Next Meeting

We did meet last Sunday and have taken some decisions all need to know.

Air travel is yet to be fully settled, but we are now planning to depart on Friday, July 3, 2009 .  Uncertain whether we depart from Charleston.  We are checking our options out of Charlotte and Savannah.  Cost still seems to be in the vicinity of $800.  We expect to have updated quotes incorporating the July 3 departure by the middle of next week and we will make a decision not later than Oct. 5  (see note below about the next team meeting).

Still on airline tickets.....we will have to make commitments for tickets soon.  We will expect any who are planning to go to Curacao to declare so not later than Oct. 5.   Not later than October 10 , every person going must deposit $100.00.  That is a fee required at time of booking if we use an agency.  If we book direct with an airline, the full amount is due at time of booking.  If that becomes necessary, we will ask those that can to pay their full amount.  For any that cannot, we will set up the ability to pay for your ticket over some months.  If we use this process, all should expect to make regular payments toward tickets and complete paying for their full ticket cost not later than May 1,  2009 .  We would have to determine the ability of the church to absorb the up front cash demand this option could require.  Please recognize that I can not today, assure this option is available and the extent that payment terms that would have to apply to make it work.

The estimated cash obligation in addition to the airline ticket remains at $250.00.  That covers housing, most meals and transportation.  The key variable is housing.  We will likely be later this year or early next before that is resolved.   May 1, 2009 will be the final due date for that to be paid to GCF.

Linda Dean is investigating our options for providing some form of medical/health service.  The laws of Curacao may prevent "clinics" for medical treatment, but she has ideas of other possibilities.

Brian Joslin has been asked to communicate directly with Cesar Eman to plan how our team could provide a "mechanics" ministry to those who lead VBS and hopefully, into the nearby community as well.

Megan Joslin has volunteered to take the lead in helping the team develop language skills for Papiamentu.  She is assembling some materials and tools for this purpose.  We will ask her to conduct some group training and practice over these coming months.

Any interested in working with any of these on their area of focus are encouraged to contact them.  It is certain we will identify other avenues of service we want to pursue and as a consequence, we will need to spread around the responsibility to lead each of these.

note:  As you can see, we are jumping into the necessary work to be ready for next Summer.   We are going to need the talents and active engagement of all now as well as next July.  It really is important that everyone who intends to go to  Curacao be prepared to commit to meet as a group with some frequency.  Preparation is going to take time and our commitment to do the advance work will have a great impact on the witness we can provide when we are on the island.

The next meeting of the group is set for October 5 at the Senior Center.  The entire church is going to have lunch there immediately following the service to kick off the 40 Days of Community.   Every  Curacao team member should plan to stay following the lunch for a one hour meeting.

That is plenty to digest for now.  Please don't wait until the next meeting to speak up if you have questions about anything here.  As always, please feel free to alert the entire distribution list if I have any error in this or future communications.

Please contact me if you have any questions about anything in this message or at all related to our Mission 2009 - Curacao.

gene