UPCOMING TRIP- JUNE 17TH TO JUNE 26TH, 2018- TO AGUASCALIENTES, MX

Sign up deadline- Jan 31 2018

TRIP INFORMATION:

What is the Aguas IFE ’18 and what are we going to do there?

 The AGUAS IFE (International Futbol Experience) ‘18 is a week-long experience to Aguascalientes, MX. This will be the 2^nd time SWAP has been to Aguascalientes, and we are looking forward to reconnecting with our friends. The main goal of this trip is to serve the children of local orphanage called “Dulce Refugio” (Sweet Refuge). We are going to show those children they matter to God, but also to us so much we are willing to leave our homes in another country to come spend time with them. We will be staying in the orphanage’s quarters and will be spending a lot of time interacting with the children, and helping out around the orphanage. Some of the things we may do with the children are a bonfire, take them to a water park, run soccer games, and take them to a professional soccer game. The other part of the experience will be training, playing, and/or interacting with local soccer clubs such as Necaxa, Chivas, Cruz Azul and Pumas. The IFE team will be going to Aguas from June 17^th to June 26th, 2018.  Lastly, we will have some time for sightseeing, some great Mexican food, and even an amazing a Brazilian steakhouse experience towards the end of the trip. This experience provides an opportunity for families to bond on a level that is hard to do when we are in the comfort of our homes. It will also allow us to love on children who have no parents, and to learn from them as well.

Here’s what a typical day may look like:

8:00 a.m.       Eat Breakfast

10:00 a.m.     Spend time with children on base

12:00 p.m.    Lunch

2:00 p.m.       Soccer practice/games

6:00 p.m.       Dinner/Free time on base

7:30 p.m.       Team debrief time

10 p.m.          Lights out

 

How much does AGUAS IFE ‘18 cost?

The cost is $1,500 per person. Here’s where that goes:

• Team Equipment – $150 (game jerseys, t-shirts, balls, etc.)
• Expenses while in Aguas- $450 (food, transportation, lodging, donation etc.)
• Airfare – $600 (from the USA to and from Aguas)
• Team General Expenses – $200(Busing to and from O’Hare, travel insurance, etc.)
• Donation to Orphanage- remainder( constuction project, clothes, sports equipment, etc)

** If the final group has less than 12 players, the cost will increase by $100 per person

How am I going to come up with $1,500 per family member?

• Family/ Friends Support Letters
• Garage Sales
• Be Creative!

Don’t let money become the obstacle that prevents you from pursuing this opportunity for your family.  Some families are not able to cover the financial cost of the trip out of their own pocket.  We will help by providing training in this area so that you can create a network of people to financially partner with you and your family.  It provides a great opportunity for people who aren’t physically able to participate on the team to have a positive and lasting impact on the children in Aguas through you.

 

What about all the other details?

• Travel

The team will travel together, to and from Mexico (no exceptions).  Everyone will meet at a designated location on the day of the flight, and then be bused to the appropriate airport (probably O’Hare).  You’ll then fly to Aguascalientes, MX. .  The team will then be transported by the orphanage’s vans to the Dulce Refugio property.  The team will likely follow a similar travel pattern on the way home…only opposite of what is stated above.

• Lodging

We will be staying at Dulce Refugio’s facilities. Most likely, men and boys will sleep in the same area, and women in a different area.

• Food

We will eat breakfast and lunch most days at Dulce Refugio (they will have a cook to make the food), and will also eat out at restaurants that have been “approved” by the local staff at Dulce Refugio.

