Building a new Ministry Center!
Expanding our capacity for people and ministry
About
In the past we have used a rented house in the city to host teams and run camps. Over the last few years we have shifted to using our mountain property (Nikoland) as our main location for teams, camps, and events. (Learn more about NIKOland HERE.)
Why are we building?
As we run more events and trainings, we have more opportunities to host groups overnight. This has meant housing them in a combination of tents, our one existing cabin, inside the main building, and outside underneath the main roof.
Using tents can be difficult as it rains frequently up in the mountains and tropical rains are too strong for the tents to handle. Sleeping under the roof is fine some days, but when it is rainy and foggy it's often also quite windy and you can still get soaked! It works, but is not ideal and is usually our biggest hurdle with hosting teams (especially if they aren't all very adventurous!) It is also much harder with groups of younger kids.
As we look ahead into the future we want to continue using the property for training, retreats, and camps. In order to do this, we need permanent and dry housing and a "bad weather" meeting area.
We are building a two story building with a storage space above.
The top floor will be a large room that can be used for classes, meeting space, or even games during bad weather. It will have a small kitchenette and could be used for additional housing if needed.
The first story will be split into two areas that will be bunk rooms for sleeping. With triple bunk beds we will be able to sleep 30 people. At capacity it would be tight, but nice and dry!
This building will enable us to run our ministry and programs. We are currently limited by lack of housing and meeting space. We own the property in the mountains, so we want to invest into something that will be a blessing long term to our ministry as well as allow us to grow and expand what we are able to do.
What are we building?
2nd Floor
Classroom
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1st Floor
Bunk Rooms
How are we doing it?
God! As we have been talking, praying, and dreaming about this building we are fully aware that God, through His family, is the only one that can make this happen. We do not have the finances to build this. Our ministry runs on minimal budget and we do our best to keep our camp and retreat fees just above actual cost so that people here are able to afford to come!
NIKOland was purchased through individuals and churches giving towards the vision of seeing Dominican youth raised up and discipled, and this is another step in that same direction.
We need people to partner with us to see this building happen! We have done all the research on the best and most affordable ways to build, sourced materials, and now we need people that would join us both in prayer and by physically partnering with us.
Would you please pray and ask God if you are one of the people who are going to make this building possible?
How can you get involved?
Help Financially
To make this possible we need to raise $30,000 usd
for this two story, 1,200 sq ft building.
We can't do this alone! We run most of our programs at cost to try to keep our camp fees as low as possible; so that kids can afford to come.
This means that we need people who would partner with us to see this happen!
Would you consider investing in the lives of Dominican children and youth?
You can of course just give a set amount, however you can also give towards a specific part of the building!
Buy a window (18): $50 each
Buy a door (8): $150 each
Buy a wall (10): $500 each
Buy the roof (1): $1,000
Buy the floor (1): $2,000 each
Buy the Foundation (1): $3,600
Buy a "Block"(200) : $75 each
The "blocks" make up the rest of the total cost needed for all the other parts of the building.
Help Physically
We also need builders! We are a small team (3 staff) and none of us are professional builders! We are hoping to put together a group of people to come down and help us to build.
We are building with a steel frame, T.I.P.S (Styrofoam, mesh, and concrete) walls, and a galvanized tin roof. (Contact us for more specifics!)
Do you have experience in construction? Are you interested in using those skills in missions!? If you are interested, shoot us an e-mail!
How to Give
Click below to get relevant giving options. (This will redirect you to our donations page.)
Give from the Dominican Republic.
Give from Canada.
Give from the USA.
Give from Sweden.
Give from anywhere else!
Wet kids & sleeping bags
This past summer we ran 2 week-long summer camps for kids ages 8-16. They enjoyed the adventure of sleeping in tents when it wasn’t raining, but no tents are made to stand up to our tropical rains! Even with multiple tarps added, the kids and their things got wet. It is highly stressful for us as well as uncomfortable for the kids. (You can see in the image sleeping bags hanging up as we try to dry them even while it is still raining.) We need a safe and dry place for them to sleep where we don’t have to worry about the weather.
Chilly & Loud Rain
This March we held a week of classes for our Discipleship Training School on NIKOland. We taught lectures under our pavilion that has a great roof, but no walls. That week it was so windy, foggy, and cold that the students sat bundled in jackets and blankets as they listened and took notes! When it's raining hard on the tin roof, it is so loud that you can't hear a thing! While we enjoyed the cooler weather, it made it hard to focus on the teaching and taking notes when you are cold.
Beds needed!
We have had several churches that have inquired about us doing weekend retreats for them, however we have mostly just stuck to one day events as most people don't want to sleep on the ground or a cement floor when they sign up for a church retreat. It is one thing for 15 year olds, another for adults and seniors! Our property is currently only prepared for running outdoor adventure camps and daytime events. This building will allow many new uses and ministry opportunities.