Come February, a group of area teens will embark on an experience they’ll remember for a lifetime. First, though, they have a lot of work to do.

Through ­breakfasts, bounce houses, ­burgers, music and more, the ninth- and 10th-graders from Port Charlotte Adventist School hope to raise enough to fund their trip to Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. There, they will help build a church, help with health care, and pray and work with local children.

“The students and their chaperones need to raise $1,000 each to pay for the trip,” said fundraising chairwoman Donna Wilkinson-Cline.

They’ve planned a variety of events to help raise the money.

• Breakfast, Oct. 28 — The teens will be making and serving a pancake breakfast beginning at 8:30 a.m. Breakfast includes two pancakes, orange juice and hash browns for $4, or $1 each a la carte. The church will have a yard sale at the same time. At 11:30 a.m., they will switch to serving veggie burgers; a platter with chips and beverage will be $5.

• Fall Festival, Oct. 28 — The Fall Festival will go from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. with bounce houses, face painting, games and other fun. Admission is free.

• Dinner, Nov. 1 — At 6 p.m., the students will have an auction and soup and salad dinner.

• Dinner, Dec. 1 — At
6 p.m., they’ll host a pasta dinner and cookie sale. Diners can purchase ornaments and decorate trees, which will be donated to those in need.

• Chimes concert, Dec. 1
— After dinner, the students will perform a chimes concert. The chimes group has toured and played throughout Florida. Donations will be accepted.

On the trip, the students — Megan Goffin, Billy Gard, Blitzen Rivera, Dustin Wilkinson, Kaitlyn Goffin and Shanice Henry — will join a large group of Adventist students from Georgia who are also going on the trip.

Kathy Trumper, principal of Port Charlotte Adventist School, wanted her students to experience another culture and see how they can make a difference. This is the first major mission trip for the school, and the first time many of them have traveled out of the country.

To prepare for their service work, the students have been helping neighbors by mowing lawns and performing other outdoor jobs.

Anyone wishing to sponsor the group with a donation will be listed as a sponsor on the T-shirts the group will wear.

Monetary donations can be made payable and sent to Port Charlotte Adventist School, 2100 Loveland Blvd., Port Charlotte, FL 33980.

For questions or to donate items or gift certificates for the ­auction, or artificial trees and decorations, contact Wilkinson-Cline at 941-623-8423.