Service Trips

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What is a Service Trip?   Part of our commitment includes regular service trips to San Pedrito.  These trips last for approximately a week.  The activities in the village include planning with community leaders; building infrastructure such as irrigation systems and stoves; participating in planting and harvesting; working with children; and so forth.

Daily Activities

However, our primary goal is not the completion of projects. There is little we can affect materially in the time we are there.  That is what the Agros in-country team is there for year-round, and it is ultimately the people in the community that actually do most of the work.

The primary goal is development of relationships and trust.  The service team’s objective in participating in these projects is to develop trust and partnership.  Our true role is in helping the people of San Pedrito know they are not alone.  We do this through working alongside them in hard projects; participating in devotionals and service; eating, playing, singing and laughing with them;   and, sharing and crying with them.  Most importantly, we fortify their dignity and earn their trust by humbling ourselves and graciously receiving from them.

Transformation

It is in this process of humbling oneself, and receiving, that service teams are successful and actually transform themselves and come back with more out of the trip than the community itself.

These service trips are not easy physically, emotionally or spiritually.  They are very demanding in every sense and can be somewhat overwhelming.  However, through this process everyone on the team will experience some significant life change and learn new things about themselves, even the most self aware.  No one ever comes back unchanged in some way.  For most at a minimum there is a powerful connection with the Holy Spirit.  Read our team's individual testimonials.

Planning and Preparation

Our ministry and our service teams, meet monthly on Sunday afternoons to debrief and to plan and coordinate our various activities including the service trips themselves, fundraisers and awareness events and activities.  Each member of the team typically will take on activities they feel they can bring most value to.  More importantly, these meetings are a venue for developing fellowship, trust and team skills.  Effective teamwork in the village is fundamental to working effectively and smoothly in the village.  These meetings are thus a requirement for anyone participating on a service trip.  Furthermore, we do several fundraisers annually, and everyone on the service team is expected to particpate as these pay for the various non-travel costs associated with the service trips.

All service teams must be confirmed and communited to Agros no later than four months in anticipation of a service trip in order to get all paperwork submitted and processed.

That said, some things will hold fairly constant - daily service and devotionals with the community; hard regular hard labor to develop trust  and  partnership;  and, considerable idle time in between  just for laying, sharing, andand eating together.  This is the most important time.

Because San Pedrito does not yet have the ability to house us, we stay overnight in El Buen Pastor, a nearby rural Christian retreat center.  El Buen Pastor is very clean, spacious and comfortable, with good beds, hot showers, a large kitchen and lots of quiet countryside to run around in.  The rooms are large, and comfortably accommodate up to eight people per room.  Couples and families may of course have their own rooms.

Shalom with Community

We eat our breakfast and dinner there everyday and pack lunches and bottled water for any time in the village.  However, the people in San Pedrito will make every attempt to graciously serve meals for us.

San Pedrito is an ejido, and thus a rural community.  There is no phone servce or electricity, and there is no wireless coverage.  However, there are two small towns nearby, between San Pedrito and the retreat center, called Nuevo Mexico and Cristobal Obregon.  There is wired phone service only in these communities.  El Buen Pastor does have a satellite phone available for emergency use as well.  Supplies and medical care are also available in the these towns.  However, Agros Mexico does purchase all necessary provisions prior to leaving Tuxtla, and brings emergency kits and bedding all previously stocked by the Cross Sound team.    Join a service team.

Logistics

San Pedrito is approximately 2800 mi. (4700 km) from Seattle.  To get there, we first fly into Mexico City on one of the major U.S. carriers.  Alaska Airlines has regular flights into Mexico City, with one stop in Los Angeles, and thus not prone to weather delays and cancellations.  We typically fly overnight and catch a local carrier for an early morning flight to Tuxtla Gutierrez, the state capital of Chiapas, and home to Agros Mexico's office.  Total flight time is approximately 7.5 hours not including the two stops.

We debrief in Tuxtla with the Agros Mexico the same day and drive to San Pedrito early the following morning. Tuxtla sits at approximately 1700 ft. (500 m.), and is warmer.  It is hot year round, and evenings dip only into the 60s during winter.  Like San Pedrito, it is rainy May through September, and dry October through April.

The team spends time in two different geographic locations during the service trip. San Pedrito sits at approximately 2200 ft. (700 m.) above sea level.  Because it is in the tropics, it is hot during the day but cools down considerably in the evenings. 

Typical winter days get into the 80s, and dip down into the low 50s.  The air is dry and the environment is parched.  A fleece jacket is usually sufficient for the evenings.  During summer rains are heavy, the air is humid, temperatures are much higher, and the environment is very green.  Evenings are very warm.

In both seasons we travel light with one back pack each, so we hire someone locally to do all our wash while in San Pedrito.  The team will work with you to determine what to bring.

We also hire a local cook to prepare all our meals when we are in San Pedrito and the retreat center.  The food is all local and we have little to no ability to prepare specialized meals given the locally available ingredients and food items, and given the local cook.

Relative to other tropic regions or developing countries, the risk of disease in Chiapas is very low.  The CDC recommends the following vaccinations and protection when traveling in Chiapas:

We are not aware to date of any cases of Malaria in the region we work in during winter.  However, the summer rains do bring mosquitos, and we cannot say that Malaria is not a risk.  A visit to the travel nurse is required as soon as the trip dates are known, as some of these are taken in a series and require some time to develop full resistance.  The team will help you prepare and take the necessary preventive steps appropriate for the season.

Traveler's life and medical insurance is provided.  In the event of a medical emergency, the team travels with a fully stocked emergency, and the nearby towns do have medical clinics.  Tuxtla hosts excellent medical facilities for more serious problems.  We must know of any allergies or medical conditions up front to ensure we can handle any emergencies and prevent accidentally invoking a medical reaction.

Cost of travel, food, lodging and vehicles runs approximately $1500 depending on the size and makeup of the team.  Frequent flyer tickets can offset this cost.  A U.S. passport valid for six months from the date of departure is required by the Department of State.  Join a service team.