Students set out on mission trips expecting to serve. They arrive ready to work, meet needs, and share the love of Jesus. But along the way, something unexpected often happens: The experience changes them, too.
The Gift of Connection
When Xenia Kekae prayed that she would be a gift to someone during the Navajo mission trip, she had no idea a Navajo family would end up accidentally celebrating her birthday with her, and that wasn’t even the biggest surprise waiting for her on the reservation.
Kekae first heard about SWAU’s annual Navajo mission trip in her first class on her first day as a freshman. Immediately after signing up, Kekae turned to a mission-trip tradition between her and God. Heavenly Father, she prayed, please prepare my heart for a divine appointment, and prepare at least one other heart—so that You can truly touch another soul through me. She also decided to bring a copy of Steps to Christ with her in case there was someone she was impressed to share it with.
Kekae was assigned to work at the Senior Center with members of the Navajo Nation. On her first day, she met a Navajo husband and wife, Leonard and Cindy, and their 14-year-old son, Lenox. As part of the programming, Kekae gave a presentation on her home country of Papua New Guinea. After she finished, the family approached her and started asking her more questions.
Leonard asked, “What kind of houses do you live in?”
“In the villages, we live in hut houses,” Kekae responded.
“That’s how we live here!” Leonard said, surprised.
Kekae and Leonard sat down together and started talking about their cultures’ similarities, books they liked to read, and the truths they were searching for. “I’m reading a lot, trying to learn more about God and how to live a Christian life,” he told her.
Kekae remembered the book she’d brought to share. “I have just the book for you,” Kekae responded. “It’s called Steps to Christ, and I would love to share a copy with you.”
Another one of the activities at the Senior Center was making cards for friends. Cindy made a birthday card for Kekae, telling her it was for whenever her birthday was.
Kekae was thrilled. “How did you know?” she gasped. “My birthday is in just a few days!”
Cindy beamed at Kekae. “I had no idea.”
“You’re the first person to wish me a happy birthday,” Kekae said, giving the woman a hug.
On Friday, Kekae’s birthday, she was struggling with some health issues. But she remembered that she had promised her new friends she would bring the book, and it was the last day she might see them. When she showed up at the Senior Center, she was shocked to see that Leonard, Cindy, and Lenox had brought cake, ice cream, and even some gifts. There were Navajo tacos for everyone, too.
“You are a part of the Navajo tribe now,” Leonard
told Kekae.
Overwhelmed by their kindness and generosity, Kekae wanted more time with them. “Please come join us at church tomorrow,” she said. “I will be preaching, and I’d love to have you there.”
Though the family usually went to a local Sunday-keeping church, they told Kekae, “For you, we will come tomorrow.”
The family not only showed up, but they were there an hour-and-a-half early! Kekae preached on Genesis 12:1-3, about Abraham leaving his family and God’s promise to make him a great nation. Afterward, Leonard told Kekae, “That message was specifically for me. It was just what I needed to hear today. I left my former life with drugs and bad influences. This sermon was confirmation to me that God is taking care of me and that was the best decision I ever made.”
Kekae introduced the family to the local pastor. In an update from the pastor three months later, he wrote that he was invited to Lenox’s graduation and graduation party. The family continues to attend study groups at the church.
“I asked for one soul,” says Kekae, and God gave
me three.”
The Gift of a Thank You
When Priscilla Verdugo left the island of Palau in 2025, she didn’t know when she would be able to go back.
During her 10 months as a student missionary and third-grade teacher at Palau Elementary School, Verdugo learned to love the local community—how warm, generous, and inclusive they were. They were always so gracious and grateful. She found it hard to leave. So it was an unexpected blessing when she was able to join the mission trip to Palau during her senior year.
Verdugo and her fellow students spent time renovating the dormitory at Palau Mission Academy and repainting the Airai Seventh-day Adventist Church. The church members were especially thankful and kind, cooking meals and treats daily for the students. “Seeing the faces light up when they saw the transformation of the buildings is something I will cherish forever,” Verdugo reflects.
