Easter Offering to Support Mission Trip to Dominican Republic

All of the funds raised by the Easter Offering (taken through the end of April) will be used to support this year’s mission trip to Dominican Republic. The Easter Offering is a component of a multi-pronged April campaign to raise substantial funds for this mission trip.

Each year, the mission commission sponsors a domestic or international mission trip. These trips serve the dual purpose of helping people in the communities we visit and helping those members of our congregation who participate grow in spirit, understanding, and perspective. While participants pay for their travel and meals, the church provides a substantial supplement to help cover other trip expenses, including supplies.

This year, we will build a house for a family in La Guama, a community where 60% of the residents live below the poverty line. We are partnering with Bridges to Community, an organization that builds service learning trips around community-led programming that gives volunteers a chance to live and work side-by-side the local population through projects that focus on housing, health, and education.

Building a house for a family in such a community as La Guama has a significant impact on both the family and the community. With sturdy cinderblock walls and a roof attached to the foundation, instead of a wobbling structure cobbled together from scrap lumber and plastic sheeting, the home can withstand a hurricane. With tile floors instead of damp dirt beneath their feet, children and parents don’t get sick as often. With doors and windows that lock, family members are finally able to go to work and school without worrying about their belongings. With the family on a better economic footing, they pay into a community fund that is used for small business loans, school or home repairs, clinic maintenance and other purposes. Thus, the immediate relief provided by a new home is the catalyst for sustainable community growth. Read about such a ripple effect.

Donations to the Easter offering can be made anytime by using the special offering envelope, by marking the check “Easter Offering,” or by using the online link.