Church Group Trips

Church Group Facilitator Information

The Role of Church Group Facilitator

“Church Group Facilitator” is the title used by Compassion to refer to the main planning contact at the U.S. Church Partner, also known as the “Church Leader.” This person’s role is to promote the trip, recruit and train the team and, in most cases, lead the team on the actual trip. The Church Group Facilitator will collaborate on the objectives of your trip with the Compassion Trip Planner, who will relay those objectives to the National Office of the country to which you are traveling. The Trip Planner’s main role is to support the Church Group Facilitator as he or she builds the team for a life-changing experience, in-country and beyond.

During the trip, your role as Church Group Facilitator is vital in shaping the experience for maximum impact. Your team will look to you to provide spiritual oversight and shepherding. You will have daily opportunities for devotionals, team check-ins and debriefings about the events of each day. You will have a U.S. Compassion Representative who can support however needed.

Other Important Roles

The Role of Trip Planner

Once your Church Group Trip has been approved, the Church’s Relationship Manager will introduce the Trip Planner to the Group Facilitator. The Trip Planner will then serve as the main point of contact throughout the trip planning process. Your Trip Planner also facilitates communication from your church to the field and vice versa.

Your planner will also support the administration of each travelers’ online registration and ensures all information needed to travel has been received by Compassion. They also make sure each traveler is registered with the US Department of State prior to travel and provide guidance on visa applications, if required.

The Role of Compassion Trip Leader

This person is trained by Compassion to co-lead the trip with you. It is a requirement that all teams be accompanied by a Compassion Trip Leader. He or she is responsible for being the bridge between cultures and managing the flow of the itinerary. This person will assist your team in organizing activities and managing any crisis that might occur, with the aid of National Office staff. While many groups have a designated pastor or leader from the church to lead the team spiritually and functionally, our staff can assist in this role if needed. The Compassion Trip Leader will be introduced to the church approximately one month prior to the trip.

Promoting Your Trip

Compassion appreciates that each church community has its own best practices for communicating information. Your Compassion Trip Planner will provide an email with details that may be used in advertising.

We suggest using various methods of communication to ensure the trip invitation reaches the most individuals. One effective approach is to have a past Compassion traveler (or pastor) share about how their life was impacted by a Compassion trip. You are welcome to use Compassion images, videos and material from our website as you recruit your team. It is a great idea to coincide a big event such as a Compassion Sunday with the recruiting of your trip.

Feel free to share our trips video with those interested to help them see the benefit of traveling with Compassion.

Please note: Compassion has an age requirement for Church Group Trips.

Minimum age to travel is 13. Travelers 13-15 years old must travel with a parent, ratio 1:1.
Travelers 16-17 years old must travel in a 5:1 ratio minor to guardian.
Travelers 18 years old and up are considered adults.

Fundraising

It is up to the discretion of each individual traveler as to how they will fund their trip. Some teams choose to fundraise collectively from within their church or local community. Others may choose to invite supporters to sponsor them, or a traveler may choose to pay out of pocket for their trip. Below are several examples of support letters that can be used as a template for fundraising.

Registration

Your Trip Planner will provide you with a link to our online trip registration. This is the same link you will provide to individuals going on your trip. Note: One person will be required to register as Group Facilitator – all others will register as Supporter/Guest. Your Compassion Trip Planner will give you a registration deadline of three to four months prior to your actual trip. By that date, all team members are expected to have registered. Upon registration, each traveler will receive an email confirmation which includes a link to complete a travel release and background check. Please encourage your team to have all documents completed by the registration deadline. If a new passport is needed, please encourage your travelers to apply immediately. Passport numbers are necessary for visas, airline reservations and booking accommodations.

Breakdown of Trip Cost

This estimated cost will include in-country transportation, lodging, food, bottled water, tips, home visit gifts, translators, Compassion Trip Leader and trip insurance. Your trip cost will also include background checks (required for all travelers), Trip Guides, name and luggage tags, and all registration-related costs. For more information on the breakdown of Trip Cost, reach out to your Trip Planner.

Trip cost estimates do not include airfare or costs associated with Fun Day activities. When applicable, these costs will be included in the final invoice.

Trip costs do not include the following expenses: the cost of individual passports, vaccinations, visas, meals while in transit, souvenirs, and baggage fees.

“We had the best trip ever! I know you all work with thousands of thousands of groups planning mission trips, but as it probably is with so many others, we feel we had the ultimate experience and the time spent with our sponsored centers and the children has definitely ruined our lives forever! In a Christ way, of course.”

— Philippines Group Facilitator

Payments

Deposit: Once this trip is approved and the Group Facilitator has registered, your Compassion Trip Planner will issue you a deposit invoice to hold your dates for the trip. We request that this payment be made to Compassion in one lump sum through credit card, check or ACH payment. Please note: this deposit is non-refundable. Please contact your Trip Planner with any questions.
Final Payment: Approximately four-to-six weeks prior to your trip departure, your Compassion Trip Planner will issue you a final invoice covering the remaining trip and Fun Day costs. Please note the due date of the payment and submit it through credit card, check or ACH payment.
Compassion policy is for the Church Group Facilitator to collect all trip payments (deposit and final payment) from trip participants and make one payment on behalf of the church.

Team Building and Preparation Ideas

Have the team share some of their journey to faith in Christ or a key moment when God worked in their life.
Start a team prayer journal in which team members can share prayers and apprehensions both before and during the trip. While on the trip and afterward, revisit what the team prayed for, and celebrate God’s answers.
Team Building Games
10-Day Devotional for Your Trip
Use the Compassion Trip Guide and have various people present information or play a trivia game with information about the destination country.
Prepare for Trip Activities as a Group

Re-Entry and Next Steps

After such powerful experiences on your trip, the transition back to life at home can be tremendously challenging for your team. We suggest that you create a time within a few weeks of your trip to meet with your team, reconnect and discuss how their lives have been changed from the experience. Check in with each team member within a few weeks of the trip and again after a few months.

One of the biggest questions that individuals face after returning from a Compassion trip is, “What now?” We suggest that you encourage your team to engage deeper with Compassion’s ministry through coordinating sponsored child letter writing parties and looking for opportunities to make a difference in your own community.

Reach out to your team in the week following re-entry to provide support and counsel for those who may be struggling with their return.
Organize get-togethers for one month and six months after the trip to discuss the trip and share photos.
Encourage your team to find an outlet where they can volunteer some time to causes that are close to their heart. Your Trip Guide can also be a starting place for ideas.
We offer many ways to Get Involved with the work Compassion is doing!