Former St. John's soccer standout makes mission trip

Spending her first summer away from preseason practices, St. John's alumna and Wall, N.J., native Nicole Canning, has no interest in relaxing on the Jersey Shore, instead she will travel more than 7,000 miles from home to bring the Vincentian mission to the huts of Uganda. 

For three weeks (June 25-July 15), Canning will be joining Sr. Carole MacKenthun and Sr. Faida with the Mission of Mercy in the bush area of Lira in the north of Uganda, where LRA rebels have been active for many years. She will be volunteering in the Alanyi Parish, to help build their "Field of Dreams," assist at the Alanyi orphanage and health care center and Alanyi's primary school.

Canning will also help out at St. Kizito School, which is located in Luwetunga, Uganda 

As part of her volunteer work, Canning will help deliver babies and give vaccinations and for the fun part, playing soccer with the children. The orphanage houses children from birth until 16 years of age.  Canning will be traveling with three of her St. Rose High School classmates.

She has been planning her trip to Uganda since March. The recent college graduate helped raise money through various fundraising efforts and donations.  Prep work included spraying all of her clothes with mosquito spray, as malaria is prominent in Uganda, getting vaccinations for polio and yellow fever and taking preventative medication for malaria and typhoid fever.

Canning also shipped over donated soccer equipment and mini soccer balls for the young children. When she leaves on June 25, she will be bringing additional donated soccer items for the young children.  Her suitcase was filled with lots of long dresses and skirts, as women are not permitted to wear pants. Canning and her friends will be living in traditional huts. Her diet will consist of water supplied by the parish, sweet potatoes, corn and energy bars she will be packing in her carry on.            

The full trip to Uganda will be 15 hours in the air, and a car trip from Entebbe, Uganda, the closest airport, to Kampala. The trip includes a nine hour layover in London, where Canning and her travel partners will attempt to take a quick tour of England's capital city.  After driving from Entebbe to Kampala, Canning and her companions will have a short five-day vacation which includes a visit to Kampala's resident bishop and his palace made of ivory and marble and a stopover at the Equator.

She will conclude her three-week journey with a three-day African safari, which includes a one day trip on the Nile River.  Sr. Carole has been making the trip to Uganda for seven years, this is her fourth year inviting students to come along for the chance to make a difference in someone's lives. 

Make sure to check back with RedStormSports.com, as Canning will be returning to the states with video blogs and photos of her journey.