Last year, Isaiah Hwang’s winning entry was worn by almost 10,000 people! This year it could be yours! It is time for you to get creative and submit an entry for the Amor Mission Trip T-shirt contest.

Here is what you need to know:

• The theme is “Be Amor. Be the Story” Your design should prompt people to ask “What is the story?”
• The winner’s shirt design will be worn by almost 10,000 people as well as sold in our Amor Store online.
• The shirt should be designed in only black and white, and reproducible via screen printing.
• Deadline for shirt designs is December 15th. Submissions should be sent in jpeg, pdf, or eps format.
• Submissions should be sent to jeff@amor.org.

We can’t wait to see how creative and talented you are! If you have any questions please call 619.662.1200 or email jeff@amor.org.

We have exceeded our goal of raising $100,000 dollars by September 15th! Praise God! We have created a video to thank all those who have supported us!

In yesterday’s post, you learned that the 2010 Amor Mission Trip to South Africa build a complete house for Maria.  Today, we would love to share a little bit about Maria with you.

Maria has lived in Delmas most of her life with her family.  She worked for the Mayor’s office but is now retired.  Thanks to the governing parties in the Delmas area, individuals and families receive a “housing allowance” of sorts to provide them with the means to build a decent place to live.  There is a specific protocol to get the “housing allowance” of $4,000 which requires individuals and families to get their name on an ongoing list.  The typical individual or family has their name on the “housing allowance” list for 20 years!  Maria and her family had been on the list and received their housing allowance years ago.  Unfortunately, the contractors that Maria hired to build her new home took advantage of her and stole all of her “housing allowance” money without doing any work on her house.  Her hopes of a decent place to call home for her family were completely demolished, she had given up hope.   One of the Pastors on the Amor Ministry Planning Board in South Africa, Pastor William, found Maria and requested that Maria receive the first Amor house to be built in a South African neighborhood.  Pastor William has a big heart for his community!  Through the end of the year, many of the Pastors and their congregations have decided to build homes for the poorest families in their communities.  They are reaching out to their communities and sharing the love of God to each and everyone.  We can’t wait to get back to that community and see all that God is doing!

Maria's neighborhood.

Joyful Maria

Maria making memories with Amor participants.

Maria with some of the local students that come to help build her house.

Maria working alongside the team to complete her house.

Maria's daughter joining in on the house building.

Dancing Maria!

We can’t wait to share more of the trip with you all, check back tomorrow!

Over 500 families in Mexico won’t be receiving homes on behalf of Amor Ministries in 2009. Well, this number is now about 497 families. Three houses were built during July 10-12 on our very first (and very successful!) X Project, a Mission Trip for individuals.

As a member of the Ministry Resources team here at Amor, I spent this past weekend on the X Project, helping build, interpreting, and fellowshipping with the participants. I have to admit, I was a bit nervous launching this new program, but God took care of every worry I had.

Individuals created a group of 14 three-day builders who arrived bright and early from northern California, Washington, and Nevada. The whole group eagerly jumped in to building a new house for the Verdugo family, quickly joking with the new friends they had made. Over the weekend, the X Project three-day group built simple home with a cement floor and stucco finish, and the Verdugo family could not have been more grateful. Amidst the building, we played with the children, reflected together through breakout sessions, and shared snacks with the family.

On Saturday morning, 39 more volunteers joined the X Project to participate in a one day building project, completing two houses in about eight hours! These super-charged individuals powered through the framing, siding, and painting of the houses while playing soccer, fellowshipping with the families and each other, building a dog house, and left time to spare for a short break.

On Saturday evening, all 53 X Project participants, along with the Amor team, returned to Amor Ministries’ RanchoCamp for a taco dinner and a time of sharing with Amor’s Founder and CEO Scott Congdon. We worshipped together, and then we spent time discussing the experiences of the day in small groups. After a long day, the one-day participants returned to Amor’s headquarters in San Diego, while the three-dayers had s’mores and an impromptu shadow puppet show.

Throughout the weekend, I saw flexibility, joy, and commitment to love our neighbors overflow from every individual who gave their time to join this X Project. I can’t wait for the next X Project weekends, when more people can see a glimpse of Mexico and feel God’s power as He transcends all borders!

To learn about future X Projects visit: www.amor.org/xproject

To see the X Project Video, click here.

By Katie Haar

Fundraising for Mission Trips can be challenging, but the last thing we want is for money to get in the way of your ministry!  That’s why we’ve gathered together the best ideas around in the Mission Trip Planning Manual.

One of the most compelling fundraisers for Mission Trip participants is selling elements of the Amor house your group will be building in Mexico.  You can price the foundation, walls, roof, windows, and door of the home you will have a hand in building based on the funds you need to raise.  Then, Mission Trip participants can sell or auction the Amor home to sponsors. While the money raised goes toward your fees and expenses and does not directly support the supplies to build the house, the fundraiser lets sponsors be “mortgage holders” in spirit.

More than raising money, this fundraiser helps participants “own” their trip by investing time and effort in fundraising and allows those who cannot participate to be personally involved.  Plus, the support rallied around your Mission Trip will uplift your team!

For more fundraising ideas, check out our Mission Trip Planning Manual