Why Youth Camp/Mission Trips Need Glympse

Each year parents entrust their youth to the servants and staff who lead youth trips. Open communication with parents is important, but during trips it is vital. One way to help communicate better with the parent while traveling is to use a smart phone with the Glympse App installed.

Any time I have led a youth trip, whether it has been to youth camp or a mission trip, the reality of the travel has rarely aligned nicely with the itinerary.  Here are just two of the common scenarios and real ways Glympse could effectively make a difference.

1. A family has gone on vacation, but their daughter would still like to go on the summer youth mission trip. The only issue is that the family will not arrive home from their vacation in time to drop off their daughter at the church before the bus leaves.  So the parents and youth minister agree to meet at some location along the way.  Coordinating the timing of the meet can sometimes be difficult, since the best laid plans of leaving the church don't always come to fruition. With Glympse, the parents can see when you leave and be able to better coordinate meeting you on time.
2. Estimating what time to have parents meet you at the church upon your return from the trip can be challenging. You don't want the parents wasting hours waiting at the church, but by that point in the trip you also like for the parents to be there upon your arrival so you don't have to wait.  Sending a Glympse to the parents lets them know where you are in the journey and when to expect the group to arrive home.

Based on these scenarios, I suggest these four ways a tool like Glympse can help.

1. Communicates clearly with parents:  From your phone you can activate a Glympse session and send it to the list of parents. I recommend you set up the list prior to the trip.  Parents can receive and view the active Glympse on any Internet connected computer or smart phone.  They do not need to install any software.  You can optionally send your active Glympse to Facebook and Twitter as well.
2. Lowers parental anxiety:  It can be an anxious time for parents while their child is away on a trip.  Being able to see the progress of the travel and location of the group can help ease this anxiety.
3. Saves time for youth minister by not having to answer a lot of phone calls:  Cells phones are great tools to have.  They do provide parents with a level of comfort knowing they can contact the youth minister at any time and they are great to have in case the bus breaks down.  But let's face it, sometimes it can take away from time with your youth if you are answering your phone several times during the travel.  If they can see on the Glympse where you are, they are less likely to call. Note that the maximum Glympse time is four hours.
4. Provides an estimated time of arrival:  One of the neat features of the Glympse is the estimated arrival. This takes communication a step further.  In order for this feature to work, you must enable two items on your active Glympse. The first is you need to set your destination, and the second is you must also enable your speed to display (not an issue if you obey traffic laws).