MIAMI— For most college students, winter break is a time to rest and reset before the start of a new semester. But for 10 students from the University of Miami (UM), winter break became an opportunity to serve on mission to El Salvador.

Through the Baptist Collegiate Ministry (BCM) at the university, led by Andrew Fernandez, the students- under the leadership of Xavier Bombardo- partnered with La Capilla church in San Salvador and its church plants in San Miguel, San Antonio and Santa Maria. During the eight-day mission trip the students led Vacation Bible School, visited homes in the community to pray with families and meet needs, and hosted a sports outreach for local youth.

Their mission was simple: build relationships, share the gospel, pray, and invite people to church. By stepping out in obedience, the students witnessed God at work in the hearts of those they encountered.

“One impactful experience involved a family living about a 30-minute hike up a mountain,” said Bombardo. “Their children, around six and eleven years old, made that hike three to four times a day to attend school and sell chickens to help support their family. We hiked up to bring them to VBS, and seeing their daily reality at such a young age was eye-opening.”

In the same village, the team prayed for a woman caring for her nephew who had a mental illness. Later, they invited her teenage daughter to a church event. After hearing the gospel, the teen expressed a desire to start attending church and take her relationship with God more seriously.  Bombardo said witnessing how simple acts of love and presence encouraged that family was powerful.

Another memorable moment occurred during a young adult sports outreach. “After playing basketball and sharing testimonies, I spoke with four young men, including one atheist,” Bombardo said. “We talked for over an hour about faith, God, and the gospel. By the end of the conversation, he said it had changed his mind and that he wanted a relationship with Jesus. Seeing him and his friend make that commitment was deeply moving.”

From the beginning Bombardo and Fernandez wanted to plan a mission trip with a strong evangelistic focus. Earlier in the year, Bombardo had participated in a mission trip to Costa Rica that centered heavily on outreach.

“It felt very different from other trips I had taken before,” he said. “While I was there, I met missionaries from El Salvador who were partnering with the church we worked with. Hearing about the work God was doing there and seeing the need really stayed with me.”

When the new semester began in 2025, Bombardo approached Fernandez about organizing a similar trip through BCM. Fernandez encouraged him to take the lead.

For Bombardo and the team he led, the mission trip to El Salvador was a reminder that God is working in hearts everywhere and calls believers to step out in faithful obedience.