We are headed back to Ecuador this summer, July 18-27th, 2024. Our two mission trip goals are to aid the Chacauco staff in hosting youth camp and to aid Esteban Martinez in a local outreach for a church plant in Patate.
Registration has closed. If you’re interested in going, please contact Pastor Matt.
Hundreds of Ecuadorian teenagers from the nearby city of Tena, local villages, and remote, deep jungle communities gather together for four days to hear God’s word preached, to worship, and to engage in the sort of recreation only camp can provide.
Our team will be tasked with helping in a variety of ways: everything from washing the dishes and passing out food at meal times to teaching Bible study lessons and leading games with students.
If you’re wondering what kind of an impact you could possibly have on a trip like this, in July 2023, we hosted 300 Ecuadorian youth and saw nearly 100 make a profession of faith. Surely, countless more made steps of faith in their walk with Christ. Each testimony shared, Bible study taught, and game played has a role in the spiritual steps students take at camp!
Over two decades of mission trips to Ecuador, Eau Gallie has developed strong relationships not only with Missionaries Steve and Carol Thompson, but also with some of their missions staff like Esteban and Diana Martinez. Esteban, Diana, and their family visited our church and spoke in August.
In addition to serving on the Chacauco staff, Esteban and Diana are additionally focusing their efforts on establishing a healthy Baptist church in Patate. That project is in its infancy, and God-willing, we are going to host a community outreach to help the church plant grow in its connections in the community of Patate.
Of course! We know that $900 is not a small amount of money. Actually, the true cost is substantially more than that, but the church pitches in a few hundred budget dollars to help members go--we want you there!
We also have our 3rd Annual Golf Outing coming up on February 17th, which is a fantastic opportunity to raise funds by volunteering at the Golf Outing, or by recruiting golf teams and hole sponsors. If you can find just two Platinum Sponsors, your Ecuador costs are fully paid off!
More than anything though, we have found that Mission Trip Support Letters go a long way in raising the funds needed. We’ll give out a template you can use to do this as we get closer.
If you do not have a valid passport, now is the time to get moving. There is a government backlog on producing passports and you don’t want to get caught waiting.
The recommended vaccinations for Ecuador are Hep A & B, Typhoid, and
We will experience two very different climates during our mission trip. We will begin and end in the mountain region of the country, experiencing elevations between 7,000 and 12,000 feet and enjoying the cool climate that accompanies that type of elevation. You can expect temperatures mostly in the 60s and 70s.
In the middle of the week, we will spend about 4 days in the jungle region, where temperatures are hot and humid. The heat is usually not quite as intense as a Florida summer, but there is no A/C relief! Thankfully, evening air from the mountain region sweeps through the jungle in the evening to cool you off enough to get a good night’s rest.
As you might expect, Ecuadorians speak Spanish! Don’t worry, there are tons of ways to communicate across a language barrier and there will be plenty of interpreters at youth camp to help you communicate. If you want to learn more, we recommend Duolingo!
Payment Schedule:
February 29: $150
March 31: $100
April 30: $150
May 31: $100
June 30: $100 (early bird) | $185 (later signup)