2019 St. EAS Summer Missions Program

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1 2019 St. EAS Summer Missions Program God bless you for considering being a part of a St. EAS Summer Mission Team! These pages contain detailed information about our Summer Missions Program: What we do, what we require of team members, location information and more. We appreciate you taking the time to check out the details. The photos on this page are from the last few mission trips. More than a Mission Trip! We meet monthly, we work together at our Lenten Fish Fries, we do a team service project and have a special day just for the Mission Teams. We have tons of fun doing it! We re a Team before we leave on the mission trip!! Past Mission Trips St. EAS s Summer Mission Teams traveled to New Orleans beginning in 2003 through We helped in rebuilding efforts in Joplin, MO from We went to Ohio to work with the Franciscans for the Poor in Cincinnati in with two Teams each summer and returned in 2018 with one team. In 2016 we helped prepare and serve food to the hungry and participated in street evangelization as well as other ministries in the Milwaukee area. In 2017, we traveled to Colorado to work with Catholic Heart WorkCamp. This summer we will be heading to Wichita, KS to again work with Catholic Heart WorkCamp and have the opportunity to meet teens from all across the country.

2 The Conference July 12-14th The trip will begin with a Franciscan Youth Conference in Springfield, MO. The conference will be held at Missouri State University (Mizzou) from Friday, July 12th -Sunday, July 14th. We will stay in the dorms on campus. What is the Youth Conference?: This summer over 50,000 Catholic teens will attend one of these 25 youth conferences and experience the joy of following Christ and being elevated by His love through inspirational talks and powerful worship experiences including Adoration and praise & worship. Transportation: We will travel by rented mini vans on Friday July 12th at approximately 6:00am and arriving in Springfield, MO on July 20th around 4pm. Transportation from the Conference to Wichita: We will travel by rented mini vans the approximately 250 miles from Springfield, MO to Wichita, KS on Sunday morning. The room came to life with Christ. I saw my faith in a new light. I began to realized what it means to be a Catholic teenager in this day and age, and what a true and beautiful gift it really is. -Youth Conference Participant For more information on the conferences in Steubenville and Denver, visit or The Mission Team Composition: - 10 teens, 2 adults. Spots are limited so sign up soon! You will be placed on a waiting list if spots fill up and we can see about adding more spots, but nothing is guaranteed. Location Profile: - Wichita is the largest city in the state of Kansas with a population of just under 400,000 people. The city has the nickname of Cowtown because in the 1800s, the city was a destination for cattle drives traveling from Texas to Kansas. Wichita is home of Wichita State University. The average temps in July will be the low to mid-80s, which is not much different from our Chicago temps. Ministry sites: -We will be working at both traditional work sites and social agencies. Some groups will be painting, yard work, and building rehab. Other groups may assist with working at food pantries, soups kitchens, etc. Some people will work to restore a local homeless shelter. Teens from our parish will be groups with other teens all across the U.S. and will have the chance to form lifelong friendships. Lodging: - We will stay at Kapaun Mt. Carmel Catholic High School in Wichita, KS.

3 Free Day Activities: - We will be going up to Kansas City for the day. We will most likely be going to Kansas City Zoo and having some delicious Kansas City BBQ (Laura s favorite type of BBQ). We may have an evening of praise and worship with Mark McKellar and Lily Lalonde who are part of the duo Simple Offering (listen to their album, Winter Vol. 1 on Spotify and itunes). We will stay the night in Kansas City and drive home on Saturday. On our way home Saturday, we will stop in Hannibal, MO for a couple hours to have lunch and walk around the town where Mark Twain grew up. Most of the free day cost is covered because of the generosity of Alex Quast, Jolie Felton, and Andrew Sloan and their participation in the Christmas in the Country craft show, so please be sure to thank them! Fundraising and Financial Commitments In the past, some people have said that the price of a mission trip discouraged them from looking further into applying. Many Team members pull in an average of over 50 % of their personal fundraising goal through sending out the support letters that we provide. Each Team member accepts responsibility for meeting his/her personal fundraising goal of $1,200. The fundraising goal includes the cost of the Franciscan Youth Conference. In the past, each Team member has had the opportunity to reduce his/her fundraising goal significantly by participating in the Lenten Fish Fries. We hope that the 2019 Fish Fries will be as profitable! In addition, we will also have a Simply Delicious Fundraiser and a few different restaurant fundraisers. Please by aware that we need to pay for many of the mission expenses months before the trip begins. The payment schedule is as follows: $100 nonrefundable deposit with application, $250 total by Jan. 16th; $450 total by Feb. 20th; $700 total by Mar. 13th; $950 total by Apr. 24th; $1200 total by May 29th. Fish Fry fundraising amounts will be determined and applied by the April 24th meeting. There will be a limited number of scholarships awarded for financial need. Scholarship applications will be available at the February 20th meeting and are due by the March 13th meeting. Recipients will be announced at the April 24th meeting. Before you fill out your Application Carefully and prayerfully study the explanations and requirements. Ask questions. Talk with those who have been on previous Mission Teams. Discuss applying for a Mission Team with your family. Talk to Laura to help you discern if a mission trip is right for you. You will be committing to a very active missions program from December through the next summer, NOT just a mission trip! All expectations and mission money schedules must be met. Priority will be given to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton teens and those actively involved in our Youth Ministry Program. We ll consider applications from non St. EAS parishioners beginning January 16th on a first come, first served basis.

