Are You Ready?
| Mission trips are life changing! To touch the life of a child in Zambia, Liberia or India is an amazing event. It is never too early to start planning to go on a trip. We have scheduled mission team meetings at my home for the trip in May to Zambia (February 27th at 6.30pm) and the August team to India (February 16th at 1pm). We also have a team going to Liberia in April. Please email me if you want additional information on any of these trips. You always walk away from a mission trip a little different, a little changed. Part of this change comes because you have the chance to make a difference in the lives of children in your own unique way, a way no one else can. An STC mission team is made up of all kinds of people who bring various skills and backgrounds to the group dynamic. When you go, you add something special to that dynamic that would be missed if you were not there. Many of us can easily list all the reasons why we cannot go on a mission trip. My best advice is to change focus. Think about the way God can break down all the barriers to going and how you can impact the lives of children overseas for eternity. You will come home a different person with different passions. No mission trip is free or easy. You will need to raise funds, deal with work or school, coordinate family or pet responsibilities, have your immunizations made current and add a couple to the list, attend meetings and make various other mission trip preparations. There will be bugs, new foods, you will sleep in a different bed than your own with other team members in the same room, experience unique bathroom procedures and experience a different culture to understand. But where we see barriers, God sees the future. The seemingly endless barriers get washed away when you see the smile on the face of a little child holding your hand. Have you ever had five children hold your hand…..five on each hand? Have you ever held a child who does not regularly experience love in their life? Have you ever read a book to a group of children who have never had a book read to them? Have you ever given rice krispie treats to a group of children for the first time? I can list a lot of firsts and I want you to experience firsts like them with me too. Are you ready to give hope and a future to children in Zambia, India and Liberia? Contact me now! You can also download the 2020 Mission Team books for Zambia, India or Liberia found on our website at www.servethechildren.com. A mission team application, a team covenant form, child protection policy and a medical release form are included with the mission team book and need to be completed and sent to me. It’s the first step in your life-changing mission trip journey. Dr. Doug Collier doug@servethechildren.com |
Go on Mission With Us!
| I learn something about myself and being on a team every time I go on a mission trip. For someone who has never been trained in the field of education, it amazes me that I can go into a classroom and help a teacher. Being a father and a grandfather helps, but mostly I think it’s my passion for what we do and my experience in life. Every mission trip and team is different. We typically build a team itinerary around the skills of the team members and what projects we need to work on in country. I loved my 2018 Liberia team, made up of a college student, a cabinet maker, a saw sharpener, a warehouse manager and me. None of us had any direct skills in education or medical care, but we found ways to make a difference. We decided to teach basic first aid. No one on the team had a lot of knowledge on the subject, so we invited a nurse and a paramedic to come to our pre-trip team meetings and train us in some specific skills. We learned how to treat burns, deal with cuts and perform the Heimlich maneuver. We taught these lessons to our Liberian staff and older students, and it was very successful. Everyone learned useful skills that can save lives in Liberia. In May, I am leading a team on my first trip to Zambia. STC supports two components of the Pure Nard Ministries in Zambia; a school for preschool and kindergarten children, and a partnership with Teen Challenge, serving men who are coming out of substance abuse. We will be working with the children in their classes, doing some minor construction work and visiting many of the homes of our sponsored children. STC Board member Zac Barnes is leading a team to Liberia in June. This team will work with our teachers and staff, help in the children’s classes and work on some small construction projects, depending on the team makeup. Our new school location in Monrovia is up and running. We are looking for someone to go to Liberia for several months to help our staff develop and help students improve their English skills. I am returning to India on my 8th trip there in August. Our team will spend most of the time at our rural Lasina school working with the kids on art projects, integrating computers into the classroom and visiting local villages where the kids live. Then we will go to Mumbai and help at our day school in one of the slums. We are looking for someone to go to Lasina for several months to help our staff develop and help students improve their English skills. Our teams are filling up fast for 2020. Would you like to go and make an impact for Jesus Christ on a team with Serve the Children? You don’t need special skills; anyone can make a difference. Contact me soon for more information on 2020 and 2021 teams. If you are interested in going to Liberia or India long term to help staff and students, please contact me. Would you like to sponsor a child? Contact Angela at angela@servethechildren.com and she can send you information on how you can be involved with a child in Liberia, Zambia or India and help give them hope and a future. Thank You! Dr. Doug Collier |
God’s Plan
Liberia, West Africa is a country that has become dear to my heart. Although it has only been in the last couple of years that I have had occasion to visit this country, it has been a focal point for my family since 1995. It was at that time, during a brutal civil war, that my aunts, uncles, and parents adopted 10 children from Liberia. These kids, all related as brothers, sisters and cousins, joined our family here in the States. These same kids, now adults, have become as close as my own sisters. Around the time these war-victim children were adopted to the States, my father Steve Jones, my uncle Nathan Jones, Doug Collier and Sackie Kwalalon started a school (All God’s Children) for child-soldiers, just like the children I now call family.
