All participants are required to complete a medical form, liability form, tool use form and sign our group behavior policy. Drivers complete additional paperwork, as do those who are lending a vehicle and donating tools. Forms are organized into a single packet based on age.

2024 forms will be added once planning meetings begin.

All information shown below will be discussed during planning meetings.

To ensure that we eat heartily and healthily during the Appalachia trip, each participant contributes to our food for the week. Please follow the instructions below carefully to ensure that we have enough for each of us! If you have any questions, concerns or food allergies, please contact Katharine. We travel to a remote part of Kentucky and want to keep with our principles of simplicity, so it is very important that we plan ahead.

• Breakfast: Breakfast each day is a simple meal of cereal (and fruit, if desired). We purchase dairy and non-dairy milk in Kentucky.

• Lunch: Each day, we make a bag lunch to bring with us to worksites. Peanut butter and jelly, cold cuts and tuna will be available for sandwiches, and we supplement the sandwiches with fruit and cookies/brownies. Each worksite has a cooler and ice to ensure food stays fresh.

• Dinner: Each night for dinner, we cook a portion of the pre-frozen meals each group member made. We also make a fresh salad, and our cookies/brownies are always available. We also make large coolers of ice tea, fruit punch, etc. 

PARTICIPANT REQUIREMENTS

Each participant is REQUIRED to bring the following items. If, for any reason, you have questions or concerns, please contact a member of the group leadership, and we will happily work with you.

• • TWO FROZEN MEALS: Each participant will sign up to cook and freeze TWO meals. We will provide tin pans - please use these pans, as it is much easier to pack coolers when all meals are the same size.

    • • INSTRUCTIONS:

        • • Cook the meal you signed up for but feel free to use any recipe that you like!

          • Fill each pan as much as possible - we will be hungry!

          • Wrap each pan thoroughly and tightly in TIN FOIL. Please DO NOT use plastic wrap.

          • Write the ingredients of your meal on an index card; place the index card in a zip lock bag and tape it to the tin foil on the top of you pan. It is best to do this before you freeze your meal - otherwise, the tape won't stick.

          • Freeze your meal by the date discussed during meetings. This will ensure it is completely frozen by the time we leave for Kentucky.

  • TWO BOXES OF CEREAL: Pick your favorite type! 

  • ~8 PIECES OF FRUIT: Pick your favorite type! We recommend apples, oranges and clementines, as they keep best. (Bananas go by very quickly in the heat, so we will purchase them in Kentucky).

  • 4 DOZEN COOKIES/BROWNIES: Cookies/brownies (or a similar type of baked good) are our snack and dessert. We prefer that these be homemade. The best way to pack them is to seal them in large Ziploc bags and then place the bags in a shoebox. This ensures that they don't get crushed during travel!

OTHER

• When we sign up for meals, we will also sign up for "incidental" food items - these are things that we need for the week but we do not need so much that everyone must bring the items. This includes things like peanut butter, jelly, salad dressing, drink mix and tuna.

• You can start bringing in non-perishable food items during the last few meetings. We have space to store these at St. George. Your frozen meals, fruit and cookies/brownies should not be brought in until the day we leave for Kentucky!

Over 40 years, we have developed a detailed packing list to help you get ready for the trip! Please follow this list as closely as possible - this will ensure you have everything you need (but not too much!). 

{ OPEN THE CLOTHING LIST }

KEY REMINDERS

• Use ONLY soft luggage - NO suitcases with hard bottoms, wheels, etc.

• We will attend (2) or (3) masses during the trip.  You do not need fancy clothes, but please bring 1 - 2 outfits that are neat, clean and appropriate for church.

• During the trip, we are representing St. George - please do not pack:

  • • Shirts with inappropriate logos/imagery/phrases.

    • Spaghetti strap tank-tops.

    • See-through shirts or shirts with lots of holes.

• SHOES:

  • • Around the garage, you may wear sneakers or sandals/flip-flops.

    • Bring flip-flops for the shower. Choose ones that dry easily - it is very humid in Booneville.

WORKSITE ATTIRE

These guidelines are meant to keep you safe while on the work site.  There are no exceptions - if you are not wearing the appropriate clothing, you will not be allowed to work.

• On the work sites, you MUST wear:

  • • Jeans or heavy work pants with no holes.

    • Workboots or steel-toed hiking boots (NO sneakers or light hiking boots).

    • T-shirts or tank tops with thick straps.

      • • NO giant armholes.

• It is also HELPFUL to wear:

  • • Bandanas - it's very hot.

    • Sunglasses, at times.

    • Heavy socks (or two pairs). This helps prevent blisters.

• Other Tips

  • • Bring sunscreen and bug spray to wear on the sites.

In order to complete our construction projects and keep our costs low, we pack and bring all of our tools. The Tools Committee will run a sign-up during a meeting to ensure we have everything we need. Please review the list below to see if you have any of these items at home.

NOTE: Many people have the same brands/types of tools. To ensure that you get back the tools that you contribute, please LABEL YOUR TOOLS CLEARLY. We recommend that you use masking tape and permanent marker and write your last name. Be sure to attach the label somewhere out of the way, to reduce the risk of the label falling off/being torn.

INDIVIDUAL TOOLS

Each person will be asked to bring:

• Hammer

• Tool belt

• Utility knife

• Tape measure

• Safety goggles

Please DO NOT pack these items in your suitcase. Bring them to St. George when indicated (we'll let you know at the meetings) - we pack all tools together in a pickup truck or the cargo van. This keeps us safe while unloading our luggage during travel!

There are many small items we need to ensure our week runs smoothly - this includes everything from sandwich bags and dish soap to napkins and Lysol wipes. We also bring items to make our living spaces home for the week (everything from shower curtains to kickballs and wireless speakers). The Supplies and Residence Committee will run a sign up for these items during one of our meetings.

Note: We will never exclude someone from participation for financial reasons.
If, after good faith effort, you are not able to complete any of the fundraising requirements, please talk to any of the trip leaders.
Everything you share with us will be held in strict confidence!

Each participant contributes to our fundraising efforts. Each year, as a group, we raise enough money to cover all of the costs of our construction materials, gas and incidental supplies. We raise this money a few different ways:

• Participant Commitment Money
  Each member contributes $150 in commitment money - his or her own money to demonstrate investment in the trip.

• Participant Fundraising Money
  Each member is also required to raise at least $250 of fundraising money. This is money that you have raised from friends, family members, and others you know who would like to support us. This money can come in the form of cash or checks, or you can use your custom GoFundMe link (check your email!). 

  • • TIP: You can use your participation in the group fundraisers to help you raise this money. For example, if you are coming to the car wash, you could ask someone to donate $0.50 per car (we aim to wash 100 cars).

    • TIP: Usually, people are really happy to donate once they know what we do! Feel free to share our trip summary with people if you need some "talking points."

• Group Fundraisers
  Each member is required to participate in one of our two group fundraisers. The participation requirements are below. For more information on the fundraisers themselves, you can visit the Fundraising page of this website.

The exact fundraising schedule and amounts will be announced at the informational meeting and discussed during the weekly planning meetings.