UNITED IN SERVCE: A MISSION PARTNERSHIP ROOTED IN FAITH.

For many years, our Honduras Mission has been blessed to partner with Farm of the Child (La Finca), a Catholic ministry just outside Trujillo dedicated to educating, protecting, and promoting healing and spiritual formation for vulnerable children and families. Inspired by the model of the Holy Family, La Finca provides children with a loving home, quality education, healthcare, and a Christ-centered community where they can grow in faith and hope. (Farm of the Child)

What began as a shared commitment to serving the people of Honduras has grown into a beautiful partnership built on faith, friendship, and a common mission.

STRENGTHENING ONE ANOTHER IN MISSION

Each year, one of the highlights of our mission is celebrating a special Mass in La Finca's chapel before we begin serving in the mountain villages. Gathering around the Eucharistic table reminds us that although we come from different organizations and backgrounds, we are united as one family in Christ.

Over the years, La Finca's long-term missionaries, staff, and volunteers have faithfully served alongside our Honduras Mission Team, strengthening our ministry in countless ways. Whether assisting as translators, dental assistants, medical volunteers, or compassionate helpers in the mountain villages, they bring invaluable knowledge of the language, culture, and the families we are blessed to serve. Their partnership has become an enduring expression of the Body of Christ at work—each ministry sharing its unique gifts while united by one common purpose: proclaiming the love of Jesus through joyful service.

This year, we were once again blessed by the presence of Rachel Ring, a dedicated nurse from La Finca, who joined our medical team and even traveled by boat to the remote coastal community of Quinito. Her willingness to serve wherever the need was greatest extended the reach of our mission beyond the mountains and into communities that are accessible only by water. Rachel's faithful witness beautifully reflects the heart of our partnership with La Finca—one rooted not simply in shared resources, but in a shared commitment to bringing Christ's healing, hope, and compassion to those who need it most.

Likewise, our mission has sought opportunities to support La Finca's ministries whenever possible. Through the years, we have shared dental equipment and supplies, donated medications for their medical clinic, and provided school supplies that help equip children for another successful year of learning.

Together, we are able to accomplish far more than either ministry could alone.

A DAY OF JOY.

Following the COVID-19 pandemic, our partnership grew in a new and joyful way. Each Friday before departing Trujillo, our mission team now hosts a special Field Day for the children of La Finca.

For many of our medical and dental missionaries, this has become one of the most meaningful moments of the entire week. While our Vacation Bible School volunteers spend several days laughing, playing, and building relationships with children in the mountain villages, our healthcare teams often meet patients only during brief clinical encounters.

Field Day provides something different. It offers time simply to be present.

Missionaries put aside their stethoscopes and dental instruments to play games, share laughs, enjoy snow cones, serve lunch, hand out candy and prizes, and celebrate the incredible children who call La Finca home.

Those joyful moments remind us that ministry is not only about treating illness or completing projects. It is about building relationships. It is about recognizing the dignity, joy, and God-given worth of every child.

A PARTNERSHIP THAT COMES FULL CIRCLE.

This year's mission offered a beautiful reminder that God never wastes an act of faithful service. He continues to multiply its fruits across ministries, generations, and even decades.

Among those joining our team were Lilia Aguilar, a nurse, and Paul Braeden, an engineer, both of whom were already deeply connected to La Finca through previous immersion experiences. Paul's years assisting his aunt, Dr. Celeste Braeden, on medical missions—and his service with the Missionaries of Charity— prepared him to bring both experience and a servant's heart to our dental team. Likewise, Lilia's early service at La Finca helped shape a lifelong calling to care for others.

Looking back on her time at La Finca, Lilia reflected:

"Living alongside the children and staff showed me what that mission looks like in action. I experienced a community rooted in Christ, where love was expressed through compassion, service, and a genuine commitment to the dignity of every person."

Her words beautifully capture the heart of La Finca—a Christ-centered community where lives are transformed through love, dignity, and faithful service. Years later, God would once again call her back to Honduras, this time serving alongside our mission team, demonstrating how He faithfully prepares His disciples for every opportunity to love and serve.

Their presence was a powerful testimony to the lasting impact of mission work. The paths that first led Lilia and Paul to serve through La Finca have continued to bear fruit in remarkable ways. Their experiences helped shape hearts committed to service, and this year they brought those gifts to our mission, enriching our team and beautifully demonstrating how one act of faithful service can inspire a lifetime of ministry.

ONE MISSION. ONE CHURCH.

Our partnership with La Finca is a beautiful reminder that the Church is strongest when we serve together.

Whether through celebrating the Eucharist, caring for the sick, supporting children's education, sharing resources, or simply spending an afternoon laughing with children on a soccer field, every act of service reflects Christ's love.

We are profoundly grateful for the friendship we share with the La Finca community and look forward to continuing this partnership for many years to come.

Together, we are helping bring healing to the body, hope to the heart, and the light of Christ to the people of Honduras. God prepares ordinary people through faithful service, then brings them together to accomplish extraordinary things.

➡️ To learn more about Lilia's inspiring journey of faith and service, read her personal mission testimony here.