WorldMate, your, pops up on the screen as you scroll through your Blackberry. It reminds you that you haven't decided on a destination for your family trip this year. Your vacation time is precious and brings you some well-deserved rest. A co-worker has been telling you about their service mission they took last year and how it changed his life. Try as you might, his words keep echoing in your mind and you finally decided to check it out.



Charitable Trips are becoming more and more common for many Americans. Not only can these mission trips give them a tax write-off, but they can also change the lives of their families, simultaneously.

With cell-phones in the pockets of every teenager and a fridge stocked with a month supply of food, many Americans have no idea what the outside world holds. It's not uncommon for a South American father to wonder how he's going to feed his family dinner that night. Children go without simple luxuries such as medical care, schooling, and even shoes to wear. In a land where we have so much, giving back shouldn't be such a sacrifice. Charitable trips are a great way to show your children that much more exists outside of their own world.

Not sure where to start? Not many of us do. The first things to assess are your talents. Do you have a knack for using a hammer? Any experience with a paint brush? You don't have to be a professional?most places will take any help they can get. Even if you have no past experience at all, don't let that hold you back. Countries are in desperate need of hospitals, orphanages, and schools to help build their communities. They just need a helping hand and a willing heart.

Most organizations have projects currently in motion that depend on one group of volunteers to the next to achieve their goal. You can either select a destination and see what projects are currently going on there, or select a project and go where you are needed. Get crazy and engage your neighbors at home. Have a clothing drive and gather as many supplies to take with you on your service mission.

Instead of a toy packed Christmas where nobody can remember what they got from one year to the next, take the family on an unforgettable adventure. All of us can afford to think a little less of ourselves and more about mankind.