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Registration procedures Schedules Cost What to bring Transportation Insurance Other logistics Slideshows from last summer |
To check availability or for general questions, please contact the National Office, Marie Voth or 303-295-3667 or for specific information City Director, Jannan Thomas.
Who Can Participate?
DOOR Atlanta programs are designed for participants from youth to adult. It is open to middleschoolers, high-school age, college age and adults and all denominations. DOOR asks that groups provide one adult sponsor per every five youth (every four middle schoolers.) Different groups can come and share in the same week of to 60 total participants.
What Will You Do in Your Service Assignments?
A typical DOOR-Atlanta week begins upon arrival Sunday evening after supper and ends with departure before lunch on Friday. A three-hour orientation/logistics session Sunday evening helps prepare everyone for the week. For service assignments and meal preparation, your group will be divided into teams of 4-6 participants with one adult sponsor as designated leader.
Once assigned to work teams, participants generally stay with those same teams for the week. Work teams usually spend each day at a different service assignment. However, due to the nature of some assignments, there are cases where we will ask the same work team to stay at a site for more than one day. Our goal is that all participants will have a variety of experiences that they can then share with each other. Every work team has community living assignments such as helping staff with meal preparation, meal clean up, bathroom check, trash and recycling.
Embedded in the past of Atlanta are many of the great human questions of war and peace, of justice and oppression, of defeat and rebirth. We hope our groups will have a positive experience serving and learning in an urban context. Opportunities to serve in Atlanta may include interacting with homeless people at shelters and soup kitchens, making and delivering meals for homebound AIDS & cancer patients, working with folks with mental and physical disabilities, sorting food and clothes at distribution centers, visiting with senior citizens, hearing the stories of the civil rights movement, or just walking through neighborhoods and becoming acquainted with people & places.What Will The Schedule Be Like?
Although the schedule varies and is flexible, a typical day may go as follows:
| 7.30 a.m. | Breakfast |
| 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. | Leave for service site (time of departure varies with each) |
| 8:30 to 4:00 p.m. | Serve with local ministries and agencies |
| 3:00 to 5:30 p.m. | Return to church, clean-up, free time |
| 5:00 to 5:30 p.m. | Meal team helps to prepare supper |
| 5:30 to 6:45 p.m. | Supper and clean-up |
| 6:30 to 7:00 p.m. | Individual Reflection Activities |
| 7:00 p.m. | Evening program: worship, speaker, reflection |
| 11:00 p.m. | Lights out |
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Evening sessions include worship, presentation, and group reflection. Thursday evening is set aside for a time together to help participants reflect on and process what they have seen, felt, and learned during the course of the week. This is perhaps the most important time of the week. Issues raised are addressed in light of our calling as Christians to love others and to respond to those in need.On Wednesday evening a formal reflection time is not scheduled. DOOR does not provide supper on this evening, so most groups choose to use this evening free time to eat out and explore the city as they wish. (Please keep in mind that some work teams may not finish their assignment until early evening.)
Cost and Registration for the Atlanta Week Long Program
Participant cost is $295. This covers food, lodging, materials for service experiences, and program administration. Our registration process has several stages:
- Registration and Deposit: Return the group registration form and a deposit of $75 per person to reserve your dates. This deposit will be applied, in its entirety, toward your total group cost and will hold your requested date.
- Second payment:
- For groups coming in the summer, between May and August: $100 per person payment is due on March 1.
- For groups coming other times in the year: $100 payment is due 10 weeks prior to your trip.
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This payment is per person. This means that if you deposit for 10 people and only bring nine, you lose the $100 deposit for that one person. You may increase your numbers, if space is available, with a telephone call to us. Again this deposit is non-refundable and helps us to determine final space availability. Upon receipt of this payment, we will send you an orientation package via email, including a statement of funds received and balance due 3 weeks before arrival. The orientation packet is intended to prepare your group for the DOOR experience, and we strongly recommend you take the time to go over it with your whole group.
- Balance is due 3 weeks before arrival.
- All funds received must be in U.S. currency.
- For groups registering after Mar 1, please contact Christie in the National Office for payment schedule.
- Should your group need to cancel, please see our cancellation policy.
Start the registration process for your trip by filling out our Online Registration (Fill out, print and send in with deposit), or if you prefer, filling out a PDF version of the Registration (Print, fill out, and send in with deposit.).
What To Bring To AtlantaGo to the: Atlanta Packing List
While in Atlanta, groups will be staying in one of two partner churches, sleeping in a gym on mattresses on the floor or Sunday school rooms on the floor. Each participant should bring a sleeping bag or set of sheets, towel and toiletries. No sleping mats or air matresses are allowed. Work clothing is required and other casual/sport clothing as desired. Some agencies require that participants wear long pants and closed-toe shoes. There are no laundry facilities. Participants should also bring Bibles and notebooks. Remember other fun things such as guitar, banjo, games, Frisbee, soccer balls, and other recreational items. The packing list will be included in the orientation materials sent in the spring.
Transportation
The DOOR-Atlanta program relies on a combination of walking, your vehicles and public transportation (subway and buses) for transportation of your work teams to and from service assignments around Atlanta. You are responsible for driving your own vehicles around the city. If you are thinking of coming by plane, train, school or touring bus, you have two options. First, you may rent vans in Atlanta as needed to transport your group to service assignments. Second, you may choose to use public transportation for your entire experience.There is a $20 additional cost per person if you choose the public transportation option (this option is limited to 40 people per week during the summer and 15 people per week during the spring/non-summer). Riding public transportation throughout the city is often a valuable learning experience and a good way to see the city from a local perspective.
Additional travel information for Atlanta
Health Insurance
There is always the chance that volunteers will need medical care. Accidents can and do happen while at the service experiences, during recreational activities and free time, even on the trip to and from Atlanta. The DOOR program does not carry medical insurance for participants. We ask that group leaders make sure that all group members have insurance and that the Medical Release Forms (sent to groups along with orientation materials) are completed and available to our staff upon arrival.
And Finally...
Your free time in Atlanta
In addition to learning about service, we hope DOOR participants will have fun! The DOOR staff tries to ensure that not all your time in Atlanta is spent working or being involved in serious discussions. We have built into the schedule one free evening and free time each afternoon. Recreation activities include soccer, basketball and frisbee at the church as well as exploring parts of the city on your own.
Additional Atlanta Information