Pray without ceasing. 

1 Thessalonians 5:17

We invite you to pray for the work God is doing through YouCan Missions. Please pray specifically for our volunteers, our mission partners, and the people we’re serving in Belize.

• Volunteers & leaders who collect, sort, and pack shoes, school supplies, and other donations
• Santa Elena Jaguar Scouts Troop #27 (Santa Elena, BZ)
• Ascension Lutheran Church & Youth Group (Fond du Lac, WI)
• Santa Elena Baptist Preschool, Primary School, Church & Youth Group (Santa Elena, BZ)
• Octavia Waight Centre (San Ignacio, BZ)
• Neighborhood Watch Group (Santa Elena, BZ)
• Schools & Churches in the Cayo District of Belize
• Los Tambos Government School (Los Tambos, BZ)
• St. Joseph’s R.C. School (Duck Run 2, BZ)
• St. Francis Xavier R. C. School (Esperanza, BZ)
• Santa Cruz Government School (Santa Elena, BZ)
• Bishop Martin R.C. School (San Ignacio, BZ)
• St. Barnabas’ Anglican School (Central Farm, BZ)
• YouCan Missions Executive Board

There’s no doubt that YouCan make a difference! Our organization is all about supporting and providing intergenerational and cross-cultural mission opportunities. This can be as simple as donating a pair of shoes or as big as serving with us on one of our teams in Belize. There are many ways you can be involved. Please see what inspires you and fits your schedule.

YouCan…

• Donate items or give a tax-deductible financial gift.
• Be a leader in your school, church, workplace, service organization, etc. and encourage others to donate items for those in need in Belize.
• Wash and/or refresh shoes (with soles or shoelaces) and other donations, as needed.
• Help us get the big spring shipment of shoes and other supplies ready for Belize. The sorting and packing process requires almost a hundred volunteers. Our biggest volunteer events each year take place in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. Please save the following date(s):

Location for Sorting & Packing Events
Ascension Lutheran Church, 901 County Road V, Fond du Lac, WI 54935

• SORTING: Wednesday, April 2, 2025 (6:45-8:15 p.m.)
• PACKING: Saturday, April 5, 2025 (8:30-11:30 a.m. – Pizza Lunch Provided)

   

• Join us on weeklong (8-day) mission trip to Belize. Team members are responsible for paying for their own expenses and need to be at least 13 years old. Our next YouCan Missions Team(s) will be serving in Belize: June 16-23, 2025. For more information, please contact to Julie Boelter.

Your contributions make a huge difference! Thank you! We’ve discovered through the years that each pair matters. Know that your donations are not only greatly appreciated, but also tax deductible. Learn more about the items we’re looking for and the projects we’re focusing on that “YouCan” help make happen with a financial gift.

Please know we collect and accept donations throughout the year. We have a place to store donations and volunteers willing to pick them up. Just let us know!

Wish List… please think of us if you come across any of these!

• New schools, churches, clubs or organizations, businesses, etc. interested in collecting shoes – see attached flyer
• New or gently used shoes – see attached flyer
  We’re always looking for sturdy, casual shoes appropriate for a tropical climate. Donations of tennis shoes for males & females in Toddler 9-13 and regular sizes 1-6 are especially needed (as these are the hardest to find and needed the most. 
• New Socks
• Backpacks for school
• School Supplies – see attached flyer 
• Classroom & Craft Supplies for Teachers
• Bibles / Christian Living Books (English or Spanish)
• Travel Size Hygiene Items

Projects… please consider a financial gift towards one of these ongoing efforts!

Shipping Costs for Donations for Belize It costs us over $10,000 US each year to send our spring shipment of shoes and other supplies to Belize. 

Santa Elena Jaguar Scouts Troop #27 We provide funding to this scout troop for education and leadership development programs. Our mission teams in Belize serve every summer with these amazing young people. Every three years, we partner with Ascension Lutheran Church (Fond du Lac, WI) to bring 10-12 of these Belizean youth to Wisconsin to serve in the Midwest. We’ve helped host the Jaguar Scouts in 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2022. We’re planning on them coming again in 2025. The Scouts stay with Ascension Youth host families and together we serve in Fond du Lac, Milwaukee, and the Fox Valley. The relationship that exists between YouCan Missions, the Ascension Lutheran Church Youth Group, and the Santa Elena Jaguar Scouts is truly unBELIZEable! Please consider donating money to help bring one or more of the Scouts to Wisconsin in 2025.

Teacher Care Packages We provide one of these special gift bags to each teacher at every school we distribute shoes at in Belize during the mission trip in June. FYI…Teachers in Belize pay for most of the supplies they use in the classroom out of their own pockets. It gets expensive and access to supplies are limited in Belize. It’s a simple way for us to say thank you to them for their important work and bless them with things like pens, paperclips, post-it notes, Sharpie markers, tape, etc. to do their job. In 2024, we gave away 65 Teacher Care Packages valued at approximately $25 US each. Please consider sponsoring one or more teacher care packages for the 2025 mission trip in Belize.

Baskets of Blessings Another thing we do on Saturday afternoons during the mission trip in June is deliver Baskets of Blessings. Earlier in the week we purchase some basic groceries in bulk (i.e. 50 lb. bags) and then as a team (Jaguar Scouts & YouCan Missions) split them up to create 25 Baskets of Blessings. We deliver these baskets to families in need. These baskets contain very basic food items like rice, beans, flour, baking powder, sugar, salt & pepper, shortening, etc. We spend a little time (sometimes more) with each household, listen to their stories, and then pray with them. Each basket costs about $25 US to create. Please consider sponsoring one or more Baskets of Blessings for the 2025 mission trip in Belize.

Back To School Backpacks The Santa Elena Neighborhood Watch Group distributes 100+ Back To School Backpacks to children in need in Santa Elena. We have a close connection to the person who leads this group, and she knows her people and is a tremendous blessing to those in the Cayo area. Therefore, we do our best to help this group meet the need before school starts each year. We collect and ship as many school supplies as possible. Please see attached flyer.