About 30 students from Koinonia spent Spring Break in Saltillo, Mexico, ministering to a church and an impoverished area.

Ivy Love, sophomore Spanish major, said the group painted a local church, held a vacation Bible school for children, spent time with the women of the church, and got to know the youth of their own age.

Jesse Hight, junior management major and president of Koinonia, said the experience of serving can help students grow.

“We’re there to do mission work and share God’s love,” he said. “But we end up being changed.”

Sophomore mathematics and criminal justice major Heather Dickson went to Saltillo with Koinonia last year and was eager to return this year.

“[Serving in Saltillo] really humbled me,” she said. “It made me grateful.”

Six student translators came along to help ease the language barrier. But Hight said even when communication was difficult, the group was able to get its message across.

“We can demonstrate the love and kindness of our God through actions,” he said, “without saying anything.”

David Weaver, director of Koinonia, said this is Koinonia’s 15th trip to Saltillo.

He has witnessed growth in the city throughout the years, as well as growth in the students he brings there. Weaver said traveling to Mexico is a good cultural experience for students who may have never been outside the four-state area before.

“At times it almost overloads them,” he said. “In Saltillo, we are the minority.”

Weaver said there is a strong emphasis on family in Mexico. There is also greater respect for elders. He described the citizens of Saltillo as a “gracious, content” people.

“It was interesting to observe people serving the same God in a different cultural context,” Love said.