Summer Missions 2026 Week 4: Paraguay

Hello! My name is Peri and I am one of the five Paraguay Mission team members. The trip is rolling towards a close, and I can seriously say that the Lord has done so much beautiful healing work during our time in Paraguay. 

On Wednesday, we had to say our farewells to CJ. He left the trip early for his brother's wedding. It was definitely sad to lose him here, but we know that the Lord will continue to work in him back home. Then Henri, Jamie, Tayt, and I spent the rest of our day at Foundation With a Smile. Tayt and Henri painted their fence, while Jamie and I painted hop scotch on the ground. We had some much fun that day. The people at the foundation are some of the kindest and most generous people we have ever met. They are overflowing with the love of the Lord, and it was a blessing to spend this day with them.

Thursday was a very special day in my heart. On this day, all four of us went to the women’s jail. Jamie, Henri, and Tayt helped give out clothes to the women in the jail. While they were doing this, I was helping Susi host a craft time for them. Early on in the day, I met a woman named Laticia who was going to be getting out of jail in 20 days. Very quickly, my heart grew a bond for Laticia. During worship, she turned to me and Devonna and proclaimed that her turn for good had finally come. All three of us broke into tears. This was a monumental moment. One of my sisters had realized her life was changed by the Lord. She saw the way her life would never be the same again. That’s a big deal! Laticia will be going to live in Devonna’s house for women who just got out of jail (the place where we have been staying for many of our weeks here). I could see in her eyes that she was so excited about this. I ended up spending most of that day with Laticia. She gave me a tour guided by her heart of the part of the prison we were in. The whole day, this sweet woman of Christ had so much joy and love flowing from her. I wrote her name on a keychain I made that day because I want to always remember her, and I plan to write a letter for her to have when she gets out of jail. I really love Laticia.

On Friday, we went to Proyecto Esperanza - Universidad Central del Paraguay (The Hope Project of the Central University of Paraguay) to help in preparation for their big event on Saturday. Proyecto Esperanza hosts big events at local churches to draw people in, while providing each community with fun and games for both children and adults, Biblical education, snacks, and even medical and dental services. At these events, each family is also given a bag filled with food supplies. So on Friday, Jamie and Tayt helped fill up these supply bags, while Henri and I helped to take inventory by stacking food supplies on shelves. I must say some of the stuff Henri and I lifted was quite heavy, which made us miss CJ. He is our gym buddy back home, so we both agreed that it was sad not having him here to tell us to keep our backs straight while lifting. This day ended up being an absolute blessing. We got every last bit of food supply in the building fully stored away. The people of Proyecto Esperanza are doing truly incredible work, so it was a blessing to have a chance to take some of the load off their chest. We went home satisfied with our work and ready for the very busy and glorious day Saturday would bring.

On Saturday, we helped Proyecto Esperanza with their event for the families. We set up our own little booth where we made balloon animals for the kids. This was so much fun. Tayt and I learned how to make monkeys, which ended up being quite a hit with the kids. And Jamie taught me the much needed skill of making weenie dogs. This day was quite intense and long, yet it felt like it went by in a blink. We had so much fun. 

On Sunday, we rested. We spent most of this day playing cards and just having a good time in each other’s presence. Then, in the evening we went to church, where we met some really fabulous people. This was a lovely day, and it prepared us well for the days ahead of us.

Monday, we spent the day cleaning the house we are staying in to prepare for the signing of the deed on Wednesday. This was so much fun. Devonna showed us how people clean their homes in Paraguay using lots of water, brooms, and a squeegee. We had an absolute blast. All of us were eager to get a turn on the squeegee. That thing was fun! Then later on in the day, Christie took us to this gorgeous walking park. While we were there, we found a workout area with a sit up machine. We all took turns doing as many sit ups as we could possibly do. After that fun excursion, we ended our day off by getting some amazing empanadas. 

On Tuesday, we went back to Foundation with a Smile to finish our paint job. This entire day ended up being so fun. Yet again, the people from this foundation just showered us with Christ’s love. We were able to get the entire fence painted, which felt amazing. The most notable part of this day for me is how much laughter filled the room. We laughed so much that some of us were starting to feel the consequences of all those sit ups we did the day before. Yet despite the pain laughter brought forth in our abs, we still let the Lord put the sweet gift of laughter and joy on our lips. I love Henri, Tayt, Jamie, and CJ so much. They are the kind of friends I always wished for when I was in high school. God has blessed me with them, and I am so grateful to have gone on mission with them.

Thank you so much for reading this update! The Lord has been so good to us this trip. We thank him so much. I look forward to seeing what he will do in our last week here in Paraguay! 

Love,

Peri and the Paraguay Mission Team