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"Escuela Biblica! Escuela Biblica!"

That's what a small group of American teenagers were yelling as they strode down the dirty streets of Reynosa on the morning of Monday, July 9. The teens were trying to gather children interested in the Vacation Bible School they would be holding for the next three weeks.

For many of the teenagers, this phrase was about all the Spanish that they could speak.

While the recruiting was underway, the rest of the volunteer group started to prep the work site; a small fenced in area filled with classrooms, an office, an outdoor stage and bathrooms.

The mission this week was to lay the foundation, raise the walls and install windows for two buildings, one of them a double wide. Over the next two weeks, a group from Cape Cod, MA and one from Grand Rapids, MI will come in to install the roofing, paint the buildings and anything else required to finish off the project.

The first day was a slow start for us. There were about 20 kids who showed up for VBS and laying the foundation of the buildings was taking much longer than expected.

As the week progressed, however, everything fell into place.

The buildings were raised in such a timely manner that many volunteers spent more time interacting with the locals and the number of VBS students blossomed into more than 50 children a day.

The goal of the pilgrimage was to "Introduce American teens to missions, for them to see real poverty first hand and give them a chance to do something about it," John Gunden, Pastor of the River's Edge Church and President of R U RedE? Ministries explained prior to leaving for Reynosa.

He added, "Included in that goal is going beyond the material needs of the people... by meeting a physical need and then in various ways introducing (them) to Christianity."

As a19 year-old volunteer on the mission trip, I can easily say that this goal was met, through the raising of the buildings and the message brought to the community through prayer walks and VBS.

Anyone interested in volunteering or donating can contact the R U RedE? Ministries office in Pigeon at (989) 453-3435.