Monthly Expenses

 

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Below you will find an itemized list of expenses that we expect to have in the Philippines. 

As we are not living there at the time this is being written, we cannot be sure of some of the costs.

We have searched for other expenses for foreign ministers and found a wide range of costs and expenses. One thing we did notice is that our mindset was like many people from North America.
We assumed that living as foreign ministers in Southeast Asia, we would live below the standard of our counterparts in North America. It's just cheaper to live there, right?

During our research, we came across this article asking, why would a missionary need so much money to live in a poor country? He has some great insights into living abroad while being a supported minister.
One particular part was quite eye opening for us and helped us to set what we feel is a better, well-rounded expense and budget analysis for our ministry in the Philippines.
 

"Missionaries leave behind their support network of family and friends often moving into a dangerous environment where daily life is so much more difficult. A place where a car that breaks down is more than an inconvenience, and living in a nicer neighborhood is not about prestige but being able to sleep with less fear at night. Where power and water outages make being able to buy fast food a life saver, and where shopping at a decent store is more about not getting sick from parasites than convenience. In a foreign land missionary kids feel lost and alone struggling to communicate and spending most their time locked in their homes because of safety concerns. They miss dearly the freedoms they had in their former life. There is no walking to meet friends at a local park and very few free opportunities for recreation as most has to be done in areas with security and high walls. For a missionary couple, having the financial flexibility to allow their kids to participate in an extracurricular activity is critical to the family’s survival.   The above are just a few of the challenges missionaries face; there are many others (cannot flush toilet paper, no hot water, days spent in long lines trying to pay bills or get government documents, the list could go on and on.). So why when we send them out to face so many challenges do we also expect them to live at a level we would deem unacceptable in the US?" - Peterson

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If you would like to read the full article mentioned above, to get a fuller understanding of life expenses in foreign countries, please visit via the link below.

​elsalvadormissionaryfellowship blog

We know that many things will cost less than they would in Canada, but we also realize that doing missions work we will incur expenses that locals will not, and even have issues that North Americans will not face. With this in mind, we have evaluated our needs and developed this list.

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Current Monthly Expenses

Rent $445 (one year)

Visa $184 ($46 ea.)

Homeschool $63

Home expenses (food, clothes, electricity, etc) $625

Local Travel $90

** Travel to Canada $400

** Travel in Canada $120

* Total Monthly Expenses: $1,959

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Projected Monthly Expenses

Visa $32 ($8 ea.)

Homeschool $63

Home expenses (food, clothes, electricity, etc) $625

Local Travel $90

** Travel to Canada $400

** Travel in Canada $120

* Total Monthly Expenses: $1,330
 

Monthly Income

Organizations $915

Churches $176

Individuals $55

Total Monthly Income: $1146

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Balance: $-184

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If you feel you would like to help us continue the work we are doing here and donate to our ministry, please click the link below. Whether monthly or a one time gift, we really appreciate every gift amount that we receive. Thank you for your prayers and support.

 

Joe and Nadine Klinkenberg

*Future planning not included (such as retirement savings, college funds, etc.)

**Canada expenses are broken down into monthly allotments for saving purposes when travel times arise.