2025 Summer Mission Trip Recap
November 17, 2025
by Ildri Weber '26

This past summer, God blessed me with the incredible opportunity to go on the Campus Ministry mission trip to Nashville, Tennessee. Going into the trip, I had no idea what to expect. When we arrived in Nashville, I was placed in a group of people I had never met before. We were all from different states, with completely different backgrounds. This was definitely a little bit outside of my comfort zone. But, from that very first day, I realized that God had put me in that group for a reason. We quickly grew close through working together and commuting on the hour drive to our work site, praying and sharing stories of faith on the drive.
Our service project assignment was repairing a house for a woman named Lavern. There, we repaired and painted her shutters, front door, and porch. We cleaned her gutters, organized and got rid of unnecessary things in her shed, chopped down bushes and trees, trimmed overgrowth, and even did some drywall repair inside of her house. She was one of the kindest people I have ever met - so full of gratitude and joy, even in difficult circumstances. Every morning when we showed up to work, she greeted us with a smile and words of encouragement. Seeing her faith and positivity really opened my eyes to how powerful gratitude can be.
Throughout the week, we had Mass every single morning. Starting my morning with Mass made my days full of joy and gratitude. We also had different activities at night, such as Eucharistic Adoration and confession. I had no idea how much these moments of prayer would affect me, but they did significantly. I had never truly experienced God in the way I did the evening of Adoration. Sitting in Adoration with everyone quietly singing and taking time just to be still with God was one of the most peaceful and powerful experiences I have ever had.
There was also a woman who gave us a talk every evening. Her talks helped us to reflect on our faith and our purpose. Her words helped me to think more deeply about how God is present not just in the big events, like the Mission Trip, but in every single part of my life, the good and the bad, the joys and sorrows, and the wins and the losses.
As the week started to end, I felt closer to God than I ever had before. And even though my air mattress deflated every single night and the showers were absolutely freezing, this trip reminded me that faith is not just something that we practice on Sundays, it is something that we live out through service, community, and love for others every single day. It showed me that when we step outside of our comfort zones and open our hearts, God meets us there and transforms us in ways that we would have never imagined.
This Mission Trip did not just change the house that we worked on, it changed me. It deepened my faith, strengthened my trust in God, and helped me see how powerful it can be when we serve others with joy and humility.
I would like to leave you all with one thing: At the end of the week, Lavern wrote me a letter. When I opened it, it read, “Write the vision and make it plain.” Now, if I am being honest, when I first read this, I was super confused, so I looked it up. What I found was amazing. This is a Bible Verse, Habakkuk 2:2, that means writing down your vision is a way to show God that you believe He will help you accomplish what He has called you to do.
So BK, write the vision, and make it plain.

One hundred and forty-five Bishop Kelley students were recently named AP Scholars through their demonstrated excellence in the Advanced Placement (AP) program. Fifty-five of these students were named as AP Scholars with Distinction. The accolade is granted to students who receive an average score of at least 3.5 on all AP Exams taken, and scores of 3 or higher on five or more of the exams. This is the highest recognition the College Board offers through the AP program. In addition, thirty-eight Bishop Kelley students were named AP Scholars with Honors. These awards are granted to students who receive an average score of at least 3.25 on all AP Exams taken, and scores of 3 or higher on four or more of these exams. Another