I waited over twenty years to see Liberia for the first time. We had learned the parents of these kids our family adopted had NOT died in the war as we had been told. This knowledge led to a trip that included three sisters, my Liberian cousins, to “meet” their parents for the first time in over 20 years. During that wonderful trip, I enjoyed watching reunions with family members, experiencing a culture I had heard so much about, seeing firsthand the places and people that have become part of my family history. But, as incredible as that story is, that is not the trip I want to talk about today.
Since my first mission trip to Liberia in the summer of 2017, I have returned to Liberia two additional times. That’s 41,622 miles of traveling if you’re keeping track. This last trip was nothing like the mission trips before. It’s actually a mission trip any right-minded mission leader would hush or keep to themselves because it may scare off others from traveling to serve in countries such as Liberia. So, if you’d like to hear about a mission trip that went side-ways and how God is still working, then please continue.
On February 17th, I was sitting in my own church, surprised to be the one asked to speak on behalf of our team’s trip to Liberia. We prayed for protection, direction and to touch the lives of people in need there. Almost as quickly as the pastor said amen, my phone started ringing. When I returned the call, I got word that the AGC School had caught fire, and that the computer-lab that was set up on our last trip only 4 months before was completely gone – literally every computer reduced to ash. It was devastating, but in all honesty, about 24 hours later, after praying, crying and fellowshipping we were okay and ready to continue working in God’s plan, whatever that was.
That would have been enough of a setback, but there’s more. On departure day, our very first flight was delayed an hour, making us miss ALL of our connecting flights. From Chicago on, every flight had to be rebooked with multiple airlines. Well this wasn’t our plan, but we wondered, “God is this yours?” We finally arrived in Liberia, after four flights and one 12 hour layover.
But wait, there’s more! Upon our arrival in Liberia, we realized all of our bags were missing. During this two-week mission trip most of the team got their belongings on day 7. I, however, finally received my luggage of personal belongings 3 days before I returned home. These were just a few of the challenges that arose during our trip to Liberia this year, and I have to tell you, I do believe all of this was in God’s plan.
Even though we arrived a day later, even though we received our clothes and supplies more than a week later, and even though the fire destroyed the computer lab, we were still able to meet with the children. We were still able to meet with faculty. We were still able to meet the goals set out months prior for this trip. Even though this fire had children on the streets crying even before we left the States, a week later I was able to bring art and emotional expression to their classroom. So, in a way we did do our plan. But what about God’s plan?
The day before I left Liberia, the principal of the AGC School asked to speak to me privately. To be honest, he is a man of few words and seems to prefer to watch from a distance rather than dive into the chaos. That said, his words stuck with me. He said to me, “I have to ask you. You know when the fire happened and the computers were burnt, we were all so upset.” I waited for the question. “I asked myself, why are they coming? Why are they coming just to see this mess, there is nothing here for them. And, when you came, you are here and you are smiling, how is that?” What I find so fascinating about his comments and questions is the perception he had of me, us or Americans in general. The question, “Why are they coming to see this mess?” tells me his school had wondered if they were going to be abandoned because of the fire. They wondered about the children’s education, their jobs and their families. What’s more, he noticed we came still smiling and engaging with them. This seemed to shock the faculty into hope. By just showing up, participating and working in the “mess,” everyone’s hope was revived.
This trip really was like no other. This trip had a lot of struggles from day one. But looking back, God answered our prayers even while the school was going up in flames. He provided protection, not one child or person was injured in the fire. He continues to provide All God’s Children and Serve the Children with direction on how to move forward. God is opening doors in miraculous ways. He is creating vision, excitement and hope for the country of Liberia and for those of us blessed to be involved in this next chapter of the Serve the Children/All God’s Children story. Our God created a connection to the Liberian people this time that I never saw there before, and it’s just because we showed up in crisis. So, in this trip where everything started off all wrong and not according to our plans, it WAS according to God’s plan.
