Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Mission Trips

Prior to the trip, the team leader will receive a group leader manual, which includes fundraising ideas and information to help with every aspect of trip planning. You will also receive access to your own online group account that will equip you to easily organize and plan for your trip. You will have access to online trip handbooks and resources for participants, promotional materials, group t-shirts and unlimited pre-trip consultations with your trip leader or location consultant. Your consultant will help you utilize your customizable ministry options and will identify a ministry partner that fits with your team.

Once in your ministry location, your team will be taken care of by a trained PPM staff, given safely prepared meals, safe drinking water, sleeping accommodations, an opportunity to attend local church services, evening worship, prayer, debriefing meetings, and a local sightseeing or recreation activity.

The registration fee, airfare and/or transportation to ministry location, spending money, offering at church services, construction and/or ministry materials, personal insurance, and extra recreation options outside of the normal recreation outing (ex. zip lining, snorkeling, surf board rental). Extra recreation options vary depending upon location, be sure to speak with your consultant about these options if you desire to add them to your trip. In most domestic locations, transporation throughout the week is not included (please see pricing table above).

Within each of our ministry locations we have multiple church and parachurch partners where teams serve. Not all teams serve at the same church or ministry. We determine ministry partnership assignments typically 10-12 weeks prior to mission trip dates. Throughout the planning process leading up to your trip, your consultant will be determining the best location(s) for your team and will let you know where your team will be serving as soon as we have confirmed that information. We will be doing our best to partner your team with churches and opportunities where your team will be best utilized.

Teams that select a trip with floor sleeping accommodations will sleep in a church, school, or community center. They will be divided by gender, and men's and women's rest rooms/showers will be available. Teams that choose a trip with hotel option usually sleep 3-5 people per room, with two people per double bed and individuals sleeping in single beds. All rooms are designated either male or female. There is no gender mixing.

Praying Pelican Missions holds safety as a top priority. PPM staff are trained and equipped to provide a safe and incident-free mission experience. PPM staff will be with your team for the entire trip and will have access to transportation, cell phones, hospitals, and first aid kits at all times. In the event of an emergency, PPM staff will guide and assist your team with proper next steps.

For most domestic locations, you will be responsible for securing and arranging your own transportation to the location and to ministry locations throughout the week. Your PPM consultant or trip leader will aide you prior to the trip in finding good parking spaces for whatever vehicle you will be driving. They will also provide you with a list of addresses and itinerary of service times that your driver will need during the week.

Three main meals per day will be served to your team. These meals will be a mixture of local cuisines and typical American style food. During your consulting process, you will be able to identify team members who have allergies or dietary restrictions. PPM will do our best to accommodate these needs and all food and drink provided by PPM during trips is safe to eat. We recommend if you have more severe dietary restrictions or allergies, that you bring along appropriate snacks.

For most of our locations within the USA, our local communities are bi or trilingual, with English being one of their languages. Your team shouldn’t run into any issues with language, but if you are serving in an area where there is need for it, PPM will provide staff who will also serve as translators for your team.

Your PPM staff members of your trip will be a mixture of full-time staff, local staff and seasonal interns. We believe in the value of local staff members and the health it brings to the ministry we are doing. All staff have undergone training and have completed background checks.