• Traveling With one parent and/or divorced parent or other relative

Mexican law requires that any non-Mexican citizen under the age of 18 departing Mexico must carry notarized written permission from any parent or guardian not traveling with the child to or from Mexico. This permission must include the name of the parent, the name of the child, the name of anyone traveling with the child, and the notarized signature(s) of the absent parent(s). The State Department recommends that the permission should include travel dates, destinations, airlines and a brief summary of the circumstances surrounding the travel. The child must be carrying the original letter—not a facsimile or scanned copy—as well as proof of the parent/child relationship (usually a birth certificate or court document) and an original custody decree, if applicable. Please contact the Mexican Embassy for further information

• Can a player come without a parent? Yes, but first you would have to ask trip director if this would work. To travel without a parent, player must be born in 2004 or older.
• Passports

A passport is REQUIRED for adults and children travelling to Mexico. It can take 8-10 weeks to obtain a passport so you won’t want to delay in requesting it. Traveling without a passport is NOT an option. For more information on obtaining a passport, please visit the following site: http://travel.state.gov/passport/passport_1738.html

Immunizations

The Health Department recommends obtaining vaccinations for Hepatitis A & B, Typhoid and Tetanus. You will want to check with your family doctor for their recommendations as well.

• Medical Facilities

While in Mexico, there is access to several private clinics that have specialty in various areas of medicine as well as having a fully stocked pharmacy.  For more serious emergencies or health issues there are several large, reputable hospitals in Aguas.

• Travel Insurance

We purchase travel insurance for everyone travelling with us. The cost for this is included in the overall cost of the trip.

• Other Travel Money

You may want some spending money while in Mexico for souvenirs and other items such as snacks and beverages at local restaurants. Souvenirs can be purchased from vendors at the airport.

• Medications

Any prescribed medications will need to be brought to our attention. For all other medications we will have a team kit with Tylenol, Aleve, Ibuprofen, band aids, antiseptic, Imodium AD and Pepto Bismol.

 

Is it a problem if we don’t speak Spanish?

Not at all!  Most people living in Aguas speak Spanish, but there will also be some English speaking Canadians who live at the orphanage. The children at the orphanage will enjoy teaching you Spanish words! Also, our team leader, Bruno, is fluent in Spanish and will also be able to communicate for the group when needed.  Despite us having access to translators, we will encourage our team to brush up on conversational Spanish so that we can engage in basic pleasantries such as “please” and “thank you.”

 

When are the Team Meetings?

We are going to have 2 kinds of team meetings. The 1^st kind will be parent/children “huddles”, where we will prepare for the trip as a group. The other meetings will be soccer training sessions. Attendance and participation in team-meetings is strongly recommended (sending one person as a “representative” to the “huddle” for your family doesn’t countJ).  The team meetings are as follows:

• Friday, January 20, 2018- Why are we going?- 6-7:30 pm
• Friday, March 23, 2018- Mexican Food pot luck and Mexican Culture 6-7:30 pm
• Weekly Training sessions at location TBD beginning in May
• Friday, May 11, 2018- Packing, final preparation 6-7:30 pm
• Friday, July 18, 2014- Packing and final preparation- 6-7:30 pm

 

 

When are the Financial Deadlines? **

• (TRIP DEPOSIT) Sunday, December 31^th, 2017- $200 per person
• Payment #1- Sunday, January 20, 2018- $200 per person ($400 cumulative)
• Payment #2- Sunday, February 25, 2018- $200 per person ($600 cumulative)
• Payment #3- Sunday, March 25, 2018- $300 per person ($900 cumulative)
• Payment #4- Sunday, April 29, 2018- $300 per person ($1,200 cumulative)
• Payment #5(Final) – Sunday, May 27, 2018- $400 per person ($1,500 cumulative)

**You may choose to pay for the trip in full any anytime.

*** All money is refundable (minus trip deposit) up until February 25, 2018.  After January 20th, there will be NO refunds.

  

What do I do now?

