Vision: The Life Out of the Trap Foundation exists to assist people out of life's traps.

Mission: To empower people to be free of life's traps of hunger, thirst, lack of clothing, sickness, and prison. This freedom will be gained in sustainable self-sufficient ways that can be passed on to future generations.

Core Values: Those involved with the Life Out of the Trap Foundation have a desire to see people free from hunger, thirst, lack of clothes, sickness, and prison. We would love to see people completely set free from these traps in physical, emotional, and spiritual ways.

Annual Projects: Each year the Life Out of the Trap Foundation focuses on one non-profit that battles at least one of the five traps: hunger, thirst, lack of clothes, sickness, and prison.

2006 – Hunger: At the end of year 1 Life out of the Trap Foundation partnered with an organization called Agros International. Agros does long term land loans to the poorest of the poor in Central America. The old Chinese proverb says, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” Agros takes this same principle and applies it to land ownership.

Agros takes groups of 25-50 poor families, buys them land, and then teaches the villiage to make the land productive. After 5-10 years the villiage pays back the loan and the money cycles back in for another village to be started. Currently Agros supports 24 different villages throughout Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and Nicaragua. Many more villages are under development or are just waiting funding.

The Life Out of the Trap Foundation is proud to team with Agros International. They share our passion to empower people to be free from hunger in sustainable self-sufficient ways that can be passed on to future generations.

2007 – Sickness: Life Out of the Trap Foundation is proud to support Multifaith Works AIDS Care Team program. Multifaith Works AIDS CareTeams offer people of all faiths a common volunteer experience by providing practical support and friendship to people living with HIV/AIDS.

Although many people living with HIV/AIDS have benefited from new medical treatments, others continue to live with debilitating side effects from potent medications, along with isolation and fear. As part of Multifaith Works' compassionate response to HIV/AIDS, they recruit and train volunteers for AIDS CareTeams. 

I (Rick) am part of a great community of people who have formed a CareTeam for the past three years. It has been a life changing experience for both our care partner and us. We have seen our CareTeam partner go from being heavily addicted to meth, a t-cell count of 2 and a viral load in the tens of thousands. (HIV/ADS is measured in t-cells and viral load. When t-cells go below 200 a person has AIDS.) She has now been clean from meth over 510 days, has a t-cell count of well over 240, her viral load has gone undectable, she is now married and has a job for the first time in years. It has been an incredible journey for us all!

Our CareTeam has also seen how self-centered, judgemental and hypocritical we all are. The CareTeam program has allowed us to become a little more giving, filled with more grace and able to see our own "addictions" more clearnly. Almost all of us on the team would say that we have learned far more from our care partner than she has ever learned from us.

We now have a new care partner who is trying to turn her life around. She has just finished her GED and is now taking college classes. She may be the one going to school, but we are the ones getting the eduction of a lifetime. Life Out of the Trap Foundation is proud to team with the Multifaith Works CareTeam Program. They offer sustainable self-sufficient programs that help people become free from the trap of AIDS.

2008 – Clothes, Prison, Food: Life in the Trap is proud to support the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. A few short paragraphs can not due justice to the impact that this wonderful organization is making.

I have worked at an inner-city Boys & Girls Club here in Seattle for the past 2 1/2 years and it has been incredible. Personally I can attest that Boys & Girls Clubs make a difference in the communities they are placed. As only one example, close to 50% of African American and Hispanic children do not graduate from high school. In the clubs those same kid's graduate rate is 80-90%. That is only one of many examples of the ways Boys & Girls Clubs of America help the youth of today.

In every community, boys and girls are left to find their own recreation and companionship in the streets. An increasing number of children are at home with no adult care or supervision. Young people need to know that someone cares about them. Boys & Girls Clubs offer that and more. Club programs and services promote and enhance the development of boys and girls by instilling a sense of competence, usefulness, belonging and influence.

Boys & Girls Clubs are a safe place to learn and grow – all while having fun. They are truly The Positive Place For Kids. They are the glue that keeps the fractured families of America together. Their dedication to keeping clothes on kids backs, individuals out of prison and food for children at or below the poverty line makes them a great choice for Life Out of the Trap to support.

 

How can I give and is it tax deductible? 100% of all proceeds for Life in the Trap go towards the Life Out of the Trap Foundation. That's right. 100%. So any Life in the Trap purchases you make will help the cause. If this interests you, or if you have any questions about all of this, please feel free to email me or call (206-949-7444). We would love to have you be a part of the Life Out of the Trap Foundation!

*I am working on the paper work for the foundation. Tax deductible gifts are not quite available yet. Lots of rules and regulations I have to follow first. Keep checking here or give me a call if you have questions 206-949-7444.

Cheers ~ Rick