Flight information-

• Drop off: Sunday July 13 at 11pm. Meet at Living Faith Christian Church.
  • Please make sure to eat dinner before you arrive. We will NOT sleep at the church this year, so we recommend taking a nap before you come! We plan to leave the church at 3:30am, at which point the coach bus will take us to the airport. 
• Statement from American Airlines below about identification:
  • Children under the age of 18 and traveling on a domestic flight do not need to show identification or documentation.
  • Customers 18 years of age and older will be required to show a U.S. federal or state-issued photo ID that contains the following information:
    • Name
    • Date of birth
    • Gender
    • Expiration date
    • Tamper-resistant feature
  • NOTE: For those who are 18 or over, a REAL ID is now required for domestic travel; a normal license is no longer accepted. 
• Bags to pack:
  • You can bring one carry-on item and one personal item (a small backpack or purse that can fit under your seat) with you on the plane. We will NOT be checking any luggage this year. 

Updates in date order:

• June 25- Final Balance due by the end of the day online- Final balance of 950.00 is due for the mission trip.
  • To check your remaining balance and make the payment go to YOUR online managed missions account page that you were sharing with friends and family. Then click donate and there you can make the final payment. To log in- click here
• Sunday July 13th at 11am service- Team Commissioning Service. 
  • Meet in the sanctuary in the front right seats if looking towards stage (go through the rightmost doors and walk to the front of the Sanctuary). Please arrive by 10:45am, thanks!
  • Each team member is expected to be there (Don’t worry, you don’t have to speak or anything). However, please look nice (t-shirts, hats, or shorts) as we will be up on stage as the church prays over us for our trip. It will be at the beginning of the 11am service.
• Mission Trip Dates and Times
  • Drop off- Sunday July 13 at 11pm. Meet at Living Faith Christian Church.
  • Return- Friday July 18 at approximately 10:15pm. Pick up at Living Faith Christian Church.

Here is the packing list:

• First off, PACK LIGHTLY!!! We have very limited room to transport luggage and supplies in our cargo van. Remember that this is a mission trip, not a 4 or 5 star vacation (haha).
  TIP: Rolling your shirts & pants/shorts instead of folding them is an easy way to save space in your luggage (and will wrinkle lesswoo hoo).
• You are allowed to bring ONE carry-on item 
• Additionally, you are allowed ONE personal item (such as a small, drawstring-type backpack or purse that fits under your seat) for the van ride and work site during the week. While it is optional and not required, it is
  recommended.
• Also, remember to LABEL EVERYTHING!!

 

