GV Team Newsletter
Molokai, Hawaii
July 17 – 27, 2010
Newsletter #1
Introduction
Welcome to the Molokai GV Team! This is the first of several electronic newsletters that we will be sending you over the next several weeks to share information, guidance, and advice and tips to help prepare for our adventure. Thank you for choosing to go on a “vacation with a purpose” with us!
Orientation Materials
Thank you for submitting your $350 deposit. As soon as your deposit is processed, the Global Village office at Habitat headquarters will send you an orientation package. Perhaps the most important item in the package is the Global Village Orientation Handbook. It contains a wealth of general information about the GV program, travel and the work of building houses. Please take the time to read the entire handbook!
Airline Reservations
We will not be booking group airfare. However, if you are looking for a travel agent you may contact Terrie Montjoy at Universal Travel about individual discounted mission rate tickets. You can reach Terri toll free at (866) 924-9369 or by email at univ_tvl@bellsouth.net. Make sure you identify yourself as a Global Village team member. Feel free to use you own travel agent or look into booking flights online.
To simplify things we ask that you try and book your ticket so that you arrive on Molokai as close as you can to 4:00 p.m. on July 17, 2010. Our first activity as a team will be a Welcome Dinner that evening and we want the entire team there. Our final activity as a team will be the Mahalo Party the evening of Monday, July 26, 2010. There are no flights leaving after the party so we ask that you book your departure flight for the morning of Tuesday, July 27, 2010. The cost of your trip includes transportation to/from the airport or the ferry terminal.
Here are some travel resources that you may find helpful:
- There are no direct flights from the mainland to Molokai. You will need fly into one of the other major airports in Hawaii and catch a commuter flight to Molokai. The airport code for the Molokai Airport is MKK; here is a link to airport website.
- Instead of taking a commuter flight you can take a ferry from Maui to Molokai. Here is a link to their website. Please note that the ferry departs from Lahaina Harbor which is a 40 minute drive from the Maui Kahului airport. You will need to take a taxi or shuttle between the two destinations. Since the 4:00 p.m. target arrival time does not coincide with the ferry schedule it may be advisable to fly instead.
- Check out Side Step when looking for deals. It searches all available flights and finds the best deals and then directs you to seller to purchase your tickets.
- You may also want to check out the price predictor on Bing Travel. It analyzes the fares for the last 90 days and predicts when is the best time to buy to get the best price. You can set up alerts to come directly to your email box.
Trip Itinerary (tentative)
Saturday, July 17, 2010: Arrival Day (4:00 p.m.), Team Dinner
Sunday, July 18, 2010: Hawaiian Cultural and Team Orientation
Monday, July 19, 2010: Work Day
Tuesday, July 20, 2010: Work Day
Wednesday, July 21, 2010: Work Day
Thursday, July 22, 2010: Work Day
Friday, July 23, 2010: Work Day
Saturday, July 24, 2010: Work Day
Sunday, July 25, 2010: Free Day, Team Activity
Monday, July 26, 2010: Team Activity, Mahalo Party
Tuesday, July 27, 2010: Departure Day (morning)
Fund Raising and Trip Payment
As you should already know, the cost of our trip is $1,500, excluding airfare. This will cover all meals, lodging, ground transportation, and local cultural excursions. $400 of the trip cost will be donated to the Habitat affiliate in Molokai and $100 will be donated to HFHI. The entire balance of the trip cost must be paid in full by June 1, 2010. We encourage everyone to make this payment online, but it can be mailed to the GV office at Habitat headquarters. NOTE: Please remember to use your eight-digit Habitat ID number and our event code (GV11027) when making your payment!
Are you interested in raising funds to cover your trip costs? Many GV participants choose this option. You can set up your own Web site and invite family, friends or other organizations (such as churches) to make a donation toward your trip. Go to the following address to set up your own web page: www.habitat.org/gv/create.html. No technical skill is required. You may then advertise your Web address and challenge others to support your GV trip. If you plan to do this, please tell us, so that we can assist you and monitor your progress.
Who You Are
If you haven’t already done so, please write up a brief biography and send it to us along with a photo of yourself as soon as possible. All biographies will be posted on our team blog at http://molokaigv.blogspot.com/. Make sure you check the blog often and read the biographies of your fellow team mates to that you can get to know them.
Team News
What are doing to prepare for our adventure on Molokai? Have you had any fundraising successes? Tell us about it. We want to post news updates from team members on the blog. So if you have something you would like to share with the team please email it to us and we will make sure it gets posted on the blog for all to see.
Conclusion
We recommend that you save this and other newsletters for future reference; they will also be posted on the blog for quick and easy reference. Future newsletters will contain more information about Molokai and our hosts. Stay tuned!
Action Items
Here are some things that you should do prior to our next newsletter:
- Read the Global Village Orientation Handbook
- Finalize your air travel arrangements and email us a copy of your itinerary.
- Send us your biography and a photo if you haven’t already done so.
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