Verdugo’s favorite moment, though, was visiting the elementary school where she once taught. Her former students immediately ran to her, surrounding her with excited chatter.
“We’ve missed you, Miss Verdugo!”
“Welcome back, Miss V. I love you!”
“I’m so happy to see all of you, and I love you, too,” Verdugo responded, pulling them all into a group hug.
Verdugo introduced her former students to her fellow classmates. The mission trip participants handed out gifts to the students and shared about Jesus. Everyone sang and played together. Verdugo’s heart was warmed as she saw her classmates interacting with her former students.
Afterward, one former student said something that especially stuck with Verdugo. “Thank you for teaching me about Jesus,” the little one said as she hugged Verdugo.
“That touches my heart, that you remember that,” Verdugo told the little girl.
During the trip, the SWAU team was invited to enjoy the beauty of Palau. They had once-in-a-lifetime experiences such as snorkeling, seeing stingless jellyfish and reef sharks, and having dinner with Bilung, the queen of Palau. The president of Palau invited them to sing for his weekly prayer group in his office at the Palau National Capitol Building. Verdugo loved experiencing again the rich culture and beauty of Palau and sharing it with her classmates. But when asked what made the most impact on her, she said it was her interactions with the children.
“The sweet gratitude from the kids reminded me of what it means to have childlike joy,” Verdugo says. “It reminded me again of what it means to be in service to others.”
The Gift of Clarity
Theology major Martin Aguirre didn’t expect his trip to the Amazon would give him a clearer sense of his calling.
Before leaving, Aguirre was given a children’s Bible in Portuguese to take with him. Unsure who would eventually receive it, he prayed that God would lead him to the
right child.
After days of traveling along the Amazon River on boat, Aguirre and his fellow SWAU classmates arrived at their destination, where they worked hard on projects like digging a well for fresh water, holding daily health clinics and inspirational programs, and handing out 208 new dresses through a partnership with Dress a Girl Around the World, an organization of volunteer seamstresses.
Through all the time spent with the villagers, there was one small girl who was especially involved with the SWAU team. Aguirre decided to give her the Bible.
“I would like to give you this Bible to help you continue your friendship with Jesus,” he told the girl and her mother with the help of a translator. Turning to the girl, Aguirre reminded her to “be a good example to your little sister, put God first in all things, and keep dreaming big.”
The girl beamed at him. The mother started to cry. “Obrigada, obrigada,” she said, smiling through her tears.
On their last night in Brazil, Aguirre and his friends sat on the beach, reflecting on their experience. Aguirre told them about the little girl and her mother. He mentioned how impressed he was by the young pastor serving 17 churches by boat.
The friends talked about the appreciation they had been shown, the way the staff on the boat were so kind and attentive, and all the amazing food the locals made for them. And they talked about what they wanted to do with their lives.
“This trip has reaffirmed for me that mission service is my true passion,” Aguirre told the group.
“Me too!” said one friend.
“Same for me,” echoed another.
Affirmations sounded around the circle.
“The pastor asked me to come back as his Bible worker. So that’s my goal,” Aguirre continued. “That, and learning Portuguese!”
Weeks after returning to the SWAU campus, Aguirre received a photo of the little girl and her mother sitting on the riverbank, reading the Bible to a group of young kids. Thanks to Aguirre and his mission-
minded friends, there is already a little girl in a remote Amazonian village witnessing to her friends about the love of Jesus.
“We always think we’re going to bless others, but we always are so blessed ourselves,” says Marcia Azevedo, D.N.P., SWAU nursing faculty and trip sponsor. “It is the little moments—the local youth playing games and singing songs late into the night with our students, our students dancing in the rain with the local kids, that conversation on the beach—that make it all worth it. Watching the students just glow with their sense of service was so special to see.”
