Puerto Rico 2025

Some background:

When Grandin Court first went to Puerto Rico in 2019 we had a lot of conversation with Pastor Jesus – Iglesia Bautiste de Metropolis’s then pastor - about how we loved what they were doing and how they hosted so many teams and had so many community partners and we were willing to support THEM (the church) as they continued to support their community and all of Puerto Rico. We quickly began talking to everyone about the possibilities with this partnership, and by February of 2020 we had 40 people signed up to head back to PR to do various work around Metropolis and for the church.

We all know what happened the next month…

Just as things changed within the mainland church, things changed within Puerto Rican churches, and so when we went to return again IB de Metropolis wasn’t hosting teams at the time, so we reached out to someone else we had met on our trip and stayed with them as we worked around the island. We’ve been partnering with a church in Rio Piedras for the last four years and love the relationships we’ve built with them and their staff (both current and former as Pastor Laura now works for CBF Global, as well).

My long relationship with ministries in PR and my relationship with CBFVA led Mark Snipes to invite me on a trip last November to Puerto Rico to explore ways to nurture the growing relationship between Baptist churches in Puerto Rico and our CBFVA churches. This team met with countless churches over just a couple days, driving hours into the island and hearing about the ways God has been moving, and all of the things they are working towards. 

On the way back to our Airbnb on the last day, we decided we had enough time and would make one more stop and talk about what they were doing and what they needed. And this church just happened to be Iglesia Bautiste de Metropolis. I hadn’t met their (new to me) pastor and was really excited to see how things were going.

Meeting Pastor Omayra was the best – it felt like a full circle moment for me to be back in Metropolis and get to establish a relationship once again. She was so welcoming and kind, and just gushed about her church and the victories and shared some of their struggles. She shared that they had been hosting teams again, but that they needed some work done, so we asked – “What do you need?”

They needed to address some drainage issues next to their children’s building, and in an effort to be good hosts, they really wanted to upgrade their showers to some more modern finishings (it’s been about 40 or 50 years since anything was changed) so that it’d be a bit more spacious with a walk in shower, but also feel cleaner, and honestly, just be easier to clean, as well.

I remembered years ago when we had told Pastor Jesus that we wanted to support them (IB de Metropolis) as they hosted teams that then worked all over the island, and this felt like something we could do. I wasn’t in the van yet when I started texting some of our members to ask if they’d be willing to come to PR after the new year and work on these two projects.

By the time I was coming back to Virginia the next day we had already narrowed some dates. We were ready.

The Trip

We went knowing we had two goals – dig a French drain and maybe re-grade some dirt to get the water away from the children’s building, and re-do these bathtubs into walk-in showers. A few days before we were to leave, we were asked if we could also replace the toilet and sink while we were at it. By the time we were there, we also added on removing all the tiles from the bathroom walls and basically re-doing all of the bathroom.

Which makes sense, when you think about it. Let’s go big. Our Missions Council had also agreed to use part of our funds to help cover the costs of the supplies, and this alone was a huge help. But then, we were also staying in the place where we were working, so we couldn’t demo a second bathroom while the first was out of commission, either.

So, the plans changed. again. As they do.

We always *do* remind people to be flexible on trips.

Our first half day of work went rather quickly. We were digging a French drain and found a small one was already there. So we dug around it, removed the old pipe dug a bigger trench, made a better outlet… with six people, this work went quickly. It would only take maybe an hour or two the next day to put in a bigger pipe, cut holes, wrap it in fabric to keep dirt from getting in it and cover it all up with some new gravel and spread everything out. It’s beautiful now. We were even able to take some sheets of metal and put them on the side of the building to push water away from it. All in all, a pretty successful project.

Back at the old church where we were staying, we were able to fully demo one bathroom, but then had to wait for concrete to dry before anything more could be done. And, as mentioned earlier, we couldn’t spend our time demo-ing the other bathroom too much because we needed it (see photo below as we did, at least, remove tile from around the entire bathroom).

So we asked if there was anything else we could do. That can be hard to come up with when there’s six solid workers. BUT, there was a church member nearby who did need some painting done that required moving some heavy furniture and could we help?

YES.

We split up and four member spent a couple hours at their house and finished in RECORD time. It was amazing.

But then, what to do with one more day, when we’re still waiting for concrete to dry?

I asked our hosts for the week – is Eric the gardener still around? Is he still part of the church? OH HE IS! Does he need any help this week?

See, back in 2019 when we met Eric initially, he had some stray dogs, a green house and big field that needed to be, basically, bushwacked (by hand, with machetes). He had some sunflowers out front, too, but that was really it. Eric had taken on a project of restoring land that used to be a dump into a vast garden, and there was a *lot* of work to make that happen.

Turns out, Eric was putting up a green house and needed more hands to help. So, on our last day we went out to his farm, and we were amazed. The difference in 6 years was astounding. So many greenhouses, plants growing everywhere, a shop where you can purchase things, and pastures with goats and cows (even a calf!), a few dogs, some mini-horses, and Eric’s smiling self as he’s wearing all black in the heat, inside the plastic of what will be his newest greenhouse. (follow along on his farm here: https://www.facebook.com/girasolero ) Once the greenhouse was up, one team member helped fix some fences, a gate, and put up more feeders and water troughs, while others to the front and moved around some plants and started pots for the newest round of sunflowers. We finished up right before a heavy rain fell, and that was *great*.  I’m so glad we got to see Eric again and spend some time with him.

We left without either bathroom being finished*.

People first

There’s going to have to be a whole separate post on some of the reflections from the trip, or maybe I’ll put them below, but this one cannot be finished without talking about the people. Indeed, this is what makes the difference and this is what matters most as we continue to build these kinds of partnerships. Knowing that we have friends in Puerto Rico that we can call up if we’re in the area, or that can call us when they come this way – knowing that we are praying for one another even when we don’t see each other – this matters.

In reconnecting with IB de Metropolis, not only did I get to do Pastors Omayra and Ricartel for the first time, and see their passion and gifts so very clearly, I was also blessed to see once again our hosts/drivers/and translators. Their stories are not mine to share on the internet, but let me tell you – it was so good to see them again, to hear about how life has changed (and hasn’t changed) in the last 6 years. To laugh and work and pray together. To treat some tired souls to dinner, and then to watch the sun set over Old San Juan. To spend time dreaming together as they plan to continue hosting teams and sharing God’s love throughout Puerto Rico. Time spent around the table (and in the van, and at the beach, and and and...) was blessed, for sure.

The Future

The relationship between Virginian churches and Puerto Rican churches is new and so exciting, and I’m so glad GCBC is able to be part of this – sharing our experiences and continuing to deepen our own partnerships. CBFVA already has two more trips scheduled for this year, including a retreat in October where 21 women from three states will gather with 21 women in Puerto Rico. I can’t wait to see where these relationships go in the future.

GCBC will be back – will you join us as we continue to pray for the people of Puerto Rico and for the pastors who lead and serve their communities so faithfully?

*Because of our prep work, and our monetary donation toward the supplies, IBM has been able to secure a contractor to finish the work, and one has already been completed.