In senior David Larson’s eyes, a community is broader than just the neighborhood one lives in. Larson has a strong ambition to help people not only in his community but in other societies that are completely foreign to most of us.

In winter of 2014, Larson will go on an extended mission trip to Tijuana, Mexico. There he will visit the Red Light district, orphanages, and prisons. With the help of about fifteen other adults, they will try to make the community strong again.

“I am graduating in January and moving to Mexico for a mission trip. I want to spend my time out of high school wisely so I am going to go to Tijuana for volunteer work for five months,” Larson said.

“I have a passion for helping people. Helping doesn’t only help the person but also helps me to become a better person,” Larson said. “I want to empower them to do something for themselves. We are not superior towards them even though they are in a tough situation. I want to make others feel important too.”

His first mission was a local one, rebuilding the home of a family whose house was destroyed by a fire.

“The first place I went to was Maine. We worked with a family whose house burned down. The most we could do was clean the yard and paint,” Larson said. “But the family’s state of being was surprising. Their house burned down twice, but they were still happy.”

Most of Larson’s work is rooted through his church. He explained religion as a big part of the reason why he began volunteering. His parents, who own a ministry, launched Larson’s first project in Haiti right after the catastrophic earthquake in 2010.

“There I visited the prisons and it was just eye-opening. I just knew I had to do something. Eventually we raised a lot of money so we could feed and take care of the prisoners,” Larson said.

After Haiti, Larson began to work on more missions. He visited Mexico three times and did many community service projects there. Along the way he met one of his role models, John Ray.

“[Ray] was a speaker who helped us understand certain situations while on our missions. He risks his life to help other people and I find that so amazing. He is so down-to-earth and he made me feel important,” Larson said.  “Everyone is my mission field and the things I do are an overflow of love that Jesus Christ gave me.”

With a mixture of love and religion, Larson aspires to clear the world of injustice and poverty. Along the way, he hopes to inspire other people and just get a feel of the world he has yet to explore.

“It is so amazing to watch him be so giving. He inspired me to give more than take. He showed me that money and luxuries aren’t as important as people and relationships,” senior Bianca Thakkar said.

“He’s one of the most sincere, hilarious, nicest guys anyone could know. He really does care about everyone,” senior Laura Sui said.

“There is so much outside of the community where we all live. I just want to get a taste of everything’s that’s out there and also help people along the way,” Larson said. “I am not asking for a long life but a life well spent.”