Serve with Young Life Trinidad & Tobago
Kids in Trinidad & Tobego have a right to know Jesus personally. Young Life leaders are meeting kids where they are at in life and walking alongside them through their triumphs and their hardships.
As they meet and disciple kids, Young Life leaders in Trinidad & Tobago are helping to grow disciple-making leaders for the Kingdom of God.
Go! See! Engage! June 25 - July 2, 2025. 8 Day Trip $2000* includes:
- 7 days serving in Port of Spain alongside the local YL staff & leaders
- 1 day Trinidad & Tobago adventure day
*Includes: all ground transportation, meals, accommodations, project supplies, and local ministry donation.
Medical travel insurance not included
We believe that everyone who participates in a Young Life expedition - North American and Trinidadians and Tobagonians alike - will grow in their faith. Your week will be filled with opportunities to encourage and serve local staff, leaders, teenagers, and their families. Your team will have the opportunity to serve in a community where Young Life is active, to participate in local Young Life activities, encourage staff and volunteers, and to explore the beauty of Trinidad & Tobago on your adventure day.
Logistics
Who will be on the trip?
There will be 8-10 students and 2-4 leaders from Rochester on the trip to Trinidad. While in Trinidad we will be hosted by Rishi, the Young Life staff member in Trinidad.
Where will we be staying?
We will be staying in the community of La Romain at Rishi's house, which also serves as the Young Life clubhouse and leadership training grounds.
What will we be eating?
All food while on the trip is included in the price. There will be a blend of eating at our accommodations as well as adventuring out to try the local cuisine.
What will our devotion time look like?
Each night we will take time for worship and reflection about the day. Our leaders from Rochester will lead this time and have prepared devotions for each day. This is also a special time for students to share their testimony with each other. While there will not be a set in stone structure for this, there will be time set aside to grow together as a community in our faith.
Is La Romain safe?
While there is an inherent risk in traveling to developing countries like Trinidad, La Romain is a safe area, and we will be accompanied by locals throughout our entire time in Trinidad. As an entire group, and as individuals, we would never be left alone while in Trinidad.
Safety Follow Up
- We have received a couple of concerns from parents around the safety of this trip, and we are in active conversations with both the Expeditions team as well as the staff on the ground in Trinidad to ensure safety and make any adjustments accordingly. I want to share with you the key takeaways from our call with our team last Thursday.
- Crime within Trinidad is centered around hot spots, mainly, Port of Spain. The city we are traveling to, La Romain, is not a hot spot within the country.
- We will be flying into Port of Spain, the expeditions team will pick us up directly from the airport and transport us to La Romain, so we will not be spending time in the City of Port of Spain.
- There is a general election happening in Trinidad at the end of April, if any adjustments need to be made to the trip after this election, we will speak with the expedition team to make adjustments. However, the team in Trinidad does not foresee the election being an issue. There has always been a peaceful handoff of government officials.
- While Trinidad is currently in a SOE, these are the details surrounding it:
- There is free movement within the country, no roadblocks or curfew (which is a good thing!)
- The SOE suspends certain legal rights for criminals, making it easier for the government to intervene in criminal activity
- The SOE is geared towards gang violence in Port of Spain
- SOE expires on April 13th
- Rishi and Fernando, our staff on the ground in Trinidad, know that reading the information put out nationally can be alarming and cause concern. But as the staff that is taking responsibility for the safety of these students, they would not put them in a situation they did not deem safe.
Health Concerns
- You should ensure that you are up to date with all routine vaccinations such as tetanus, influenza, measles and COVID-19
- Some travelers may also require the following vaccinations, please check with your family physician if they are recommend for you:
- Yellow fever - Recommended if you will be travelling to densely-forested areas on the island of Trinidad (check with your doctor)
- Hepatitis A - Recommended for those at increased risk. This includes travelers with pre-existing liver disease or other serious medical conditions, those who will be staying with or visiting the local population, travelers who will be staying in very basic accommodation, frequent and/or long-stay travelers.
