I'm a youth worker at my church and the short-term missions trips we do are mainly to get the kids out of their comfort zone and to see how people live in other parts of the world. They go to serve the people they are visiting by talking with them, putting on dramas, feeding them, caring for their general needs and praying with them. The kids usually come back home completely changed. For some, the exposure is enough for them to know that they want to do missionary work, for others, it just makes them realize how much they have and they come home very grateful for it. Our missions trips for the youth are typically between $400-$500.