Volunteer mission teams. Oh, the stories I could tell from my years ministering overseas as a cross-cultural worker and as a minister’s wife living in Alaska. I’ve added a few new stories now that my husband is leading the Alaska Baptist Convention.

I’ve seen the good and the bad. I’ve watched amazing volunteers touch the lives of many and share the gospel with grace. I’ve also despaired as I watched an older male volunteer make improper advances toward a teenage girl and wept over volunteers more excited about seeing the tourist sites than ministering to others.

Alaska, the last frontier. Alaska has been blessed by the many volunteers who have come to help our local churches and ministries. I’d like to share a few suggestions for churches or groups interested in sending a mission team to Alaska.

1. Connect your volunteer team with a local church and its strategy. The strategy you’ve used in the deep South, or overseas, will not necessarily work in Alaska. The local church knows what will work, but often needs extra hands to execute their strategy. When your team returns home, the local church will be there to follow-up with the people your team reached.

2. Send your best. It makes me sad, but in this day and age, we must exercise caution when putting together a volunteer team. Be sure and provide appropriate training opportunities for volunteers. If they will be working with children, provide child protection training. Run a background check on each volunteer. Don’t automatically include someone just because they volunteer. Take the time to evaluate their spiritual, emotional and physical condition. One wayward volunteer can ruin your team’s witness.

3. Don’t come as volunteer tourists. A volunteer team planned a two-week trip to minister alongside us when we served in the Balkans. We soon realized only three days of the trip would be devoted to ministry. The team would be “walking where Paul walked” the other 11 days. In other words, being tourists.

Alaska is a beautiful state and has much to offer tourists. If your primary purpose in coming is for an Alaskan experience, then come as a tourist. But if you want to touch people’s lives and share the gospel, then come as a mission volunteer and minister alongside us.

4. Check out any local non-profit mission organization before volunteering with them. Many non-profit mission organizations make their home in Alaska. Take time to dig deeper, don’t rely on the information on their website. Ask for references from groups that have worked with them.

Check to see if the organization has any follow-up after a project. Do they work with a local church, or leave new believers floundering on their own? Are they a group that makes a big splash in a small place but never returns? Are they more geared toward giving you an “Alaskan experience” or genuinely meeting the needs of local people?

Also, check with leaders at the state convention or local pastors about the reputation of these mission organizations. Many of these organizations do an excellent job, but some do not.

5. Consider making a multi-year commitment to a specific church/ministry. Over the years, I’ve noticed that the mission teams that return for several trips have the most significant impact. This is particularly true if you are reaching into a small native village in Alaska. It takes time and repeated visits for locals to accept outsiders. Take time to build relationships. It will make all the difference.

old heritage gold shaker and pan in the waters edge

The movie “North to Alaska” depicted the era of the Alaska gold rush. Well, there is still gold in Alaska. It can be found in the hearts and lives of those who discover the everlasting treasure of a relationship with Jesus. Consider how your volunteer mission team can help us mine this goldfield for God’s glory. As the song in the movie says:

“Way up north to Alaska, way up north to Alaska
North to Alaska, go north, the rush is on
North to Alaska, go north, the rush is on.”