This May, Maranatha Volunteers International organized a volunteer project to construct a new church building for the El Puerto Seventh-day Adventist congregation in Peru. The trip was open for anyone to join, and most volunteers didn’t know each other previously. But 27 new acquaintances from across the United States formed a unit of surprising cohesion and efficiency. They finished laying the El Puerto Church’s block walls ahead of schedule, then painted the structure’s front, exterior wall. Off the construction site, volunteer dentists treated 120 patients at a three-day dental clinic, and several volunteers visited a local Adventist school to help teach an English class and play games with students.
“Block laying often doesn’t go that fast. Those of us organizing the project were busy keeping the group busy,” recalled Maranatha’s country director for Peru and Paraguay, Elmer Barbosa. “It’s clear that each of these volunteers came to work hard, and the results of their labor are proof enough of their success.”
Volunteers’ hard work transformed Sabbaths at the El Puerto Church. It’s located on the beautiful western shore of Lake Titicaca in Southern Peru, but worshippers’ meeting place was less ideal. The group branched off from the central church in their town 35 years ago, meeting in rented spaces ever since. But these became too small for the group of 105 members they’d grown into. The church finally saved up enough money to purchase land. But the construction of a building was expensive and unrealistic–until Maranatha volunteers stepped in to help.
Across the street from the El Puerto church building lives a woman who graciously offered up her restroom for volunteers’ use. It was on such visits throughout the project that volunteers noticed the peeling paint on her home’s exterior. So with their extra time and supplies towards the project’s close, the group gave her house a new coat of paint. “It was a gesture of gratitude,” said Barbosa. “The group wanted to express their appreciation for her kindness.”
From 2004-2006, more than 3,000 Maranatha volunteers landed in Peru, constructing nearly 100 churches and schools. In 2019, Maranatha returned at the request of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in South America. After a brief pause in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, Maranatha’s in-country crews and volunteer groups have resumed work in Peru.