The record
2013 to 2026: Thirteen Years of Mission Trips, in Charts
13 mission trips across 5 countries since 2013, the three years they could not go, and 509 photographs — Don Nichols' own timeline, charted.
Don Nichols keeps a Mission Trip Timeline: every year, where he went, what the focus was, who was on the team. It is transcribed on this site exactly as he wrote it, including the years with no trips and why. Charted, it tells the story faster than any paragraph.
Trips per year, and the three years with none
Three years are marked with a circle instead of a bar. 2020 was COVID travel restrictions. 2024 and 2025 were Don's open-heart surgery and recovery — and June 2026, Belize, was the road back. Hover any year for what Don recorded.
Mission trips per year, 2013 to 2026
The three years with none are marked, exactly as Don records them
Show as a table
| Item | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 1 | July 2013: Malawi |
| 2014 | 1 | July 2014: Malawi |
| 2015 | 1 | July 2015: Malawi, Mozambique & Zambia |
| 2016 | 1 | July 2016: Malawi |
| 2017 | 2 | February 2017: Dominican Republic · May 2017: Malawi |
| 2018 | 1 | August 2018: Malawi |
| 2019 | 2 | June 2019: Malawi · October 2019: Malawi |
| 2020 | — | No mission trips due to COVID-19 international travel restrictions. |
| 2021 | 1 | June 2021: Dominican Republic |
| 2022 | 1 | June 2022: Dominican Republic |
| 2023 | 1 | June 2023: Dominican Republic |
| 2024 | — | No mission trips due to Donald's open-heart surgery and recovery. |
| 2025 | — | Continued recovery from surgery. No mission trips. |
| 2026 | 1 | June 2026: Belize |
Where the trips went
Malawi is where it began, in July 2013, and where Don returned nearly every year through 2019 — including July 2015, when the work reached across the border into Mozambique and Zambia. Four trips to the Dominican Republic followed, and then Belize.
Trips by country
A trip that reached three countries counts once for each
Show as a table
| Item | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Malawi | 8 | |
| Dominican Republic | 4 | |
| Belize | 1 | |
| Mozambique | 1 | |
| Zambia | 1 |
What grew out of those years
Water wells drilled and handed over to villages. Sewing machines, thread and scissors set up as a working trade for widows and orphans. Bibles and Gospel literature distributed. Crowds gathered under whatever shade there was to hear preaching, with Malawian translators carrying every word the last few feet.
Photographs in the archive, by album
Every picture taken by Don and Patti themselves
Show as a table
| Item | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Malawi | 191 | 2013 – 2019 |
| Dominican Republic | 133 | 2017 – 2023 |
| Belize | 53 | June 2026 |
| Ministry Items | 50 | Malawi |
| Widows & Orphans | 24 | Malawi |
| Water Wells | 15 | Malawi |
| Sam Banda | 14 | Malawi |
| Bible Ministry | 10 | Malawi & beyond |
| The Translators | 8 | Malawi |
| Reaching the Witch Doctors | 6 | Malawi |
| Patti's Money Ministry | 4 | At home |
| Ross & Sherry Collier | 1 | Fellow servants |
Stay close to the work
Be on the list for the next trip
When Don announces the next one, the people on the list hear first — with a text when the team lands and when they get home.
Keep going
Questions people ask
- How many mission trips have Don and Patti Nichols taken?
- 13 recorded trips since 2013, across 5 countries: Belize, Dominican Republic, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia.
- Why were there no trips in 2020, 2024 and 2025?
- 2020: no mission trips due to COVID-19 international travel restrictions. 2024 and 2025: Don's open-heart surgery and continued recovery. All three are recorded in his own timeline.
- Which country have they visited most?
- Malawi, with 8 trips between 2013 and 2019.
Pass the numbers on.
Most people have never seen what a mission trip actually costs. One share puts this in front of somebody who will give because they finally can see it.
More by the numbers
All 8 articles →
By the numbersWhere Does a Mission Trip Donation Actually Go? Don's $3,940 Budget, Charted
Most ministries answer "where does my donation go" with a pie chart of percentages. This one answers with a receipt: every line of a $3,940 medical mission supply drive, charted, with nothing held back for overhead.
Open
InteractiveWhat $25 Buys on a Medical Mission Trip (Build the Trunk Yourself)
Twenty-five dollars is 41 pairs of reading glasses, ten Bibles, or eight hygiene kits at Don Nichols' real prices. Pick a budget, tap what goes in the trunk, then make it real.
Open
GivingThe Math of Monthly Giving: What $25 a Month Does in a Year
Twelve months of $25 is 120 Bibles at Don Nichols' real price, or one missionary sponsored in 48 months. Drag the slider and see what your monthly gift becomes.
OpenGuides, tools, and the FAQ live on the Resources page. Every fact about the mission on them comes from what Don has published here.