All parts of your registration are due by February 5, 2012. On February 5th, an application with missing items will result in an incomplete application and your name will be added to a trip waiting list. In this situation, you will only be able to go on the trip if a spot becomes available.

Complete the following by Feb 5th (all links found on the right):

1. Faith Community Student Mission Trip Registration (online form)
2. Student Health Form (online form)
• Note: This form must be filled out once for each school year. If you went on the Fall or Winter Retreat, you have already completed this form.
3. World Servants Application Form (print and submit form)
• If you’re 18 or over on June 30, fill out the “World Servants Adult Application Form” OR
• If you’re under 18 on June 30, fill out the “World Servants Student Application Form”
• Note: This form must be signed by a parent/guardian in front of a notary. A notary will be available in Fellowship Hall on Sunday January 22nd and Sunday February 5th between services and after second service to notarize this document.
4. $100 non-refundable deposit (PayPal or check or cash).
• Make check payable to “Faith Community Church” with “student missions” in memo line. (This deposit will be applied to the parents’ financial commitment unless you notify us otherwise.)
5. APPLICATION QUESTIONS: Each student must answer these open response questions by Sunday, February 5th using the online link “Faith Community Student Application Open Response Questions” on the mission trip webpage:
• Write a brief account of your faith journey (include how/if you’ve come to know Jesus Christ personally)
• Why do you want to be a member of this mission team? What can you contribute to the team?
• What are you currently doing to grow in your faith?

Applications (completed and received by Feb 5th) will be reviewed and students with health or behavior concerns, attendance issues, or other general concerns raised through the application questions will meet with Karen Cooprider to discuss the concerns. The team roster will be finalized by mid-February.

What’s expected of me before the trip?

1. Follow the Registration Process outlined above by Feb 5th.
2. Once registered, teens are expected to regularly attend our Sunday morning student ministry and/or a small group. That means we must see you a minimum of 3 out of 4 times per month.
3. Teens must attend the all-day Team Building Session on Sat, May 12.
4. Teens and their parents must attend a Pre-Trip Meeting Sun, May 6, from 12:15 – 1:30.
5. Teens must assist with the fundraisers as needed. Scheduled fundraisers include:

• Garage Sale/Car Wash, Saturday, June 9 from 7:00 AM – 2:30 PM. Teens will also be expected to volunteer a minimum of 2 hours during the week leading up to the garage sale and help with clean up the Wednesday following the sale.
• Reach the Beach, help man road race station, Friday May 18.

Failure to meet these requirements is grounds for dismissal from the summer missions team.

Why go on a mission trip?
Mission trips are a great opportunity to develop a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ and a greater love for others. You will grow in your relationship with God and with those on our team through daily devotions, dynamic worship and evening discussions both in the large group and within a small group. Serving others in West Virginia will provide an opportunity for you to interact with, reach out to and love folks who live very different lives from yours. You will be challenged to step outside your comfort zone and experience God, while others experience God through you!

Why West Virginia?
As we looked for an organization to partner with, we searched for a group that was established in the community year round, with full-time staff and deep community relationships. We wanted to know that the Kingdom work we were involved with would continue by those living and serving there with us. In addition, we were looking for a location within driving distance, which could accommodate a group our size.

In contrast to last year’s trip to the Dominican Republic, our trip to Grafton, West Virginia will provide opportunity to experience and understand how we can partner with and support the work of the church in rural, impoverished America. Appalachia is a 200,000 sq. mi. rural region covering 12 U.S. states, including West Virginia. In the last 30 years, economic challenges have greatly increased as industries that once produced good jobs are gone.

World Servants, founded in 1986, is a great organization that began bringing teams to West Virginia communities in 2005. The purpose of World Servant’s ministry there is to partner with local leaders to impact the community physically and spiritually for Jesus Christ. World Servants projects have a long-term impact both on volunteer participants and local communities while assisting these communities to become self-sustaining.

Grafton, a quaint town tucked in the mountains of Taylor County West Virginia’s mining region, is about 3 hours south of Pittsburg PA. The economy of Grafton effectively crumbled in 1986 when the B&O railroad, which employed much of Grafton at its train depot downtown, was sold and moved most of its workers to Baltimore.

During our trip, we will work alongside the community and a local church, meeting both physical and spiritual needs, improving living conditions and opening doors to share Jesus. Physical needs are met primarily through residential construction and renovation projects. Spiritual needs are met as we build relationships with the families we are doing the work projects for and by engaging in a combination of outreach activities, such as hosting Mega Sports Camps (basketball, soccer, cheerleading), hosting a community cookout with a local congregation and worshiping with this same congregation.

What does the week look like?
Early Saturday, June 30, we will leave Faith Community Church and travel in vans for 10 ½ hours (plus stops along the way) to our home at Camp Towles in Grafton, WV (a private 4H camp on a beautiful, slow-moving river). Accommodations include cabins with bunk beds (about 12-24 people per cabin), a shower house with bathrooms, a large meeting place (cafeteria, kitchen & meeting room), bonfire pit, large sports field and meals prepared by local cooks. Sunday morning we will worship in Grafton with our church partner and spend the afternoon & evening together in orientation, relaxing, worship and small groups. We will work Monday through Friday, conducting Mega Sports Camps for half the day and working the other half of the day in up to 12 teams at private homes on renovation and home repair projects. On Wednesday afternoon and evening, we will spend some R&R time at Tygert State Park on pontoon boats and other activities, and celebrate the 4th of July at a cookout in the center of Grafton with our church partner. We will drive home all day Saturday, July 7th arriving at Faith Community Church late at night.

How do we pay for this?
The estimated cost of the trip per person is $875 (covering all expenses - including fees, building materials, transportation, meals and R&R activities - from the time we leave the church on June 30th until we arrive home on July 7th). The final cost will be determined after the team of students and leaders are assembled and vans are rented.

Please read carefully our philosophy of financing this trip:

• We believe that if God calls us to a task, He provides the resources to achieve it (Philippians 4:19).
• We also believe that God expects us to contribute to the ministries of His Church (1 Corinthians 16:2, 2 Corinthians 9:6-15).
• While we are all expected to contribute, we believe the tithe teaches us equal sacrifice, not equal giving (Leviticus 27:30-32).

Because of this philosophy, there is no fixed amount required to participate. Each individual and their parents will prayerfully determine what they can give using the above scriptures and statements as guidelines. This amount will be entered in the Teen and Parent Commitments section when you register online for the trip at fcch.org. Each individual is asked to pay a non-refundable deposit of $100 to register for the trip. (This deposit will be applied to the parents’ commitment unless you notify us otherwise.)

In addition, all participants are strongly encouraged to send Support Letters to family and friends. This faith exercise will bless and stretch you as you trust God to provide and as He presents you with opportunities to share your faith with family and friends. Sample support letters will be sent in early March via email to all trip participants. Contributions by teens and their parents (including money from support letters) must be submitted by Sunday, May 6.

As a team we will work together to raise the additional money necessary to fund the trip through various fundraisers. Fundraising is one way that a community of believers can work in unity towards a common goal.

In addition to money pledged from participants and their parents, support letter money and fundraiser money, we will also receive funds from the Faith Community Church Missions Team.