- Travellers to the Trinidad and Tobago are not at risk from malaria
- There is a risk of Zika Virus in Trinidad and Tobago. All travellers should take steps to avoid mosquito bites.
- Safe drinking water will be provided throughout the trip, as bottled water is readily available and most commonly drunk by locals.
Packing List
Stay tuned for a packing list!
Flight Information
We will be flying out of MSP and will arrange carpools up to the airport. Flight times subject to change based on travel agency and airline availability.
To Trinidad: June 25th
- Depart MSP: 6:08 AM
- Land in Miami: 10:49 AM
- Depart Miami: 5:46 PM
- Land in Port of Spain 9:36 PM
- Travel to accommodations in the community of La Romaine
Back Home: July 2nd
- Depart Port of Spain: 7:09 AM on
- Land in Miami: 11:14 AM
- Depart Miami: 8:36 PM
- Land in MSP: 11:27 PM
What will we be doing?
Within the Schools:
Young Life is currently ministering to two schools in the La Romain community. We will be going to these schools to host events, clubs, and do contact work with many unchurched students.
Service Project:
We will help Young Life update their current club room with things such as painting, adding lights, etc.
Campaigners Connection:
Most Campaigner kids in Trinidad have given their life to Christ within the past year or two. Young Life Staff in Trinidad hope our students can share their faith and faith stories with these Campaigner students to inspire them and show that Young Life, discipling, and sharing their faith can be a big part of their future.
Adventure:
Along with every Young Life Expedition, is a portion of adventure. While the actual adventure is not yet set it stone it could include things like:
- Hiking to a waterfall and exploring the countryside
- Exploring the beaches and coast
- And so many other amazing opportunities Trinidad has to offer
Preparing Culturally for the Trip
We want to make sure kids are ready to experience a different culture and share their faith with the students in Trinidad. We will have some prep meetings and videos the students and leaders will walk through together to ensure we are ready to step into the culture of Trinidad respectfully and with humility. Dates on these meetings TBD, and will be communicated ASAP.
Next Steps
- If you do not have a passport, look into applying for one now so you receive it in ample time for the trip
- Register on Managed Missions and start getting your information uploaded to the website. On the ‘Choose your trip’; appeal code: XTC01 Rochester MN YL
- Starting thinking about fundraising for the trip! See more information below.
- Parent/Student Meeting: Thursday 10th @ 8:00PM at the Hive
Now that everyone is registered on Managed Missions, please take the time to fill out the required paperwork
- Upload Passport
- International Consent Form: affirming insurance coverage
- Consent And Release For International Travel Program
Insurance
- As far as international medical insurance, first check with your medical insurance provider to see if they cover international travel, some do, some do not. If they do, you are good to go! If they do not, we can help point you in the direction of a couple of vendors that you can purchase coverage from, the average cost would be around $30.
Fundraising
We currently have 4 local fundraisers for campers to participate in.
- Wing A Thon
- Event Assistance
- Lawn Rangers
- Flapdoodles Gift Card Sales
Along with local fundraisers, there are many people who love supporting mission trips. Through Managed Missions each student will have a fundraising page they can send to family and friends to support them. See information below
Fundraising
- To start your fundraising via managed missions, you can make your page public and start sending it to family and friends to donate towards you!
- When you login there is a "Public Profile" box. Press edit, and then enable the public profile. It will give you a link. You can send this to people and the funds will go directly to your account.
- I would recommend writing a letter to send to people. If you google "mission trip fundraising letter examples" you will get MANY examples!
This website will continue to be updated with important information - keep coming back to find answers to any questions you may have. Feel free to email Kassi with any questions not answered on this site - kassi.brown.yl@gmail.com
Credits:
Created with images by Modern Angles - "Global Mission: Wooden Cross Symbolizing Missionary Work on World Map" • forenna - "Youth Group Community Service Mission Trip Building Homes" • gustavofrazao - "Trinidad and Tobago welcome sign with palm trees"