Forty young adults from around the world traveled to Juliaca, Peru, for Catalyst, a Maranatha mission trip designed for volunteers ages 18-28 to engage in service and community. Despite navigating drastic temperature changes and high altitude, the team worked on three projects built a church for the Calapuja Seventh-day Adventist congregation, provided free medical care to more than 200 people, and led children’s programs. Daily worships and shared experiences created deep friendships and inspired spiritual growth.
Catalyst, started in 2023, is Maranatha’s mission trip for young adults, ages 18-28. The project provides an opportunity where like-minded volunteers can connect in faith and service as they navigate a unique period in their lives.
The primary focus of the project was the construction of a permanent place of worship for the Calapuja group. Although the congregation was established more than 40 years ago, the members have never had a permanent place of worship. Instead, the group has been squeezing into the windowless, cramped living room of someone’s home for 14 years. There was hardly enough space for the 30 members and guests, let alone pews or other materials needed for a church to thrive.
“In a home, you can’t have the equipment you need. You don’t have the space, because it’s a home, not a church. [There are certain functions] you can’t take part in,” says Juan Samuel Apaza, the first elder of the congregation. “Now, thanks to Maranatha, we will have not just a church but a temple where we can do all this.”
In addition to construction, volunteers coordinated medical clinics and children’s programs for several local communities. The teams set up at a different site every day and offered free medical care, as well as activities for kids. Medical students, nurses, and other willing volunteers saw over 200 patients in five days. The children’s program team made crafts, sang songs, and played games with eager and energetic kids.
As with every mission experience, the project’s impact was not isolated to the local community; the act of service impacted the volunteers as well. The young adults found connection and community as they shared side by side with other volunteers in their same stage of life. Daily worships reminded them of the purpose behind their work and inspired them to carry the same spirit of resilience and adventure back to their everyday lives and home communities.
The highlight of the project came on the final Sabbath, as volunteers worshipped with the local congregation inside the newly built church. Though the building still awaited its finishing touches, it was already fulfilling its purpose as a place of worship. The day became even more meaningful as seven individuals chose to dedicate their lives to Christ and were baptized in the nearby river.
Volunteers departed with a stronger faith, lifelong friendships, and the satisfaction of having built a church and impacted lives on a practical level. Many are already awaiting the Catalyst 2027 trip with anticipation.
“One of the greatest blessings of this trip was the people God surrounded me with,” says volunteer Kaylie Mena. “We all came from different places and backgrounds, yet through serving together, laughing together, praying together, and overcoming challenges side by side, we became like a family. It was incredible to see how quickly God could unite complete strangers with one purpose, to be His hands and feet.”