The day I left Liberia, I received more hugs from the children, teachers and staff than ever before. And this time when I left, there were requests and expectations for me to return this year – AGAIN! That tells me God’s desire for me, and perhaps others, is to connect with our AGC family in Liberia. We are called to continue to support and nurture these relationships because we are all part of His family no matter how messy life gets.
– Brittany Jones
Being Present
By Jeni Gregory
I was privileged to go to India in November with the 2018 Serve the Children team. I see faces in my mind as if it were yesterday.
Our team was honored to work in a Mumbai slum considered to be the largest in the world. Open sewage, extraordinary poverty, lack of education, sex trafficking … all combining to beat down the human beings who lived there. The people we worked with were like you and me. They had dreams for their families. They had hopes for a better life. They were very hard workers who strove to put food in their children’s bellies every day. They laughed, they cried and they understood why Serve the Children was there.
The most important part of my being on a team is remembering that it is not what I DO that is critical. It is about BEING with people. In fact, the importance of “BEING” seemed more significant than I remember on other trips. I knew I needed to slip into God’s intention. It was a comfortable place that did not require me to do anything but rest in His Presence. That lesson came across clearly through one particular little girl.
I don’t know this little girl’s name. Yet I knew she needed to be near me. She kept looking at me the way I remember my own children staring when they needed ME. My instincts told me it was not about something I could do. She needed to be close, with me paying attention. I might have been unable to solve the greater problems she was facing in her young life, but I could do something about her need for my attention.
I scooped her up and put her on my lap. Immediately I could tell we both relaxed. It was as if, at least for that moment, we were both where we belonged…in the love and safety of God’s grace. I knew that me just being present was enough, as long as God was in it.
God may ask you to go on a mission trip and there is no doubt it is to serve others. Your first reaction may be to say, “I have no tools that could be used.” When I went to India, it simply meant showing up, being present and giving my best self in service. God filled in the rest. That was His lesson for me. What does He want you to learn?
We have exciting mission trip opportunities for 2019! We have a team going to Liberia June 15-28. The first team meeting for this trip is on Sat. March 2. We also have two teams going to India August 3-16 and October 12-25 and a team going to Zambia June 30-July 13. If you are interested in going on any of these trips check out our website for more information and email Doug@servethechildren.com.
Empowerment
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
I am very grateful for your support for Serve the Children during 2018. Recently, I returned from a 15-day mission trip to India with April, Jeni and Noel. One of the goals of STC mission trips is to become involved with kids and young adults on a personal level, and we had a great time doing just that.
We want to empower people. Empowerment is the process of helping people become stronger and more confident. We believe that the children and young adults we work with in India were created for more than poverty with no opportunity, so empowerment is a vital part of what we do in our two locations.
In Lasina, we are transitioning from a residential school to vocational training. We have closed the hostel and will transfer our students to other local schools, but we will continue to support them by supplying funds for their uniforms, school supplies and school fees. We started a vocational school on the campus and currently teach young people from local villages Microsoft Office and tailoring. For just $80 per quarter for a 3-month course, we can teach them a skill that can secure a good paying job. Without these skills, these kids would probably end up as farm laborers earning about $3 per day. Lasina is a very rural village and we are the only option for vocational training close by. In June, we plan to add two additional courses: mid-wife and nurse’s assistant.
In Mumbai, we have two ventures empowering women and children. The city is surrounded by slums and we work in one of the smaller ones. In this area, children as young as 3 years old are left to fend for themselves in appalling conditions while their guardians search for work to scrape a living. Girls like the one pictured in class with me here, as young as 13 years old, are married off so the family has one less mouth to feed. .
We give these children an opportunity to learn English and provide a meal for them, which is often the first meal for them that day and possibly the only meal. Sponsored girls can attend a local full-time school and escape the risk of being married off. All of these children were created for something more and we provide them the opportunity to reach their potential.
In a very poor area of Mumbai, we teach tailoring classes to groups of women. After completing the course, they can use the certificate to get work in a local clothing factory or they can use their earnings to purchase a sewing machine and establish their own business. We had the privilege of visiting the home of three sisters who have completed our program. Two of them are in college and one is finishing high school. They are able to pay for their educational costs with the money they make from tailoring. They would not be able to be in school otherwise, since their family could not afford the fees.
