YOU, yes YOU, can help in Haiti!
Hi dear ones! I am excited to share with you about this opportunity, because I hope some of you folks in the North Carolina, or USA area will answer the call!
Our dear friends Frank and Sharon Dees run a wonderful missions organisation back in NC called Youth On Mission (YOM)and they are organising trips to Haiti in the next few months to help with the relief efforts there. I personally don’t think you could sign on with a better couple of folks to be a part of a life-changing experience to touch lives and be a blessing in an incredible time of need.
Before you switch off or click to another post I just want to encourage you — yes, you — to consider that this could be a possibility for you. Your boss might actually give you the time off work to go and be a part of this. (You won’t know until you ask). Your church might be willing to do some car washes, bake sales, etc., to raise the funds to help you be a part of this. (You won’t know until you ask.) People might even offer to help take care of your kids. Your professors might say it’s okay to miss a few classes. So before you say n-n-n-oooo think about the possibility of saying yes. Rich Mullins used to say, “If you ain’t called to stay, you’re called to go!” (That might be my paraphrase…but think about it!)
Here are the details from Frank:
Good afternoon, I pray that you are all well. I want to let you know about opportunities for you to directly help with the current relief and recovery efforts in Haiti. I will be traveling with our International Mission coordinator Bob Adams and a team of 12 volunteers into Haiti the week of February 27. The team will work with YOM’s partner ministry SCORE International, which has a served in the Dominican Republic for 20+ years. Below is specific information on where we will be serving and what we will be doing.
The level of interest and desire to help has been amazing the last several days as God has brought about the right partners and opportunities to go and assist in whatever capacity the Lord allows. The small contribution that our ministry can make is summed up in our mission statement:
“Youth On Mission exists to meet spiritual and physical needs by equipping and mobilizing short term mission teams for the purpose of sharing the love of God through His son, Jesus Christ.”
This is why we exist and what we seek to do every day. The disaster in Haiti is another opportunity for all of us, as the body of Christ, to meet these spiritual and physical needs by sharing the love of God through his son Jesus Christ. I pray that we will all assist in whatever capacity and by whatever means we are able.
YOM will recruit another team for the week of March 6-12. This is the second week that I will be in Haiti after our initial group returns to the U.S. Please continue to pray for the people of Haiti and YOM as we seek what our part in this will be going forward. Please let me know if you have any questions, thoughts or concerns that we can help with.
March 6-12 Â –Â Trip Cost: $1,300 per person
1. $500 NON-REFUNDABLE deposit is due at registration to secure a spot. Tickets will be purchased at the time of registration; therefore, no one is registered until the deposit is received.
2. Spots will be given on a first come first serve basis; we cannot hold spots without at deposit.
3. Final balance is due by FRIDAY FEBRUARY 19
Cost includes: Airfare, meals, lodging, ground transportation, insurance, and supplies. Application and notarized Medical Release form must be completed by February 19. Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by a parent.
Ministry Locations:
You will travel to one of the following ministry cities during your trip at the discretion of our partners on the ground. You will not be able to choose which city you go to. As of 1-22-10, most ministry is currently based in Jimani.
1. Port au Prince (PAP): In PAP we are working with an orphanage that sits right beside the runway for the airport. Teams will use the orphanage as a base camp to distribute supplies and provide medical help.
2. Jacmel, Haiti: this is a town on the southern coast of Haiti, about 30 miles south of PAP. Jacmel is not getting relief teams because of the difficulty of reaching the location. SCORE is working with the Mayor of Jacmel and we have a building that we can use for our base camp there.
3. Jimani, D.R. This is the town right on the border of Haiti. Refugees are flooding out of Haiti and coming to Jimani. A local hospital there has offered to let SCORE International use an entire floor of the hospital to work with the refugees. This will be a location where medical teams can provide much needed relief.
Tentative Trip Schedule:
Saturday: Fly from USA to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. SCORE will pick you up at the airport and take you to a hotel in Juan Dolio, Dominican Republic.
Sunday: Purchase food, water, and medical supplies. Travel to your ministry city.
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday: Work in your ministry city. (Medical clinics, food and water distribution, etc.)
Thursday: Travel from your ministry city back to Santo Domingo. Stay in town of Juan Dolio that night.
Friday: Fly home to USA from Santo Domingo airport (SDQ).
What to Bring:
Pack light! Bring two to three changes of clothing. $100 or less of spending money will be plenty unless you are bringing extra cash to buy donation supplies with. Sleeping conditions may vary in your ministry city, so be prepared to sleep on the ground or in rough environments. Most common items needed on the trip include: flashlight, sunscreen, towel or wash cloth, snacks or protein bars, bug spray, sleeping bag or tent, and toiletries. Also, it is a good idea if everything you bring for your own needs fits in a backpack.
How to Sign Up:
Call YOM @ 1-800-299-0385 or email yom@yom.org or visit our website (www.yom.org).
Send in the paperwork via email or fax as soon as possible. YOM needs full payment for your trip by FRIDAY FEBRUARY 19. We accept Visa and MasterCard, and check.
Safety Concerns:
As of right now our people on the ground do not foresee and safety concerns in the Dominican Republic. This is why we feel it is best to bring teams in through the DR and stage the trips from there. As the groups go into Haiti, we will have a security envoy that will travel with them. The situation on the ground changes day by day and safety in Haiti is never guaranteed. We will do our best to keep you posted about the safety level of the teams in Haiti
Health Concerns:
There are no required immunizations at this time. You can refer to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) website for up to date information about shots and immunizations. (www.cdc.gov)
Passports:
Yes, passports are required to fly into and out of the Dominican Republic as well as travel between the DR and Haiti. If you do not have a passport and want to get one with an expedited service, try www.visahq.com The 2 day service costs $200 (plus the regular passport fee of $135). At checkout, enter the promo code HAITIHQ to get 50% off of the service fee, making it only $100.
Extra Nights:
We have had some inquiries about people wanting to go on a Rapid Response trip and stay for longer than the 7 day / 6 night trip that we have planned.
If you would like to go and then stay an extra week, we can do that. The price is $50 per person per night for any extra nights ($350 for one extra week, $700 for two extra weeks, etc).
Please understand that when the team leaves their ministry city on Thursday morning that you will have to return with them to Santo Domingo.
We will not be leaving anyone in a ministry city or in Haiti in between the trip dates.
You will return to a ministry city with the next team on the following Sunday.
Ultimate Goal:
The ultimate goal of our Rapid Response Mission Teams in twofold. We want to go and provide physical and medical relief to those in need, but more importantly we want to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and meet their spiritual needs.
Frank Dees
Youth On Mission, Director
frank@yom.org
www.yom.org
www.facebook.com/YouthOnMission
1-800-299-0385
(Caroline here) Well, guys and gals… I think that sounds like an amazing opportunity! If I wasn’t halfway around the world here in SA I would really be keen to jump in! If you are interested or have more questions, I would definitely suggest touching base with Frank or visiting www.yom.org. If you decide to go, please let me know! We (me and hopefully your fellow readers) will keep you in prayer during the trip, and I would love for you to guest post on the blog about your experience when you get back! Please pass this post on to anyone you think might be interested!
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