Activities...

It is our desire at Grace Children’s Home to provide a positive missions experience for you, your family or your team. If you have a heart to serve the Lord, God can use your gifts and talents at GCH.

The first step to planning your visit is to contact Stacey Palau and get on the GCH calendar. You will need to communicate the size of your team, the desired length of your stay, and the activities in which your team would like to participate. Before your visit be sure to read through the FAQ’s About Your Visit.

A typical schedule for a day of ministry at GCH is as follows:

9:00 am          Teams start their ministry day at GCH (construction teams can start earlier).
12:30 pm        Lunch - you can bring a sack lunch or you can eat with us ($2.50/children, $5.00/adult).
1:00 pm          Continue ministry.
4:30 pm          Clean-up and head home.

We have provided examples of various activities to choose from, but there are most definitely more than we can list here.  For example if you have gifts like drawing caricatures, cutting hair, teaching dance, etc. please communicate that when coordinating your visit.

Play With Our Kids

It is helpful to our staff if you come prepared with everything you need for your activities.  Plan for 40 children plus any from your team. Our deck space is about 20’ x 20’ between the two homes.  We have plenty of folding tables and chairs.  There is a playground and a flat open play area for field games.
  • Worship
  • Bible lesson   
  • Games on the deck
    • Board games, card games, circle games, legos and other building games, etc.
  • Games outside
    • Jump rope, soccer, football, baseball, Frisbee, bubbles, dodge ball, etc.
  • Arts & Crafts
    • Holiday crafts, play-dough, paper crafts, painting, coloring, pictures & frames, beads, etc.
  • Face painting
  • Balloon animals
  • Baking
    • Bring ingredients for something to bake.  With a small group (4-5 kids), bake enough to share with everyone. 
    • Bring sugar cookies and all the fixings to decorate them. Let kids decorate their own cookie.
  • Story time
    • Bring picture books to read to the kids in English or Spanish.

BBQ For Our Kids And Staff

BBQ is a treat for everyone at GCH. If you decide to bring and prepare lunch for our kids and staff please bring everything needed for cooking, eating, and clean up. Please prepare for 40 children, 12 adults, and your team. Some suggested items are:
  • Meat
    • Hotdogs, hamburgers, chicken, steak or sausage
  • Buns, fixings, condiments
  • Salad & fruit
  • Chips
  • Drinks
  • Dessert
  • Paper goods & utensils

Cleaning

Though we have a full staff that works round the clock to keep things neat and clean, there are always cleaning projects that need to be done. From deep cleaning high-traffic areas to dusting the hidden places, we are never done. Clothes, shoes, movies, toys, food, you name it, need to be organized and reorganized. Furniture needs cleaning.

Auto Care

Caring for a family of our size requires multiple vehicles for various purposes.  Keeping those vehicles maintained and clean is a huge job. If this is something your team plans to do, please coordinate with GCH what needs to be done as well as materials needed. Some of the jobs are:
  • Oil/filter change
  • Refill fluids
  • Replace hoses
  • Waterless washing vehicles and vacuuming interior

Bike Maintenance

With 30 kids riding them in the dirt, our bikes take a beating.  Please coordinate with GCH so that we can let you know what materials to bring. Some of the tasks include:
  • Putting aire in tires
  • Changing tires
  • Fixing chains

Construction

As God continues to expand our territory, there are on-going construction projects in which your group can get involved. You will need to coordinate directly with the GCH and GBH directors as to what are the current needs. We ask teams to underwrite the cost of the project they will undertake.  An approximate scale is $100 per construction worker per day.  Ex. A team of 10 construction workers serving for 3 days would be: 10 x $100 x 3 = $3,000.  GCH has some tools on site that you may use, and you may need to bring some depending on the project.
Some of the jobs are:
  • Painting
  • Building, hanging shelves
  • Drywall
  • Electric
  • Pluming
  • Cement
  • Fencing
  • Digging/moving dirt

Community Outreach

Our neighbors and the local community surrounding GCH suffer great needs. Our desire is to reach them with love of Jesus Christ. Some possibilities to help us reach out to our neighbors are:
  • Street evangelism
  • Open air activities
  • Door-to-door outreach
  • Host a meal or event at GCH for the neighborhood
  • Assist in the local church
  • Help in a local hospice
  • Assist our Thursday evening neighborhood Bible Study

Outings

If your team would like to take us on an outing please consider donating the cost for our transportation, gas, meals and any other fees. The suggested donation for these trips is listed below.
  • Beach day- $40 and a sack lunch for 40 kids, 12 adults, and your team. Bring your own boogie boards
  • Ranch/pool day - $40 and BBQ or sack lunch for 40 kids , 12 adults, and your team. 
  • The Movies - approx. $250
  • Foxploration - approx. $500
  • Las Cunadas Water Park - approx. $400 plus sack lunches or BBQ for 40 kids, 12 adults, and your team.