1. Enactusin Action: Business in Brazil
By La’Princia Cromer
“Even though most things are different to the American lifestyle, we do share something in
common, the love of God.” – Nick Webb
Nick Webb, a senior business major from Summerville, S.C., was a part of the Enactus team who
traveled to Balem, Brazil, last summer to work on a Business as Mission project. Along with
three fellow students, Dr. Scott Pearson, chair of the department of business, Cathy Johnson,
wife of business professor Dr. Sharon Johnson and Logan Bennett, a 2010 alumnus, the team
ventured across northeast Brazil making lasting memories.
The first trip in a planned series of three, the purpose of the Enactus team was to gather
necessary information to develop a business plan for an entrepreneurial venture in the villages
of Brazil that will ultimately fund a nonprofit ministry. The vision of the trip was brought to life
through a partnership with Bennett, a vocational missionary in Brazil who has begun his own
company, Global English, teaching English to the people of Brazil. A connection was made
between Bennett and members of the Enactus team as each had visions of entrepreneurship
and serving God through missionary efforts.
“I am a Christian, and I care very deeply about economic development which is essentially what
this project is about; it’s about raising people up to a higher standard of living,” said Amanda
Mulholland, a senior majoring in economics.
During the 10 days in Balem, Brazil, the team spent one day meeting with executives and
discussing business. Dr. Paulo, an attorney, held a meeting with the team to explain the
difference between Brazilian government regulations and tax rules from those of the United
States. The group joined the CFO of a multimillion dollar company, EX-MAM, for another
informational sitting. A brilliant financial manager, Edwin further clarified some of the
information Paulo had given to the team. Edwin also explained the intricacies of the tax system
and other essentials for building and operating a business within Brazil.
Johnson coordinated the Vacation Bible School portion of the trip with the purpose of
discovering who Jesus is, making a decision to follow Jesus, and then defending what one
knows about Jesus.
The third day of the Vacation Bible School represented defending what one knows. With the
help of the CSU students, attendees created a gospel bracelet that held a blue bead in the
middle representing baptism. “Baptism does not save you but it is a way of making that public
declaration that you know Jesus,” said Johnson to the missionary of the church who became
very excited when hearing this. In previous times, there were many children who had come to
church declaring that they believed in Jesus but as they grew older left the church.

2. Over the course of the three days of teachings, devotions and testimonies, 15 children made
the decision to accept Christ while 18 more children came forward for baptism, rededicating
their lives to Christ.
“We were extremely excited to see God working in their hearts,” said Webb.
On the eighth day of the trip, the Enactus team headed to Reverend Wilson Grieve’s boat for a
trip they would never forget down the Amazon River. After 2 hours the team reached their
destination at Caicaua village -- the Ribeirinhos, a family community, where the first stop was
the grandmother’s home, the head of the village. While talking to the grandmother topics were
discussed including their way of life, faith and view of Christianity.
Shocking to Webb was the fact that the Ribeirinhos thought Christians were healers. “And we
had to explain to them that it was not like that. You had to pray to God for all your help that
you needed which was something they did not expect,” he said.
Upon leaving the grandmother’s home, the team made a stop at the village school where gift
bags containing toothpaste, toothbrush, toys, bar soap and other essential items were
disbursed. Due to a low tide, the trip was lengthened a couple of hours. During this time the
Enactus team continued to bond with the children and their families, sharing many stories and
countless laughs.
Spending only 10 days in Brazil became a constricting factor as the CSU team sought to
accomplish all of the goals which had been set. Though the main goal of the trip was to get
information in order to develop a business plan, only one day (Day 7) was spent actually
performing this task. The CSU team spent a majority of their time developing memorable
relationships with the Brazilian children and their families.
Though initially nervous about the trip and the impact that she would make, Mulholland said,
“When I got there I realized that it wasn’t about what I contributed. God was loving on me,
through the experience, through these people, and that’s what it’s all really about, our
opportunities for Christ.”
The transformation of a proposed trip to develop a business plan into one of missionary
essence was very impactful not only for the children of Brazil but also in the individual lives of
each student who was a part of the trip. Along with the friendships that were made, there were
also many life-altering lessons that were taken away from the experience.
Mulholland, as well as the rest of the team, was very hands-on with the children. She said, “I
definitely bonded with a handful of kids. It was just so incredible to me that we didn’t speak the
same language, but we still bonded. And the fact that love was essentially the communication
that was going on in the church was something that was really incredible for me.”

3. The president of Enactus, Keith Millender, a junior business administration major, said that his
strong suit is not really with kids. Millender’s primary focus on the trip was the task at hand, to
develop a business plan. However, it was impossible to deny God’s presence through the
children of Brazil.
“But it was really cool to see how devoted they were to getting to church and spending time
with people who believe in Jesus,” said Millender. “So I kind of learned that there are so many
distractions here in America that it’s hard to get the faith of a child because Jesus said,‘… Suffer
little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God’ (Luke
18:16). It was just one of those things to learn that these little kids have a lot more faith than I
do sometimes.”
The children of Brazil left a huge impression on the life of Webb. “The experiences I have been
through on this trip have definitely refreshed my spirituality. Sometimes I get caught up in the
fast-paced, American dog-eat-dog mentality and lose sight of what is really important. The kids
in the villages we visited obviously do not have the material things that we do, but I noticed
that they are way happier than kids their age in America.”
Before departing for home, the team attended a Hippie Festival in the Belem Plaza, which is a
market. This introduced an opportunity for the team to experience more of the Brazilian culture
including their food, handmade goods and lifestyles learned through communication.
Mulholland said that the trip was the single most amazing experience of her life. Emmanuel
Amon, a junior business administration major, would like to return and also use the experience
as motivation to Nigeria, the native land of his father, and aid efforts to develop the economy.
“Overall this trip has been a life-changing event for all of us. It has really opened our eyes to the
needs, perspective and lifestyles of the world,” said Webb. “We developed a bond so strong in
a week, and we didn’t speak the same language. I can only imagine how close we could have
been if only we spoke the same language."