If you feel that this is the next step for you and your family, please follow the instructions below:

1. Fill out the basic form HERE mail in your trip deposit $200 per person( or pay online by the deadline ( Dec 31, 2017)
2. Soon after you pay the $200 deposit, you will receive an email with a link with a form you will need to fill out. Please fill out the application for yourself and your child participating on the team.  The application will be sent to you by the end of February, 2018
3. Once you submit your application it will be sent to Bruno de Jesus, who will then contact you to confirm receipt and to inform you of your next step in the process. If you have questions, please contact Bruno and Lisa DeJesus at sportswpurpose@gmail.com at 574-329-4295 ( Bruno), or 574-607-7549  (Lisa)

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METHODS OF PAYMENT

 

Go to www.sportswithapurpose.net/payments

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Below are some useful links:

Sports With a Purpose:  www.sportswithapurpose.net

Necaxa Mexican Professional Club:  www.necaxafutbol.com

History of Aguascalientes: http://www.history.com/topics/aguascalientes

Dulce Refugio orphanage:  http://childrenofhope.info/dulce-refugio/

Facebook Page: Sports With a Purpose

Twitter: @SportsWpurpose

 

 

 

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TRIP #2- JUNE 28^TH TO JULY 8^TH  2017 SOCCER/FUTSAL EXPERIENCE

. The main goal of this trip was expose players to the Brazilian way of life and also to present parents and players with an opportunity to learn and use soccer as a tool of social inclusion. We had an amazing time spending time at empoverished communities such as Sao Goncalo, Vila Alianca-Bangu, and Ilha dos Bancarios. We also visited and served an Indian tribe in Marica, RJ. Additionally, we also got to play a friendly game against one of the biggest professional clubs in Brazil: Flamengo.  On the tourism side, we watched a pro game in Maracana, spent a day in the “Brazilian Caribe”( Arraial do Cabo), and visited Christ the Redeemer Statue and Sugar Loaf.

We had many moments where we clearly saw God using us to bring hope to others, and we also learned a lot from the people we encountered. Below is a quick video of the trip

 

TRIP #1- AUGUST, 2014 INTERNATIONAL SOCCER EXPERIENCE TRIP TO AGUASCALIENTES, MX

In August of 2014, a team of 30 members ( 12 soccer players and 18 family members) went to Aguascalientes, MX to spend the week at an orphanage called Dulce Refugio serving the children, the staff, and helping out at the orphanage.  We spent time playing with the children ( we even went to a water park!). We also got to play many games against local soccer teams like Chivas San Marcos and Mandyn Futbol Soccer School, as well as some local neighborhood teams. Along with those two things, we also climbed up 1,700 foot up the Picacho mountain and got to know each other really well.

The trip experience transformed all of us!

Here is a Youtube summary of the trip

 

HERE IS SOME GENERAL TRIPS INFORMATION:

Past Costs:

2017 Brazil Trip- $3,200

2014 Aguascalientes trip- $1,600

** If you have airline miles and would like to meet us at the hotel in Rio for the trip, please contact Bruno for pricing.

We offer Monthly payments plan to make trip more attainable We will also have credit card payment options online (for additional fee).

One of the main reasons SWAP exists is to give to provide financially accessible opportunities in soccer training and trips. During the process of preparing for this trip, we will have some training tools that will help the family raise money for the trip. This is just a basic information flyer. For more details on the trip, please visit www.sportswithapurpose.net/trips, or contact Bruno at sportswpurpose@gmail.com, or 574-329-4295

One of the many ways you can raise funds is by sending a letter to friends and family explaining the goal of the trip. On this letter that you will be coached on how to write, you can ask for prayers, financial support, or (usually) both. In the past most of the participants who choose to share their personal mission with those around them have success raising funds for the trip. Here is an example-“How to write an invitation letter”

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METHODS OF PAYMENT

 

Go to www.sportswithapurpose.net/payments

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The goal of the trips is to experience an international culture, play soccer and futsal, and use soccer/futsal as a tool to bless others that are less fortunate ( this is done via playing vs inner city teams and/or being part of a non-profit that uses soccer as a teaching tool.

Because SWAP believes in being financially responsible, we decided to offer monthly payment plans. Additionally, Bruno and Lisa have a lot of experience helping families raise funds for this type of trip. This will be a mission trip of sorts, with the mission of using soccer as our gifts to bless others and get to know a different culture.

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