fifty-three students have been designated AP Scholars, granted to students who receive an average score of at least 3.5 on all AP Exams taken, and scores of 3 or higher on five or more of these exams. Two hundred and seventy-seven Bishop Kelley students took a record six hundred and thirty-seven Advanced Placement (AP) tests in May, 2026 with an extraordinary 89% scoring “3” or higher. Fifteen percent of Bishop Kelley test takers scored the highest possible “5” on their exams, the equivalent of “Extremely Well Qualified” according to the College Board which administers the international testing. A “5” equates to an A+ or A in college level classes. Internationally, only 9% of all tests earn a “5” score. Another forty-two percent of Bishop Kelley students scored at the second highest tier, a “4,” equal to ”Very well Qualified,” a level only achieved by twenty percent of all testers. The record number of exams for Bishop Kelley students include twenty-three different subjects, covering a wide range of disciplines including science, math, English, social studies, fine arts, world languages and business. The largest number of tests for Bishop Kelley students included one hundred and thirty-eight AP English Language and Composition students, followed by ninety-eight students who took the AP United States Government test, and seventy-two who took the AP Pre-calculus exam. Bishop Kelley students scored the highest average on the AP Physics I exam with a school mean score of 4.47, followed by AP English Literature with a mean score of 4.13. Fifty-nine percent of Bishop Kelley alumni in the Class of 2026 graduated with a “3” or higher on at least one AP exam in their high school tenure. AP exams are scored on a scale of 1-5 with a “passing” score considered to be a “3” or higher. Bishop Kelley offers students AP exams in nineteen different subject areas. AP tests, developed by college and university professors, are considered among the most rigorous college-preparatory exams for high school students today. Bishop Kelley AP Scholars with Distinction Claire Anderson Jacob Arp Lola Bain Rylan Bauer Clara Berg Quinn Brasseux Dean Brown Rebecca Carlile Alexander Clark Landon Danz Mary Alice Doyle Lauren Embry Cole Finn Gianna Frey John Galbraith Macy Gerkin Madeline Gerkin Isabella Gilbert Evan Green Addison Greer Owen Hair Charles Hill Benjamin Hoel Madison Holleman Simone Hounshell Hayden Hutto William Johnson Robert Karlovich Asher Keltner Reese Launchbaugh Ella Lundt Jacqueline Manning Stacey Maupin Isabella McClure Joseph McKean Sophia McKnight Madeline Mellen Claire Nelson Danny Nguyen Eva Nguyen Hannah Nguyen Abigail Orr Lillian Orr Cade Parks Anna Pereira Laurel Pohlenz Ashley Richer Joseph Schurman Kate Strandmark William Tanner Hope Thompson Jonathan Tran Colette VanTrease Dat Vu Jackson Wrobleski Bishop Kelley AP Scholars with Honors Alex Aldrette Liam Allen Noah Baum Audrey Brewer Caroline Cohlmia Margaret Doyle Cadence Fielstra Bella Fusco Victoria Gogol Claire Goodman Kaylee Grisaffe Bode Harris Martin Hernandez Benjamin Hixon George Johnston Kinsley Knapp Riley Knox Hudson Kruggel Mark Kuehler Jordan Morales Dexton Nance Katelyn Rains Olivia Rambo Matthew Ranallo William Ritzhaupt Brooke Rossow Kira Smith Catherine Sousa Harper Spanier Madalene Stoulil Isabel Swiney Elizabeth Tran Laila Uhren Thanh Vu Dane Weldon Aidan Wilson Ella Wrobleski Bishop Kelley AP Scholars Margaret Abraham Violet Abraham Daniel Allred Madelyn Anderson Alexander Barry Noah Bietto James Blankenship Virginia-Grey Buck Ian Burris Maurizio Carbonell Lucy Cermak Emily Cook Kennedy Cooper Jonathan Corfidi Jackson Cortright Caroline Dowdell Jason Dowdell Madeline Dunham Trevor Gable Liam Hall Madeline Heatherman Thompson Herndon Jacob Hoang Eli Horeled Ashley Huynh Clay Jordan Maggie Leach Sarah Leake Blair Leonard Sean Maloney Nicole McKean Grant Morrison Ava Myers Delilah Nguyen Monserrat Novelo-Roig Isabella Paschal Julian Penny Josh Phillips Dutch Prather Sebastian Quiroz Ryland Ramos Eliza Riffe William Sandusky Avery Sparks Elise Sullivan Henry Talley Hayden Throop Aaron Valadkhani Marcus Warden Ildri Weber Colton Williams Laila Wong Landon Woolley




