a community center and slept on mats on the floor.

Doug Faust, head baseball coach, said that not only was the trip an opportunity for the team to teach others, but also a chance for them to learn.

“The trip is a once in a lifetime opportunity to not only see and spend time in a Mayan village, it allows them to truly make a difference in the lives of the children they work with,” Faust said.

The team spent four days at the Christmas camp. Each player taught their own class about English, math and arts and crafts in the mornings.  The afternoons were spent in the field where the players got to teach the children about baseball.

“The reason the players teach baseball is because baseball is not a very popular sport in Southern Belize. They are trying to introduce it to them,” Faust said.

The other two days of the trip were spent exploring the natural wonders of Belize. The team traveled to an island off the coast of Belize called Caye Caulker.

Carmelo LoSauro, English writing senior, said that he had a great time on the trip.

“Simply put, it was an honor and a blessing to have gone on this unique trip,” LoSauro said.

The Rev. Ted Dziak and the Ignacio Volunteers sponsor the annual trip.

While this trip may seem as if they sacrificed their winter break, LoSauro said that the team did not feel this way.

“I did not even think about the fact that I was giving up my Christmas break to partake in this service trip, because it did not feel like I was giving up anything. I grew closer to my fellow teammates, built new friendships with several members in the San Jose community and felt so welcomed and appreciated by the people in the village,” LoSauro said.