The volunteer trips for 2012 will be slightly different than in the past. This will allow us to better develop our relationships with the people/families in great need in the rural community surrounding Project Canaan, while still serving our rural church partners without burdening them with visitors for too many days.

Day One - Saturday:  Depart from Canada or US.

Day Two – Sunday:  Arrive in Johannesburg and overnight at the City Lodge Airport Hotel.

Day Three – Monday:  Drive to Swaziland, check in, group orientation, meet your team and team leader, and market shopping.

Day Four – Tuesday:  All teams go to Project Canaan for the day.  They will get a two-hour tour of the project to include agriculture projects, irrigation, goat and chicken farming, ISO Building, The Lodge (long term volunteer housing), El Roi Baby home, Kufundza Vocational Training Center and the El Rofi Medical Center.  Teams will get to work serving in areas of need based on skill set (painting, greenhouses, construction, woodworking, planting, watering). They will prepare the seedlings that will be planted in the rural church gardens, as well as prepare the vegetables that will be delivered to those churches by the team on Friday. Teams will also be provided with information on a Project Canaan Family whom they will visit the following day.  The number of family members, ages and sizes will be provided so that the team can prepare shoes and food from Project Canaan and get instructions for the visit.  During 2012 we will be able to serve 30 families in the surrounding rural community including the families of Project Canaan workers and orphan-headed households who are in need.

Day Five – Wednesday:  Each team will be assigned one Project Canaan family in need. The team will drive to Project Canaan and collect the shoes and food for the family visit.  They will also bring clothing for that family if available from the “second suitcase” of donated clothing that people may have brought with them.  The team will also serve that family by visiting them, praying with them, listening to them, planting and watering a garden with them and possibly building a cooking structure if needed.  This is a great opportunity to get to see Swazi culture up close while developing a relationship with an individual family who is in need and who we want to provide extra support to.

Day Six – Thursday:  Individual volunteers will have the opportunity to choose between spending the day on a game drive (safari), a market shopping expedition or going to work at Project Canaan.

Day Seven – Friday:  This will be the first day the team goes out to visit their rural church. The team will spend time with the Pastor and/or church leaders learning more about the church, the community and their needs.  They will replant the vegetable garden with seedlings from the Project Canaan greenhouse, deliver the fresh fruit and vegetables, and begin preparation for cooking and serving on Sunday at “Litsemba” after Sunday service. 

Day Eight – Saturday:  This is the best day in the rural church community as all the children are out of school.  It will be a day of home visits to the surrounding community, visiting the sick and helping where we can.  There will be a time to play soccer with the kids, prepare food for Sunday, rehearsal for any musicians who want to be a part of the service on Sunday and measuring feet for shoe distribution on Sunday to all children between the ages of 2 and 18.  Feet need to be measured so that the correct number of each size shoe can be collected from Project Canaan for distribution on Sunday before and after church.  It is a day of fellowship and encouragement. 

Day Nine – Sunday:  Teams will head out to their rural church and start shoe distribution before church.  People working on food preparation will join the women to begin cooking while anyone participating in the Litsemba service gets ready for worship.  Church will begin at approximately 10:00 AM and will go until after noon.  Lunch will be served to all who come and the majority of shoe distribution will take place for the children.  Donated clothing can be distributed at that time.  Teams will arrive back at the hotel for their farewell dinner together.

Day Ten – Monday:  Individuals will check out of the hotel and take the five hour bus ride back to Johannesburg for an evening flight back to the US and Canada

Day Eleven – Tuesday:  Everyone arrives back home and begins to think and pray about how they can help the people they got to know and love in Swaziland.