About 35 members of The Place, including more than a dozen students from Newbury Park Adventist Academy, plus about half a dozen other volunteers from around the country, gathered in Tijuana, Mexico, in July to participate in a Maranatha project. Pastor Simon Liversidge coordinated The Place volunteers and is already committing to a mission adventure in Ecuador for the church in 2007. This will be the congregation’s third Maranatha mission trip; members went to Peru last year to help build a church and school.

According to Liversidge, Bill King, a member of Rick Warren's Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., played a major role in developing the project. “King met Maranatha president Don Noble at an ASI convention,” Liversidge said. “They became friends and Don organized this special project to build the Otay Mesa Adventist church in Tijuana as a result. Bryan Schwarz, The Place’s contractor for the project, kept the group on task.

“Usually, Maranatha focuses work in one or two countries at a time,” Liversidge explained. “Because the Otay Mesa project was a special one, we had to do all the fund-raising for the trip—$20,000 for construction costs and more than $12,000 for our expenses. The Place was awesome in supporting this project!”

Looking back, members could see that God’s hand was in the project. For the six days that the group labored, light cloud cover early each day helped keep temperatures bearable. The Place volunteers laid the block, put in the rebar and filled the bond beams with cement. They were also able to complete most of the roof, which is unusual.

However, on Sabbath, the day after the work project ended, temperatures soared to a scorching 106 degrees. Had it been that hot all week, it would have greatly reduced the amount of work that was done, and volunteers might have needed medical attention due to heat exposure.

People with no construction experience, from young teens to late 60s, worked with great ability and energy. Their common goal kept the group united and working diligently, pushing past scheduled daily quitting times. Despite the long hours, enthusiasm didn’t flag. “This trip was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream," said Sarita Macalinao. "It was exactly what I thought it would be. I only wish I could do it full time.”

“As one of the oldest members of our group, my concern was whether I could meet the physical demands of construction work," reflected Doris Fulgham. "With the Lord's help and some great teamwork, I was able to meet the challenge. It is a great feeling knowing that our team's efforts will impact the church in Tijuana for years to come.”

Volunteers worshipped with Mesa Otay members inside the new structure on Sabbath. “What a joy it was," said Liversidge. "The Baja Conference president and secretary worshipped with us, and I got to preach that first Sabbath!”

A small group returned to Otay in September to do some finish work, including painting.