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STRONG MISSIONS Charlie Strong and his wife, Angela Strong, founded Strong Missions in 2004 . Strong Missions is a United Methodist mission organization that accepts volunteers in high school or older who want to help make the lives of Costa Ricans better. Volunteers can come with their families, with a group of friends, with a church group, etc. People can become volunteers even if they are not of the United Methodist religion. It is not necessary to know any Spanish to become a volunteer, either. There are guides that volunteers live with and work with that can speak both English and Spanish. The staff at Strong Missions lives in Costa Rica year round and are very familiar with the area. They have strong relationships with the people of the community, so it is very safe.

WHAT TO DO Group leaders do not have to do much on their own while planning their mission trips to Costa Rica. Each group will be given a complete itinerary before they even arrive in the country. Transportation to and from the airport, to all of the worksites, and to the extra excursions is provided. Strong Missions sets up everything, including hotels, that will be needed throughout the trip. Strong Missions offers a lot of work options for volunteers to participate in while serving in Costa Rica. There are outreach missions where volunteers go to a local school, park, or church and play with the children. This can consist of singing with the children, playing games with the children, or making crafts with the children. Some volunteers may want to do manual labor. There are lots of construction or gardening options that volunteers can partake in. Lots of homes in Costa Rica are not safe and are pretty much like shacks. Strong Missions helps make the Costa Rican homes safer and more convenient for the families to use and live in. Some of the parks in Costa Rica need to be remodeled because the children cannot play safely on them. A lot of the parks need complete makeovers, with new paint, playground equipment, benches, landscaping, and fencing for safety. A lot of churches in the area are outside because air conditioning is so expensive and it is very hot in Costa Rica. Volunteers with Strong Missions are building concrete outdoor churches that can be used in any weather, rain or shine.

MINISTRY As part of the workweek the volunteers can visit a home for young girls up to age twenty-two who are young mothers or expectant mothers. It is a catholic organization that takes in girls who have been abused and are not safe in their home environments to raise a baby. The volunteers help babysit the children and play with them while their mothers are doing their schoolwork. Volunteers can buy jewelry that the young mothers made themselves to donate to keep the home running. This helps the people of Costa Rica get the basic resources that they need for a healthy life.

EXCURSIONS Not all of the volunteers’ stays at Strong Missions is all work related. Volunteers stay at a hotel and house on the Strong Missions property for an affordable cost. Authentic Costa Rican food is cooked and provided three times each day. The groups that come to Strong Missions have lots of downtime to play games and bond with the community or themselves. Each group gets to go to on an Adventure Excursion. This could be visiting the rainforest or the beach, visiting volcanoes, soaking up in hot springs, or hiking to waterfalls. Groups can go zip lining through canopy tours, white water rafting, horseback riding, snorkeling, and more. It is very likely for volunteers to see wild animals such as monkeys, sloths, jaguars, anteaters, crocodiles, and much more while on these excursions.

CHURCH Another option each group has is to go to a church service at the church that is by the Strong Missions headquarters. Volunteers will get to see how a Costa Rican church service is. The services are in Spanish but there are English translators. If interested, volunteers can help out at the services and sing, pray, or preach sermons.

CULTURE There are some cultural things that people should be aware of before visiting Costa Rica. Toilet paper and feminine products cannot be flushed down the toilet because the plumbing in Costa Rica is not strong enough for it. Instead, it needs to be thrown in the garbage can. Volunteers need to make sure they follow this rule wherever they go in Costa Rica, even if they go to a really nice hotel. Make sure to empty the trashcans regularly so as not to attract bugs.

CLOTHING Even though it is hot in Costa Rica, it is a conservative culture and there are some unwritten rules that volunteers will need to follow. It is not common to see women in spaghetti strap tank tops or really short shorts. It is important to dress respectably, especially since volunteers may be working in churches. Long pants are expected to be worn during each workday, along with close-toed shoes for safety reasons.