Gifts of Choice

Erica Madden / Vision Trip 2024

Empowering others to embrace their purpose and see opportunity for change.

  • $5,053

    Raised

  • $4,500

    Goal

  • 25

    Supporters

Recent Transactions

  • Denise Madden

    $500.00 / 288 days ago

  • Christopher Tapia

    $51.25 / 300 days ago

  • Emmett and Rachel Killeen

    $48.18 / 311 days ago

    Proud of you, Erica! Good luck with the trip.

  • Megan Hughes

    $205.00 / 313 days ago

  • Michael White

    $205.00 / 319 days ago

    I’m so proud of you and it’s an honor to call you my friend. Continue to do the Lord’s work, Erica. Thank you for making a difference.

  • Shawn Madden

    $102.50 / 319 days ago

  • Christy Chilton

    $102.50 / 320 days ago

  • John E Quinn

    $102.50 / 320 days ago

  • Martha Soule

    $102.50 / 379 days ago

  • Susan Bartlett

    $100.00 / 388 days ago

    May your very presence be the spark that lights someone's future! Travel safely! Love, Sue

  • India Long

    $102.50 / 395 days ago

    🩵

  • Robert & Sherry Guth

    $1,000.00 / 399 days ago

    Best of luck with this year's effort, and thank you for all that you do! Bob and Sherry

  • Joseph Lawruk

    $256.25 / 400 days ago

    God bless your efforts ! Keep doing good !

  • Marcus Rafiee

    $150.00 / 403 days ago

  • Anonymous

    $51.25 / 403 days ago

  • Kevin Madden

    $250.00 / 404 days ago

  • Molly Lovedale

    $256.25 / 408 days ago

  • Mark McDowell

    $256.25 / 410 days ago

  • Sarah Madden

    $500.00 / 410 days ago

  • Nancy and Roger Cassell

    $150.00 / 411 days ago

    Safe Travels and have a successful week!

  • Marianne and Tom Lawruk

    $102.50 / 411 days ago

  • Abbie Burton

    $102.50 / 412 days ago

    Erica, even when we were in our teenage years, you always wanted to solve the world’s problems. This my friend, is an amazing way to try to make that difference and change the world. So proud of you!

  • Scott Smith

    $205.00 / 412 days ago

  • Nicole Magryta

    $100.00 / 412 days ago

    Erica Madden is a gift to humankind. It is a privilege to support her mission to empower people to move beyond survival mode and help them with opportunities to find their personal purpose and live a life that is meaningful.

  • Cristina Shaul

    $51.25 / 412 days ago

About Gifts of Choice

I'm anxious, excited, and maybe even a little overwhelmed to be planning my fifth trip to Benin City, Nigeria. These trips are always humbling — certainly because I recognize my own privilege, but also because of how much good can happen, how many lives can shift, when the right people come together and allow God to work through them. I feel so passionate about how we push the boundaries at A2S. We don't just want people to survive — we want to create the space and opportunity for people to find their personal purpose and live a life that is meaningful to them.

I've been thinking so much about that gift of choice — how many choices I'm able to make each and every day that I take for granted. How many big choices I've made throughout my life because I was empowered to do so. Every human being should be afforded those choices. I hope our efforts at A2S enable even a few more people to move beyond survival mode, be able to make unique choices that align with their values, hopes and dreams. To be who they were meant to be before poverty stripped them of choice.

These trips are full of emotions — both comfortable and uncomfortable. Perhaps that is one of the reasons they are so meaningful to me. It gets me out of my comfort zone, away from my own joys and challenges. It helps me embrace empathy and see things from other perspectives. It allows me to see humanity up close — something that is absolutely necessary in a world where dehumanization is all too common. I am grateful to so many people who help make these trips possible for me. Thank you for considering a donation to my trip and this powerful organization. If you ever want to join me, just say the word.

Gratefully, Erica