I invite you to join me this Christmas with a single gift of $80 to sponsor one student for a three-month computer or tailoring class, or donate $360 and change the lives of four people in 2019. They were created for something more, and with your help, they can have hope and a future.
Dr. Doug Collier
President of the Board
Why Missions?
For many years, one of those passions was to go on a mission trip to Africa, but I was busy being a mom and occupied with other projects, so this longing took a backseat. Finally, I knew I just had to go. The challenge I faced was that I had two kids at home and my youngest was only two years old. I struggled because I wondered if it was okay to leave my kids and be gone for an extended period of time. I thought, “What if something happens and I’m not there to help them?” Yes, it was hard to leave my kids at home and travel across the world. But I believe it was one of the greatest gifts I have given my children.
I believe that Lord gives us all passions, dreams and gifts to be used for His kingdom. It is so easy for the circumstances of life to keep us from pursuing what He has put in our hearts. I know for me, I wondered if it was okay to want to do other things besides parenting, things that would take me away from my kids for a time. What I realized was that I can share these gifts, passions and dreams with my children and show them that the world is bigger than the little pocket they live in. I can be a living example of being obedient to the call Christ has placed on my life. Even though my kids were too young to go with me, they were part of helping me get ready. We prayed for the kids I would meet and practiced the skits and lessons I would teach the children in Africa. When we say “yes” to the Lord and allow ourselves to be His hands and feet to the forgotten ones, we can bring our own kids along for the journey. We leave a legacy for our own children and show them that others are more important than ourselves, and I believe I am a better mom because of it.
Do you feel called to go a mission trip? Yes, it can be more complicated when you have young children and it does take more planning and requires enlisting the help of others. But you are not only planting seeds of hope in the children and people you will meet; you are planting seeds of giving and love in your own children and family. I plan to go to Zambia and India with Serve the Children in 2019. Come with me!
Five Ordinary Guys
I love the team I just took to Liberia in June 2018. Five ordinary guys: a warehouse manager, a saw blade sharpener, a cabinet maker, a software developer and a financial planner. Our career choices are important to us, our employers and our families, but they certainly do not fit what many people picture when they think of a mission team. Three of the team members did not even have passports when we started planning this trip.
At our first meeting in February I asked the team, “What do you want to do in Liberia?” Looking at our various qualifications, we thought we had very few skills that would translate to Liberia. But what we did have was five guys who said “Yes” to Jesus when He planted the thought of going on a mission trip in our minds.
The strangest plan developed- we decided to teach hygiene and first aid. Not exactly my first choice. I have very little desire to deal with blood and guts and all that stuff. I married a nurse; that’s Lu’s job. No one on the team was really qualified to teach classes in first aid, and personally, my hand washing skills were not the best (I am a guy, after all). But in Liberia, medical professionals are scarce, and children do not usually grow up learning about these things. Knowing them can save lives.
So naturally, we turned to YouTube and Google to help solve our training deficiencies. We met with a nurse who had been to Liberia many times, another nurse we know, and a Pierce County medic who had spent time in Africa, to help with our training. We copied articles from books and downloaded information from the internet. We watched YouTube videos. We learned and practiced together how to bandage various types of wounds, how to support a broken arm, how to do the Heimlich maneuver on adults and babies, and the proper way to wash hands.
We were rock stars in Liberia! We taught adults and the older kids how to save the life of someone who was choking on something stuck in their throat. We brought in a doll and demonstrated the maneuver so everyone could learn how to help save a baby’s life. We talked about hand washing, coughing into your elbow and covering your sneezes. We answered lots of questions about choking, germs, coughing and bleeding. The question I challenged my team with was, “How many lives do you think we will help save by teaching these things?”
What can five ordinary guys do? We made an impact in our own lives, in the lives of our teammates and in the lives of the people God placed in front of us in the classrooms. All we did was say yes to Jesus when He asked us to go.
What is holding you back from going on a mission trip? I hear many reasons: “It’s expensive; I’m going to be away from family and friends; I will not have social media at my fingertips; I will eat unfamiliar food.” All true, but you will also be serving a living God and helping people that only you can help.
We asked Alex, a former sponsored student from our Monrovia school, why he is so engaged in doing things for his community now that he’s an adult. His answer blew me away. He said he volunteers a lot because he saw Americans come to Liberia, taking time away from their families and spending their money to come and volunteer at the AGC school he attended. Every team has left this legacy of caring and volunteering.
