Have you ever wondered what a HopeChest Vision Trip is like? Why are they important? Why are they necessary?
The Difference Between a Mission Trip and a Vision Trip
Unlike a traditional short-term mission trip, a vision trip’s purpose is not ministry activity, but rather to explore the challenges and opportunities for building long-term sustainability in the communities. As you know, Children’s HopeChest not only addresses the critical needs of a child, but we also invest in the long-term sustainability of their communities through tools such as leadership programs, discipleship, employment training, and income-generating activities. On an In-country Vision Trip, participants visit several CarePoints to evaluate the different programs and projects. At each location, we visit with local leadership, and learn about community assets and the future vision of long-term change. Additionally, participants engage and interact with the children in the community, visit their homes, and immerse in the community culture to better understand the opportunities and challenges at hand.
The Purpose of a Vision Trip
HopeChest Vision Trips have proven to be a great way to vision-cast with in-country staff and partners, problem-solve, and strategically plan the future of Children’s HopeChest and each CarePoint. A Vision Trip allows community leaders to envision how their community can transform not only the lives of vulnerable children and their communities but also their community back home. Vision Trips empower attendees to become advocates after seeing the transformation first-hand because nothing compares to seeing impact in person and meeting the people we partner with face-to-face! Vision Trips are also a great way to build trust and relationships with the in-country staff.
Take a Look at the 2022 Africa Vision Trip!
In late September 2022, Ken Sparks (president and CEO of Children’s HopeChest) and Sally Townsend (Board Chairperson) co-led our first strategic partner and leader trip to see the HopeChest model for sustainable community transformation in action. This 2-week trip spanned across 16 CarePoints in Uganda and Ethiopia. At each CarePoint visit, there was a different Impact Focus where vision trip attendees could tangibly see transformation happening before their eyes. These Impact Focuses included farmer groups, a music, dance & drama club, aluminum fabrication, beekeeping, VSLAs, agriculture, and other income-generating activities!
Trip attendees were able to see and meet people through:
- Local savings groups that help people experiencing poverty build financial stability
- Emotional health and wellness efforts
- Agricultural and animal husbandry projects that help families break the cycle of poverty
- Water kiosks and small businesses
- CarePoint operations and their holistic impact in the community
Enjoy photos taken by Vision Trip Attendees below!
Going on a Vision Trip will give you an opportunity to engage with the power of your compassion in action – firsthand. During your visit, you’ll get to see several community projects in realtime. If you’re still not convinced of the power of a Vision Trip… stay tuned! In coming weeks, we will be hearing from more board members who attended the 2022 Africa Vision Trip to hear what impacted them the most.
