Kenya
This November, Christian Heritage Academy is partnering with Boost Mission Trips to offer a school mission trip to Kenya! This trip is available for Sophomore, Junior, and Senior students at CHA.
Basing ourselves near Kenya’s capital city, Nairobi, this trip offers the chance to partner directly with Kenyan believers and ministries who are doing the work of reaching their neighbors with the gospel and growing a healthy church body. On this trip, you will work side by side with Kenyan brothers and sisters. You’ll be working in local schools and communities, stepping into some of the vast slums that encircle the city, learning about orphan care in Kenya, and developing relationships with Kenyans from all walks of life. The slums of Korogocho are a tough place where the homes are made out of mud and scavenged building materials with little to no plumbing. But this trip is not about touring other people’s poverty. This is about building bridges between the underprivileged and the rest of the world, focusing more on what brings you together than what sets you apart, and opening yourself up to the possibility that you may not come home the same.
We will largely be working in and around the slums of Korogocho. It is a place marked by oppressive poverty and enormous barriers to things like health care, employment, and education, but it is also marked by strong and exceptional people. Over 30 ethnic groups and 150,000-200,000 people living in a 1 ½ square mile radius call Korogocho home.
Our team will have opportunities to be involved in community outreach, children's ministry, service work, and some door-to-door outreach. You’ll also be working in schools to build friendships and challenge students in the areas of relationships, academic excellence, and Christian faith. Many in the West may not see “academic excellence” as a ministry, but in the slums, a good education is important and a very real way out of poverty. One teacher shared, “90 percent of my students come from the most impoverished slum in Nairobi (Korogocho), where the majority of residents live on under a dollar a day.”
Every step of the way, we will be working with and taking our cues from the Kenyan believers who have long been working tirelessly to establish the local church as a place of hope and help to the Kenyan people. Ultimately, our ministry will be about joining in that effort every way we can.
We will cook many of our meals ourselves. We’ll bring a few supplies with us and we’ll hit the markets and local shops for most of what we need, keeping our meals simple and our stomachs full. But fear not, you’re going to have plenty of chances to eat what the locals eat and experience classic Kenyan cuisine. This will often include chapati, ugali, chicken, and goat. You might even get to meet your dinner before it's butchered!
Many groups expect to be housed in Western-style accommodations, but we believe it’s important to live, as well as work, among the people. You won’t be staying in the slums, but rather in a small, comfortable, African-quality hotel not far from where you’ll be doing the bulk of your ministry. Lodging will come with the bedding you need, electrical outlets, meeting spaces, showers, and a safe place to unwind after an intense day of ministry - the hotel will be your home away from home!
This team is for Christian Heritage Academy students, grades 10-12. If you have a desire to grow in your faith and your ability to share your faith with others and like to travel and experience new things, then this is a great opportunity for you. You don’t have to be a professional evangelist or a flawless Christian. This will be a chance to practice talking about your faith with other people, building new relationships, and gaining some new ministry skills. God calls us all to care about the needs of others in this world. Sometimes that’s sharing the gospel with them, or sometimes that’s offering help and resources that they need. Both can be intimidating and scary. We believe that with some practice and help, you may experience the thrill and rewards that come with stepping out and sharing your faith with someone who needs to know that Jesus is real. No need to wait around anymore for the perfect opportunity. This is your chance!
While fundraising can be a daunting task, and the idea of asking people to help you cover the cost of this trip might be intimidating to you, we believe that there are many people out there who know you and would love the chance to invest into something so worthwhile. It is an amazing experience to see God provide for an opportunity like this through the people in your life. We can help you figure out how to get the word out and show people you are ready to serve God in Kenya. We are happy to coach you through the process and hope that you don’t hesitate to take us up on the offer.
We will gather and depart Christian Heritage Academy on Friday evening, November 10. We will travel as a group to O'Hare Airport for our overnight flight. The team will return to O'Hare on Monday evening, November 20, where you can be picked up by your family at the airport. The team will be led by two staff from Reign Ministries, as well as one CHA faculty member.
The cost of this mission trip is $3150. This cost covers airfare, food, lodging, and transportation in Kenya. The cost also covers a group t-shirt, a duffel pack for your luggage, and international travel insurance. You will have the option to upgrade your travel insurance for more coverage. Please note that a recommended $100 spending money is not included in the cost of this trip and is the responsibility of the participant. Additionally, you will need to apply for and purchase your visa for Kenya ($51) ahead of time. Securing the visa is an easy process, and we’ll help you through it. The deadline to sign up is May 30, 2023. Once your online registration is complete, we receive your $250 deposit, and all the trip specific material is ready for printing, we will send you a Prep Packet that will contain all the info you need to prepare for the trip. In order for us to purchase your airfare to Kenya, the first $1250 is due August 1, 2023 (which will include your $250 deposit), and then the remaining cost of the trip is due October 24, 2023.
Boost Mission Trips takes the safety and health of each participant seriously. We go to great lengths to ensure that participants remain healthy and safe throughout the trip. Therefore, no participant is allowed to be alone in any city; participants always travel in groups of three or more, and, when possible, with a male or a leadership presence in each group. The trip leaders also continuously monitor conditions within the host country both before and during the trip. If a situation arises that threatens the security of the team, either politically or from environmental conditions, the team will be moved to a stable location
We had an amazing time in serving in this country and unfortunately this group trip is no longer available. If you're looking for group or individual mission trips, click below to visit our home page.