We have many mission opportunities planned for 2018 and 2019. Now is the time to say yes and start planning your mission trip. Email me at doug@servethechildren.com to discuss the best fit for you and check out ourmission page on our website.
India – 2018 – November 23rd to December 8 – if you want to go, contact me immediately
Liberia – June 2019
Zambia – July 2019
India – August 2019 and November 2019
Dr. Doug Collier
President of the Board
Note from our Liberia Mission Team
Our Liberia Mission Team left on June 12th and they are having a great time teaching first aid, hygiene and leadership classes and playing with kids. They return on June 28th. Please keep them in your prayers and check out our Serve the Children Group on Facebook to stay connected with us and the team as they post updates about the trip and their experiences. Here are some thoughts from the team on their trip so far.
You would think that after going to Liberia 16 times since 1997, I would be used to the heat, humidity, wind, rain, epic storms at night, the unfamiliar smells and food, bucket showers, the joy of finding a flushing toilet, etc., but no. Every trip is like a new experience and I enjoy every one of them.
It’s all about the kids and the people. They are so appreciative of us being here. They treat us like royalty even though they have so little and we have so much at home. But we all have the same purpose; to give hope and a future to the future leaders of Liberia.
In Liberia, about twice as many males as females over age 15 can read and write. Today in one of the two classes I taught on leadership, I challenged the girls with the idea that they have the potential to be the next female president of Liberia, but to be successful in what they do, they need to use their minds, have a heart of passion for their country, and a strong relationship with Jesus.
-Doug
I am blown away by how loving and accepting the kids are of us. They just want to play and interact with us. They are very curious and they love to touch our skin. One kid even tried to rub off my tattoos. I have really enjoyed being in the 
classrooms, asking the kids questions and reading to the kindergarten kids, and teaching first aid and hygiene.
This trip has really opened my eyes to how imaginative these kids are. They do not have cell phones to stare at. They play soccer with a plastic bottle and are very satisfied that they have a plastic bottle to play with. They find ways to entertain themselves and they are smart. They pick up on stuff so quickly and they understand it. For me, to be here in Liberia with them means a lot because something that I may teach them will stick with them for a long time. I am grateful for my experience.
-Shaun
Our time in Liberia has been amazing and eye opening. Hearing their stories and building relationships with Christians that live in such an unforgiving environment and have so little yet are so willing to do anything to make us comfortable has been very humbling.
The kids in the school are incredible. Education means so much to them. Some of the kids walk long distances to come here every day, and others will go all day without eating just to be in school. What blows me away is they choose to do this in pursuit of a better future. How many kids in the US are so self-motivated at seven years old?
Overall, this trip has made me so grateful for the family and life that God has blessed me with. I will be sharing the stories of the beautiful people I feel blessed to have met here for a long time.
-Ricky
Today, June 18th, was exciting because the kids were really into learning about the first aid and hygiene concepts we were teaching. The 9th grade class asked lots of questions on bleeding and bandaging wounds. I feel blessed and humbled to be around such loving and caring people. Their faith is second to none. We talk a lot about faith in the US, but they live in faith every day. I have learned a lot being around these wonderful people. I plan and hope to come back many more times.
-Rondell
What hits me about this trip? In this part of the world, free, quality education is tough to come by. Serve the Children provides that. I love the opportunity to be in this environment with these people, both American and Liberian. And I’m always impressed with how little I really know when I come to spend time with children in developing countries.
On this trip, lots of water has been consumed, food has been enjoyed, many kids have been high-fived, hugged, and celebrated. The guys and I have had many interesting, enjoyable conversations between power outages, bathroom breaks, car rides, spider hunts, you name it. I think we have been successful in loving children practically by engaging them in and out of the classroom and by spending time with them and staff throughout the day.
Mission trips have changed my life radically. I’m amazed how much I can prepare for a trip like this but still feel overwhelmed with the cultural and language barriers between us and our hosts. This is my third trip to Liberia, chump-change compared to Mr. Collier’s 17 tours to the country. With all my travels with STC, I’ve seen lives transformed for the gospel, both American and in-country, I’ve seen friendships blossom, I’ve seen the word of God preached in the most practical way possible, I’ve seen the benefit of this sort of trip and I’m better because of it.
-John K
