Alumni return for Global Focus Week to instill passion, equip students to spread the Gospel worldwide

Six years ago, Stephen Sneed (’17, ’19) graduated from Liberty University and entered into full-time ministry with Samaritan’s Purse. This week, he returned to Liberty for the first time since his graduation, his calling coming full circle as he shared with students about opportunities for global ministry and how God has used him internationally during a Take Your Career to the Nations workshop on Tuesday as part of Global Focus Week.

Over 150 global workers from 47 organizations are on campus this week to connect students with opportunities to serve globally. Sneed is one of many Liberty alumni who are representing their organizations to students who are passionate about overseas work. For some, the visit marks a continued partnership to give back to the university that formed their love for missions.

Sneed, who earned a bachelor’s in communication and master’s in strategic communication, said he originally felt called to missions when World Help founder Vernon Brewer — one of Liberty’s first graduates — spoke at a Liberty Convocation.

“He gave this incredible talk, and I remember feeling the Lord just poking me, and I couldn’t sit still in my seat, and I knew He was calling me to something, but I didn’t know what that looked like,” Sneed said.

He connected with Samaritan’s Purse representatives during a Global Focus Week and was encouraged to apply for an internship. He was eventually accepted as a communications intern in Liberia, West Africa, which opened up doors for further opportunities with the organization. Today, he is a social media and media relations manager for Samaritan’s Purse, where he has been serving for six years. He has served in various countries, including Italy, Kenya, Sudan, Ethiopia, Ukraine, Poland, Turkey, Egypt, Israel, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Uganda, and more.

Sneed said he was excited to share his experience with current Liberty students.

“I walked around campus and saw how God has blessed this school and just how blessed I have been to have started here and to have gained all of the experiences that I have from Liberty. It’s amazing, and I was excited to share with these guys (at the workshop). It’s full circle and feels really cool.”

Sneed is one of several Samaritan’s Purse representatives who began their calling at Liberty, like recruiter Lindsey Frank (’22) and student partnership specialist Taylor Menconi (’20), who have been at the Samaritan’s Purse table at the Montview Student Union this week.

“Liberty was such a special place that cultivated in me a love for people all around the globe,” said Menconi, who majored in international relations. “Liberty students are very enthusiastic about partnering with us, which is very, very encouraging, and it’s really neat to be able to pour into them where I was at years ago.”

Frank, who has a bachelor’s degree in strategic communication from Liberty, works domestically for Samaritan’s Purse by recruiting students and volunteers.

“I love connecting with students, telling them the work that we do and hoping that the Lord sparks passion in them as well,” she said.

Many other organizations have Liberty alumni who are excited to be back on campus for the week, like Leah Wright (’25), a volunteer coordinator for World Help, which is based in nearby Forest, Va. Similar to Sneed, she first connected with World Help representatives during a Global Focus Week and applied for a volunteer coordinator internship. She interned for two semesters and after graduating in May with a bachelor’s degree in business, she stepped into a full-time position.

Wright said it’s been fun to share her passion with her friends on campus and other students interested in ministry.

“There’s a lot of interest with students here, and I think that’s guided by Jesus Christ because people here love the Lord, and they want to go,” she said. “If you love the Lord, we are commanded (by Jesus) to go and make disciples of all nations. Helping those who are helpless is just a great testimony of God’s love.”

Hannah Taylor (’15) is a relationship and communications manager with UK-USA Ministries in the United Kingdom, a ministry that makes disciples through equipping local churches and serving local communities. UK-USA partners with Greater Europe Mission to run Ten2 Project teams (students who spend a summer living out the Gospel across Europe). Taylor helps manage Ten2 teams in England.

Taylor originally moved to the United Kingdom with her family for missions when she was about 15 years old. She took high school classes through Liberty University Online Academy and then completed her first year of college through Liberty University Online Programs before moving to campus her last three years. Because she had seen the need for the Gospel in the UK, she knew she wanted to pursue missions there.

“I had that upbringing of the global mindset of Christianity,” she said. “There’s so much need out there beyond us, and I knew I wanted to live for something more than just myself.”

Taylor compared her time at Liberty to a greenhouse that fed her spiritually and immersed her in Christ-centered community, fanning the flames and passion she already had for global missions.

“As I’ve been talking to students this week, I’ve just seen in people’s eyes the same hunger for God that I remember having when I was here, and (I tell them to) keep going. It’s worth it. It’s not in vain,” she said, noting that seeing students at Liberty who are on fire for God is encouraging after living in the post-Christian culture of the UK. “I love returning here and seeing how the Lord is sustaining His people and stirring in their hearts a desire for His purposes.”

Taylor hosted the GEM table with fellow Liberty alumnus Braden Hughes (’19). Hughes came to Liberty undecided in his major, but through taking global studies courses, God directed him to declare global studies as his major. He first heard of GEM during a Global Focus Week and eventually became a campus mobilizer, serving in France as part of his global studies internship. Today, he helps manage the Ten2 Project.

“Global Focus Week is a really special week,” he said. “We go to a lot of different campuses across the U.S. for missions events, and I think Liberty’s Global Focus Week is truly one of the most impactful ones out there. There is so much opportunity for people to engage with missions well.”

Taylor added that they pray every day the Lord would continue instilling a passion and calling for missions in the students at Liberty.

“Knowing that the Lord is rallying His people, His troops, it gives me so much hope for that prayer,” she said. “We’re just asking, ‘Lord, would you ignite a fire in the hearts of these students to see that there’s so much more to life than what everyone else is doing, or even what everyone else is doing in Christian culture?’ And so it gets me excited to see that there are people here who are (willing) to be sent.”

Global Focus Week, hosted by LU Serve, continues through Friday. Throughout the week, students have the opportunity to meet with organizations, experience a variety of cultures, and participate in workshops and other interactive events. During Wednesday’s Convocation, students heard from Samaritan’s Purse Chief Operating Officer Edward Graham. The week will culminate with the popular Taste of Nations Festival, hosted by LU ONE and the International Student Center, from 6-8 p.m. on Friday on the Academic Lawn. A full list of Global Focus Week activities is available online.