Here Are the Details for This Exciting Ministry Opportunity!

We are excited to offer SEPA Synod’s first Young Adult Servant Trip! We will be journeying to the Cherokee Reservation in North Carolina to serve with the Lutheran mission congregation there, Living Waters.

Here are the details for this exciting ministry opportunity!

- Registration is open to young adults who are post-high school through 30 years of age.

- Dates are May 23-30, 2015. These dates were chosen as most colleges are out of session by then and the dates fall over Memorial Day, so those in the work force will only need to take four vacation days instead of five.

- We will be driving to Cherokee in mini vans. It’s about a 10 hour drive. We’ll be driving it in one day.

- We will initially be capping the event at 18 participants, five of which need to be 25 years or older by May 1, 2015 for driving purposes. If there is additional interest, we will seriously look into altering our plans to accommodate those interested. Our initial registration deadline is November 1, 2014. We will reopen registration if we’re able to accommodate additional servants.

- Because of support from a congregational grant and our synod’s budget, we are able to offer an incredible registration fee - $150 per person! There is a $50 non-refundable deposit due by November 1. The remainder of the fee is due April 1, 2015. Meals on travel days are also your expense.

- Our service projects are not decided. We will do whatever Living Waters and others on the reservation need us to do. My contact there indicated our projects could be everything from serving meals to outdoor yard/field work to home repair. Servants need to come on this trip with an open heart and ready to do whatever is needed!

- There will be several opportunities to learn more about Cherokee culture, history and spirituality. As we serve our brothers and sisters on the reservation, we also strive to be in relationship with them and to learn about and from them. Resources on the Cherokee tribe and people will be shared in the months leading up to the trip. - We will be constructing a trip covenant. Everyone will be expected to live by this. One item it will include is no tobacco or alcohol, so please make sure you are committed to this before signing on for the servant trip!

- Pre-trip gatherings are a tradition of SEPA Synod servant trips as a way to bond as a group and share information. I realize that this group may be particularly difficult to gather as some of you will be away at college. So here is what you will need to covenant to:

o Check your email. That’s how I will communicate important details with trip participants.

o Connect with other trip participants electronically. There will be a few opportunities to do a Google Hangout or group Skype with as many can make it. Friend, follow and connect with each other on various forms of social media.

o Connect with your small group. You will be assigned to a small group with 5-6 others. Each small group needs to meet in person or face to face online twice before the trip.

o Attend one pre-trip meeting that is MANDATORY unless you are living/studying more than 6 hours away. The date for that is Saturday, May 2 from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. at a location in SEPA which is to be determined.

This is a lot of information! Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions.

In Christ,

Molly Beck Dean

Assistant to the Bishop – Youth Ministry Specialist

SEPA Synod [email protected]