About Stride Placements

Latin Link’s Stride placements offer the perfect opportunity to immerse yourself in a new culture, explore your call to mission, and put your gifts to work by serving the Latin American church.

 

 

Who is Stride for?

Stride is designed for committed Christians who feel drawn to put their faith into practice in a Latin American culture. You’ll spend at 6-24 months working alongside a church or Christian-run project, responding to local needs and getting involved in the local community.

If you don’t yet speak Spanish or Portuguese, you’ll spend an additional few months doing language study at the start of your placement.

Stride isĀ suitable for individuals, couples and families. And if youĀ want to explore whether mission in Latin America longer-term is the right option for you, the Stride programme can support you through that process.

Where can I go?

During your Stride placement, you’ll work alongside Latin Link’s longer-term members, who set up and supervise your placement. We have Latin Link teamsĀ in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, andĀ Peru. You will be matched to a country and type of work that suit your gifts, background and skills.

What do placements involve?

Placements are bespoke, tailored to your gifts, skills and sense of God’s calling. So we’ll place you in a project or ministry where you can best serve. Latin Link members work in many different areas of ministry, so placements could involve any of the following areas:

  • Prison work/working with ex-offenders
  • Drug and alcohol rehabilitation
  • Work with vulnerable women
  • Evangelism and discipleship
  • Work with children and families at risk
  • Feeding programmes
  • Educational support
  • Craft and art
  • Work in shanty towns
  • Work with students
  • Teaching (English, Theology)
  • Creation care
  • Community development (health, sanitation)
  • Working with people with disabilities
  • Publications
When is the application deadline?

We don’t have specific application deadlines because we process Stride applications as we receive them. However, we strongly recommend that you apply five to six months before you hope to go on Stride. This gives you plenty of time to raise support for your Stride placement, to practise your Spanish/Portuguese, and gives us enough time to organise your placement.

How much does it cost?

The cost of your placement will depend on a number of factors (where you’re going and how long for etc.) and all placements are self-funded. Latin Link will advise and support you through the support-raising process – we’ll provide fundraising resources and tips to help you reach the total cost of your placement.

What support will I receive?

Latin Link provides extensive support before, during and after your Stride placement. It’s also really important that your church is fully involved in your application, and is available to offer prayer and pastoral support:

 

Latin Link Orientation

All Striders attend anĀ Orientation weekend.Ā This takes place at theĀ end of JuneĀ every year, and is held just outside Reading.Ā It’s residential and the cost is included in your Launch Costs.

Missiological Training

Before you go, you’ll also attend the All Nations Express Course to give you further cross-cultural missions training. This course is a 5-day residential and is also included in your Launch Costs.

In-placement support

You’ll receive a local Orientation when you arrive to the country of your placement. You’ll be supervised by the Latin Link Short-Term Coordinator, who will set up and Risk Assess your placement, and you’ll be assigned a Mentor for the duration of your time in Latin America.

You will also haveĀ a review every 6 months, as part of the training and development process during your Stride placement. Your Short Term Coordinator, Mentor and Project Supervisor will work with you to review your progress and agree plans for the next phase of your placement.

Debrief

On return, you’ll be invited to have an individual debrief of your time on Stride. You’ll also be invited to our annual Debrief Conference. This is a residential weekend included in the price of your Launch Costs.

 

To find out more, visit our Stride FAQs page.

 

Stride stories

Our Striders always tell us about how inspiring and encouraging they found their Stride placement to be. The opportunity to meet new people, step into the story of God’s mission, and explore a new country are just some of the benefits they report. Click the button below to read the stories of some of our former Striders.

How to apply

Ready to begin? Click below to start your application for Stride. Complete it, save it to your computer and email it as an attachment toĀ stride@latinlink.org.uk