After Ward Alles completed his first mission trip abroad to the Dominican Republic in March of 2012, he not only felt compelled to return this past March for a second week of service but he also found inspiration to fulfill a mission of philanthropy in Milwaukee alongside staff members at Core Creative.
Alles, president of the Milwaukee-based branding agency, had never set foot outside the U.S. or participated in a mission trip prior to his 2012 trip to the Dominican Republic. But after seeing his daughter, Cassidy, take part in a youth-based mission trip to Mexico in 2011, he set out to follow her example.
“I admired my own daughter, and I said if she can do it I can do it,” Alles said.
Both of Alles’ mission trips, which were facilitated through his church, Brookfield Lutheran Church, brought him to a village called Palmar Arriba located in the Santiago province of the Dominican Republic.
During his first week of service, Alles, his high school friend D.J. Rodrian, who is president of Brookfield-based Rodrian Insurance, and at least 10 other volunteers helped build a playground for a Lutheran grade school housing about 200 students. This past March, Alles’ week-long missionary work centered on constructing the foundation of a group home for eight orphaned children with disabilities.
Alles’ efforts also are focused in his own backyard with CoreGives, a volunteer initiative that Core Creative launched toward the end of 2012.
