2018 Dominica Mission Trip

I am raising funds to join my church on a mission trip to the island of Dominica to build homes for those in need.
Each person going needs to raise about $2,800 to cover plane tickets, food, and lodging while on the island.  I copied the mission statement from our 2016 trip because it gives a good description of the trip and the need. This year the trip will be primarily focused on home building and clothing distribution. 

Thank you to those of you who donated to my trip last year. You made a difference!

If you contact me I can give you information to make a donation directly to my church which has two benefits.
1: Your donation will be tax deductible for you and the church will send you a receipt. (your donation through gofundme will not be tax deductible for you) 
2: 100% of your donation will go towards the trip. (go fundme keeps a percentage of your donation to keep the site running)

Here is the payment schedule for attending the mission trip.

Payment Schedule (We need to accelerate the schedule so we can purchase tickets earlier this year.)
 $200 deposit holds my spot on the team. (pay by June 1.)
 An additional $1200 is due by August 15 so we can purchase tickets.
 An additional $700 is due by October 15.
 The final $700 is due by December 15.

2016 mission statement
"We partnered with the Arizona Southern Baptist Convention and churches in both Arizona and Tennessee in 2014 to minister to the people of the Island of Dominica.  Though it's far from Arizona, we consider it part of our mission field.  We took a mission trip in 2014 and again in 2015 to the island to lead in Vacation Bible Schools, construct homes, conduct sports camps, and distribute clothing and shoes. 

The island itself is both very poor and very beautiful.  A lack of industry and very little tourism (not many cruise ships go that far southeast) mean that the economy struggles even in the good times.  Since most of the islanders speak fluent English (with a strong accent), we are able to minister without a language barrier.

In August of 2015, Hurricane Erika flooded the island and many homes and other structures were destroyed.  The island's infrastructure was badly damaged.  The island relies heavily on a coastal road that encircles the island, and numerous bridges on this road were washed out and mudslides shut down other sections of the road.  Cell phone towers were destroyed.  The airport was closed.  Schools and churches were turned into shelters.  The President of Dominica believes and publicly stated that their island was set back at least 20 years.  The island was already poor, very similar to Haiti.  The flooding has made matters much worse.

Due to their strong need, and at their request, we have changed plans.  Our 2016 mission trip which was originally scheduled for June has now been rescheduled for January of 2016.  Primarily, we will build homes and distribute clothing and shoes.  We do anticipate returning in future years (not yet scheduled) to do other ministries such as Vacation Bible Schools and sports camps, but right now, shelter and clothing are the priorities and are the biggest need on the island.

If you would like to give to our Dominica Fund, you can do so through our online giving portal by clicking on the e-giving link below*.  You can choose to give to the project as a whole, or you can designate your gift to be used for one of the team members."

* http://www.fsbca.org/index.html