From Traveling Nurse to Mercy Ships Volunteer
Without dedicated volunteers like Trent Yoder, our mission of hope and healing would be impossible to share.
Trent serves as the team lead in the preoperative department, ensuring that our patients are given the best care available while guiding his team through their daily work. From patient assessments to required forms, Trent and his team oversee every detail a patient might need before receiving free, lifesaving surgery on board the Global Mercy.
A job he never expected to take.
“I actually looked into Mercy Ships after I got out of college, but I wound up working for a couple of years and never finished my application,” Trent said. “Once COVID hit, I began travel nursing, and it was paying well, so I just stuck with it.”
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Driven to find something more meaningful in life, he finally finished his application.
“I got caught up in how much money I could make. I realized I had forgotten about my goal just after college. I lost focus of what God was trying to direct me to do.”
‘I Felt Broken’
While working as a travel nurse paid well, Trent felt as if he was missing out on something bigger. He began to go on prayer walks — praying and meditating about where to take his life.
“I felt broken and empty, traveling from city to city, working for a couple of months. Then, as soon as I got to start knowing people, I had to leave again.”
One day, a serendipitous sign presented itself to Trent in the form of a letter written to him by a fellow nurse.
“She wrote me a letter saying that she had a dream of me walking in the city at night, and she could tell I was crying out to God,” he said. “She didn’t know what I was asking God, but she could tell I was searching for something. She also didn’t know I was a Christian, so it was brave of her to write me this letter, describing several dreams she had involving me working abroad on a medical mission.”
Trent said he called an employer back and told them he was going to work for Mercy Ships instead of pursuing another contract job.
“Don’t be a Jonah,” his colleague said, “You need to go.”
Finding Purpose Through Mercy Ships
At 12 years old, Trent lost a leg after being diagnosed with bone cancer and undergoing 11 surgeries.
“When I saw the ship for the first time, I saw the gangway going straight up. I had all these suitcases, and I thought, ‘Oh no,’ I didn’t know if I would be able to make it up to the ship with my prosthetic leg.”
Undeterred, Trent made it up the gangway, and 15 months later, he’s still on board!
“I think going through these things is a part of God’s plan for my life,” he explained. “I see God’s love for the people of Sierra Leone. I see God’s love for the people of this world. And being able to be a part of it is just an awesome feeling.”
Do you want to find your place on board like Trent? Mercy Ships needs skilled medical volunteers, along with people from other backgrounds like HR, accounting, and cooking! Check out current open volunteer positions.