Orphanage Outreach Program Donations
We are both a volunteer and fund-raising organization; our volunteers commit to help raise funds for the programs we sponsor. We encourage volunteers not pay any of their program donations, but instead raise funds through the sponsorship of family and friends. When you sign up, you will receive an on-line fund-raising page that will allow you to easily send out informative emails to family and friends, inviting them to sponsor you through donations on-line, or checks sent through the mail. Volunteers are invited to join us any week of the year, for any number of weeks, starting on a Saturday and ending on a Saturday. We do not have any closed periods. Please note that your registration, minimum program donation, and flight ticketing must be completed at least 30 days prior to the start of your trip.
Most volunteers are able to raise 100% of their program donation by using our online fund-raising system!
The minimum program donation is dependent on the length of your stay. This table shows the minimum program donation per person:
| One Week: $800 | Two Weeks: $1200 | Three Weeks: $1500 | Four Weeks: $1800 |
| Five Weeks: $2100 | Six Weeks: $2400 | Seven Weeks: $2600 | Eight Weeks: $2800 |
| Nine Weeks: $3000 | Ten Weeks: $3200 | Eleven Weeks: $3400 | Twelve Weeks: $3500 |
| Thirteen Weeks: $3700 | Fourteen Weeks: $3800 | Fifteen Weeks: $3900 | Sixteen Weeks: $4000 |
*four months or longer is $1000/month
Program Donations cover food, housing, ground transportation and travelers insurance. Donations also help support basic necessities for the orphanage children. Your deposit is part of your program donation, and both are tax deductible donations for U.S. tax payers.
We request that you arrive and depart on the Saturday of your trip. If you need to arrive a day early or depart a day later, please contact us before finalizing reservations to ensure we have sleeping space. The additional program donation per person per night is $50.
Scholarships/Credits
Orphanage Outreach offers several scholarships or program donation credits for those who meet the following criteria. Please note that scholarships do not apply to our program in Nicaragua.
Early Sign-up Scholarships
We encourage you to sign up for the trip as soon as you can. It enables us to do better plan for your experience, helps to ensure you are well prepared for the trip, and improves your fund-raising effectiveness. If you sign-up and have your $100 deposit donation into our office by the early sign-up deadline, you will be credited an additional $100 toward your program donation. The following is a chart of the early sign-up deadlines:
| Program | Program Dates | Sign-Up/Deposit Deadline for Groups |
| Fall 2010 | Aug 28 - Dec 5 | July 1, 2010 |
| Winter 2010/2011 | Dec 4 - Jan 29 | October 15, 2010 |
| Spring 2011 | Jan 29 - Apr 30 | December 1, 2010 |
| May 2011 | Apr 30 - May 28 | February 2, 20011 |
| Summer 2011 | May 28 - Aug 27 | April 1, 2011 |
| Fall 2011 | Aug 27 - Dec 3 | July 1, 2011 |
| Winter 2011/2012 | Dec 3 - Jan 28 | October 15, 2011 |
Group ScholarshipsWe encourage groups to join us as the more volunteers we have, the more children we can work with. There are also economies of scale in serving a group, and we pass those savings on. A group of 10 or more will be credited $200/person. For example, a one week program donation for a group of 10 or more who sign up by the early sign-up deadline is $500/person ($800 Program Fee - $200 Group Scholarship - $100 Early Sign-up Scholarship = $500). Children receiving a child scholarship do not count toward the minimum group size of 10.
Ground transportation between the [Santiago or Managua] airport and the orphanage is included when the team arrives and departs on the same Saturday flights, between 8:00 A.M. and 10:00 P.M. If an individual or individuals on your team travels at a different time than the group, he/she may be responsible for the taxi to and/or from the orphanage - up to $150 each way.
Team Leader ScholarshipFor every 10 non-child program donations paid, the 11th program donation is waived as a team leader scholarship. In return, the team leader is expected to manage his/her team's finances, input the team's flight information into OO Connect, and keep the team roster up to date.
Child Scholarships
Orphanage Outreach is a great experience to share as a family. This scholarship is meant to reduce the fund-raising requirements for any individual family. Each child under the age of 18 traveling with his or her parent will be responsible for a minimum program donation of $200/week. Note: this scholarship cannot be combined with other scholarships.
Fund-Raising
The mission of Orphanage Outreach is to involve people to provide opportunities to orphaned, abandoned, and disadvantaged children. You are already volunteering your time, we encourage you to allow other people to make a difference through you by becoming a financial sponsor of your trip.
We encourage you to raise funds using your personal fund-raising page. Using OO Connect, you can edit a pre-created e-mail template, and send it to your family and friends. They are then able to make a difference by making an on-line donation toward your trip. You can easily check the funds raised versus your goal on a personalized "thermometer chart" on your web page.
Airfare is the responsibility of each volunteer, and although it is usually tax deductible it will not be reimbursed by Orphanage Outreach from funds raised.