Members of the Creston Seventh-day Adventist Church will team up with church members from Cranbrook and Victoria for a 10-day mission trip, during which they will help a family with two physically disabled daughters.
Both daughters are in wheelchairs, but their home is currently not wheelchair accessible, so the 29-member group, including 12 from Creston, will add a bedroom and ensuite bathroom for the girls. And if funds permit, they will also redo the sidewalk, roof and windows, and give the home a fresh coat of paint.
The group decided in June to make the trip, which starts Jan. 31, and fundraising has been going on ever since, but turning the funds into U.S. dollars is challenging with the current exchange rate — about $2,000 more is needed to complete the entire project.
“We’re really hoping to make really big impact and blessing for the family and the community, as well,” said Tammy Molina, whose husband, Josue, is the pastor of the Creston and Cranbrook churches.
The mission will take place in Jaco, Costa Rica, a town of about 4,500. The family had initially asked the town for funding to improve their home, but the money wasn’t available for the project that will likely cost about $15,000 Cdn.
The group visiting Costa Rica ranges in age from nine to 68, and will include Victoria’s Gerald Kazanowski, a former professional and Canadian Olympic basketball player, who will host a basketball camp for youth in Jaco.
The visit by the Canadians will end with a revival meeting on the last weekend.
“Mission trips serve a dual purpose, at least at the minimum to bless others and to help people who are in a different situation than we are,” said Molina. “You get so much when you do that. You help people where you’re going and get a big blessing in your own life.”
And beyond helping out a family in need, Moline hopes the mission will encourage others to help those closer to home.
“It might inspire people to get more mission-minded in their own life,” she said. “We believe that’s what Christ has asked us to do.”
For more information or to donate (tax receipts are available), contact Tammy Molina at 1-250-870-1136.