Sequim church’s teens spend spring break building homes in Mexico

Published 4:30 am Wednesday, April 22, 2026

For more than 20 years, Sequim Community Church has offered the chance for local teens to go on Mexico missions and lead various service projects while sharing their faith in God through conversation and actions.

A team of 20-plus youth group members and chaperones left Sequim during spring break around 2 a.m. Sunday, March 29 for Vicente Guerrero in Baja California, Mexico with the goal to build two homes for families through Youth With A Mission (YWAM), an international, interdenominational missions group.

For Sequim senior Trenton Downs, this was his second mission trip to Mexico and he said providing homes is a big deal.

“We did a lot of showing God through service,” he said. “We’re called to be servants of all nations.”

Last year, he helped build two homes for families with a team.

Fellow Sequim senior Paloma Franco has gone on three mission trips through the church.

“It’s awesome getting to go with the church group, and just getting to grow your faith more in God, and also just serving together is pretty cool,” she said.

On her first mission trip, they helped in an orphanage, Franco said.

For two years now, Sequim Community Church has partnered with YWAM to build homes. This year, they built homes for a family of four, and a family of five.

“It was definitely amazing seeing how their faces lit up and seeing them get emotional when they put the key in the door and open it,” Franco said. “It was awesome getting to see that.”

This spring break was Noah Oberly’s second mission trip following his older brother who went on multiple mission trips.

“I thought that was something really cool, so when I got into high school, I decided to do the same,” he said.

To pay for most of the trip, the church hosts an annual auction.

Keith Sandell, the church’s youth ministries director, said the basic cost of each home is about $5,500. They also purchased showers, outhouses, sinks, stoves, more windows, groceries and other amenities. In total they spent about $15,000 for the homes, he said.

Kayhbree Henderson attended for the first time saying it was the first opportunity she was able to go but serving people is something she really enjoys doing in the church.

Oberly and Henderson and other teammates built the homes, and spent time with local children when not building.

“When I wasn’t given a job, the kids would always come find me,” Henderson said.

Sandell said along with building the homes, they also held a block party with music and food in the new homes’ neighborhood. Youth group members estimate that about 100 people came.

Through the week, teens and chaperones also attended a local church service, had a Bible study, and visited a women’s shelter to hear some of the stories of what women have gone through.

Family members helped the Sequim church hammer nails and paint their homes, and on the final day, they made everyone a lunch of Pozole, Sandell said.

Teens were impressed with the faith of the residents where they visited.

“It’s powerful to see how God is working and how incredible their faith is in other parts of the world,” Downs said.

Franco, who intends to go to University of Washington to become a nurse, said seeing families not have much but still be really happy while staying faithful to God is a big thing to her.

“(The mission trip) is definitely a great experience, and it’s life changing getting to see a different culture,” she said.

As for their own personal faith, Henderson, who wants to pursue a ministry after high school, said the mission trip has helped her be more appreciative of what God has provided for her. Oberly, who plans to become a firefighter, shared a similar sentiment.

“(You) realize that these people don’t have much but they can have such a strong relationship with God; it just inspired me to do the same,” he said.

Downs said going to Mexico has inspired him to become a full-time missionary after graduation.

“It really stuck out to me,” he said. “I really enjoy serving. I feel intrinsically called to Mexico and serving in general.

“When we come together, we can do some powerful things. Our youth are doing some powerful things in Sequim and outside.”

The team returned from Mexico around 1 a.m. Sunday, April 5.

For more about Sequim Community Church, 950 N. Fifth Ave., visit sequimcommunitychurch.org.