4 Mission Meeting Dates! January 16, February 20, March 13, April 24, May 29 Please mark your calendars, Mission Team members are expected to attend each Mission Meeting. We are building a team before we get to the mission sites! How to Apply for a Mission Team A couple of things are needed to fully complete the formal application for a Mission Team: Completed Application: Parental permission is required on the mission application for anyone who will be under 19 at the start of the trip. Applications are available in the parish office or on the parish website. ( $100 nonrefundable deposit per mission team: Applications received without deposit will not be considered until deposit money is received. (Checks payable to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church [St. EAS]) This deposit is refundable for those not selected. For those who are selected and later need to withdraw, all money turned in is non-refundable if a paying replacement cannot be found. Important Notes Teams have limited available spots. Application does not guarantee acceptance. Everyone who applies for a 2019 Mission Team will be notified by mail as Team discernments are made. The discernment process is ongoing. Adult Team members also need to: complete background check forms and complete a Rockford Diocese required sexual abuse awareness online training. Adults also need to complete the Adult Applicant Expectation Agreement. Send Application and deposit to: 2019 Summer Missions, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church, 1023 McHenry Ave, Crystal Lake, IL Mission Applications and Support Letters are also available online at Questions? Call the Youth Ministry Office: Laura Knipp ex. 231

5 Fundraising Opportunities Lenten Fish Fry - Four Fridays from March 22 to April 12 It takes over 75 volunteers on many work crews to run each of our Friday Fish Fries. We serve an average of 600 dinners each night. This is the largest fundraiser of the year for our summer missions! It is expected that ALL mission families will somehow help with our annual fish fry. Support Letters You have the opportunity to send out letters to family members and friends sharing about your summer mission trip and seeing if anyone would like to support you on the trip. More information about how to do this successfully to follow. Simply Delicious Fundraiser This fundraiser will begin at the February 20th Mission Meeting with orders due by the April 17th meeting. Through this fundraiser, you will have the chance to sell desserts, pizzas, snacks, and more and receive a profit from what you have sold. Restaurant Fundraisers In the Spring, we will have a few different fundraisers at local restaurants. These fundraisers involve telling your family and friends to eat at that specific restaurant on a certain night and part of the proceeds of the sales will come back to the mission team. Last year, we did this at Nick s Pizza, Chick-fil-a, and Potbelly. We need the help of all our Mission Team members and parents to make sure all our fundraising goals are met.

6 Mission Testimonies Jolie Felton Before the mission trip, my family had never been that involved in church or going to Mass every week. When I started Confirmation class, I met some people who were going on the mission trip, so I decided to give it a try. I was not sure I would like it or if I would be accepted, since I wasn t that involved with our religion at the time. Once we got to Steubenville, I experienced our Lord in a way so powerful, that I thought it couldn t get any better. Little did I know, the next week would be the best experience of my life. The people going into the mission trip were just some acquaintances, but when the week was done they were my brothers and sisters in Christ. We grew so close that the day after we got home, we had to hang out already. On the trip, we experienced miracles and helped to better people s lives.we strengthened our relationship with God, Mary, and each other and made memories we wouldn t trade for anything else in the world. The mission trip has impacted my life so greatly and I am so grateful that we have the opportunity to go every year. My relationship with God is stronger than ever and I love the people we went with. Anonymous This mission trip was spiritually fulfilling on an even deeper level than my first trip. It opened me to experiences that pushed me to be more for those around me. I was initially nervous about interacting with the community, but found from the first day that the work came easily when He was with me. I was able to verbally pray with others in a way that I have never done before, even with a stranger. At each site, I was able to make a difference through service. One of the most amazing things, though, was that He actually spoke to me through my own mind, helping me to discern where it was that I was meant to be. I learned to listen to His voice, letting him guide me to the different sites. I came to realize that God has a different relationship with each of his children and that He communicates with us in different ways.

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