• REVIEW: YOU MUST KEEP YOUR TOTAL LUGGAGE TO
• THE FOLLOWING 4 PIECES:
  1) One carry-on
  2) One small personal item (i.e. backpack).
  3) A small pillow (Must be packed within your carry-on)
  4) Twin-sized sheet set & blanket OR sleeping bag (Must be packed within your carry-on)
• Personal Items
  □ Sunscreen - VERY IMPORTANT (Use it even if you don’t think you will burn)
  □ 1-2 empty, re-usable water bottles - VERY IMPORTANT for the work site
  □ Electrolyte powder packets - VERY IMPORTANT (it's going to be hot and we'll be very active; electrolytes are important so you don't get dehydrated)
  □ Hat to screen the sun
  □ Personal Prescription Medication you take (must be listed on permission slip, pack in a Ziploc bag marked with your name)
  □ Bug spray
  □ Sunglasses
  □ Your small pillow
  □ Twin-sized sheet set & lightweight blanket (blanket optional) OR sleeping bag
  □ A shower towel and hand towel
  □ Personal toiletries (shampoo, soap, deodorant- please haha, toothbrush, toothpaste etc.)
  □ Your Bible and pen
  □ Optional: Deck of cards, travel sized board games, hacky sack,
  Frisbee (as long as compact)
  □ Small hand sanitizer and travel-sized disinfectant wipes
  □ Camera (AS LONG AS IT’S NOT YOUR PHONE. USING YOUR PHONE AS A CAMERA WILL NOT COUNT AND WILL BE TAKEN FROM YOU)
  □ Extra Snacks you may want for the van ride, or packed for the
  week (i.e. granola bars, trail mix)
  □ Bagged breakfast for van ride Monday morning July 14
  □ Spending money (during the week) for snacks, camp store, missions offering (optional). There is no need to bring a lot of $$, mostly everything is covered for you already (i.e. $40)
• Clothing
• It is important to follow these guidelines closely, as they have been given to us by our missions partner in order to best represent Christ in this area’s culture. 
• Appropriate dress code will be enforced by both the missions organization and our staff. Thank you in advance for
  cooperating.
• Work clothes:
  □ Light-weight pants/shorts (Old jeans work too. Shorts ARE acceptable this year on work-sites, but absolutely no short shorts are acceptable (at any time). They need to be athletic or cargo shorts on work-sites.
  □ Old T-shirts (no questionable logo’s or bands on them).
  NOTE: Shirts that expose the shoulders (tank tops, halter tops, cut-offs, V-necks, muscle shirts, etc.) may NOT be worn at the work-sites. This goes for girls and guys.
• Bring 3 sets of work clothes and realize your work clothes will get messy. There is a possibility that we will do children’s ministry and your clothes won’t get as messy on that worksite.
• Clothes for the evening: (Casual and comfortable)
  □ Tank tops will be allowed at night and/or for sleeping (NO spaghetti strap tank tops at all on the trip and nothing low cut).
  - MAKE MODESTY A PRIORITY.
  □ Shirts must be long enough to raise arms without exposing midriff or underwear.
  □ Shorts are allowed, but NO short shorts
  □ Flip-flops (i.e., for the shower & around the church at night)
  □ Modest sleepwear
  □ Sweatshirts/ long-sleeved shirts for night (it may get cool
  inside the church at night)
  □ Sweatpants/comfy pants (see above)
  □ Rain jacket (optional)
  □ MODEST swimsuit (you will be told to cover it up if it’s too revealing). Remember that this is a mission trip. So, Tankini’s, 1 piece, or 2 piece with a T-shirt over it are allowed.
• Personal Tools
  Students will not be allowed to work without work gloves (and depending on the project, safety goggles). These are an absolute must to have. Please clearly mark the below items with your name.
  □ Work Gloves
  □ Safety Goggles
  Dress code from the camp
  -Wear modest shorts (when hands are extended to the back or the front, finger tips must touch fabric). Sleeveless shirts and tank tops are now allowed during day-time activities. Shirts with spaghetti straps, open backs or excessive armpit cutouts which expose torso and undergarments are NOT allowed. Large t-shirts that cover shorts should not be worn.
  -Wear closed-toe and closed-heel shoes while at recreation and track times (Centrifuge) and on ministry sites (MFuge) and during Mega Relay.
  -Wear modest, one-piece bathing suits or two-piece suits covered with a dark colored t-shirt, if participating in water activities.
  -Wear modest shorts, pants, jeans, or dresses for worship. Dresses with spaghetti or small straps, open backs, and excessively short lengths are unacceptable (when hands are extended to the back or the front, finger tips must touch fabric). Modest sleeveless tops are allowed in worship.
  -Do not dress in a way that calls attention to underwear (sagging your pants, rolling down your waistbands, etc.) or
  wear pants or shorts with lettering on the bottom.
• *Optional*
  • This year's Mega Relay is Christmas-themed! Bring your favorite Christmas attire to wear during the relay. 
• What NOT to bring—Period!
  □ Cell phones (Are only allowed just as we travel through the airport). All electronics (I-pods, video game devices, etc.) other than a camera
  □ Anything that is not replaceable or has significant value, like expensive jewelry
  □ A lot of money
  □ Drugs, alcohol, knives or weapons of any kind (do I really need to state this?)

Dear Parents and Students,

Our upcoming summer mission trip is almost here, and we look forward to seeing how God will show up and move both collectively as a group and individually within our own hearts. As you get busy packing, don’t forget the most important step in this process is prayer. 
 
Students, be praying for your own walk with God as our departure day approaches, and if you’ve been distant from Him, now is the time to “get straight with Him." Ask him how he wants to use YOU on this trip.  Remember to come with a positive attitude, because when you do, you allow God to work in you. 

Parents, please be praying for us throughout the week, both for your own son/daughter and our entire team. Pray for great weather, safety, team unity, your teen’s spiritual growth, opportunities to share our faith, and for the leadership team.

Both, please be aware that, just like on the team building retreat, we will not be allowing cell phones (or any other electronic device) on the mission trip, as it really does distract and deter from the time away and focus of the trip. Cell phones will only be allowed as we travel through the airport; after that, we will ask the students to give us their phones.  For 51 weeks out of the year, teens are attached to their cell phone/ipod etc., and we have found they survive (and thrive), connect with others, and hear from God better going without them for one week. Students usually say it was a nice break from being tied to it once they get used to the idea of not having it.

I ask you to partner with me in making sure your son/daughter gives us their cell phone after we get through the airport, even if you don’t agree with this policy. If a student is found with one after we leave the airport, they will NOT get it back until the very end of the trip. In addition, because of this becoming such a problem/distraction in recent years, if your teen is found with one, he/she will also need to pay $20 again this year in order to get it back at the end of the week, and we will put the money towards expenses associated with the trip.

I will certainly call you if there is an issue to be addressed, and if you have an urgent matter, call my cell phone. You can find that contact info below.

Thanks for partnering with us in prayer and God bless,

Manny Fernandez
mfernandez@lfcc.org
North Carolina '25 Mission Trip Director

Nico Stavrinos 
(516) 262-2721; nstavrinos@lfcc.org
North Carolina '25 Mission Trip Assistant Director