SCAPC Cuba Mission Trip: Abundantly Blessed

SCAPC has a church-to-church partnership with El Fuerte Church and a Living Waters partnership with El Fuerte Church and Juan G. Hall Presbyterian Church. Both churches are in Cardenas, Cuba. From April 16–22, six SCAPC members represented our congregation as part of the Living Waters of the World Program and SCAPC’s Global Ministries Program.

SCAPC April 2026 Mission Team Members (Lisa Stahl Grubb, Douglas Meffert, John Koch, Rick Grubb, Charles Hadley, and Laura St. Clair) flank the mural commemorating the SCAPC-El Fuerte partnership at El Fuerte Church.

SCAPC April 2026 Mission Team Members (Douglas Meffert John Koch, Charles Hadley, Rick and Lisa Grubb, and Laura St. Clair) receive parting gifts commemorating the SCAPC-El Fuerte partnership at El Fuerte Church.

There were several challenges for this mission trip to happen in the first place. Originally scheduled for October 2025, the trip was postponed when a severe outbreak of the Dengue and Chikungunya viruses occurred, and our partners advised us to come after the rainy season. Then, when massive oil and gas shortages started plaguing Cuba in January 2026, our Cuba team wondered if we could even have our needed transportation. We were concerned that our drinking water treatment systems would be in peril due to a lack of energy to supply the pumps, and we worried we might add to the stress of an already strained system.

Fortunately, a video conference with our guide and partner, Pastor Joel Dopico Ortega of Dora Valentin Church in Varadero, let us know that our visit was as important as ever. We would be providing much-needed supplies, funds for solar power for our partners, and food for all of us. Thanks to the generous donations of SCAPC members and other mission friends, each of us brought two 50 to 70lb suitcases filled to the brim with Living Water system parts, food, solar lights and fans, medicines, personal care products, educational/craft materials, and (of course) M&M’s, which are a true luxury in Cuba.

SCAPC mission members enjoy fellowship through home visits delivering food donations.

Children at El Fuerte Church work on crafts delivered by mission team members following Sunday worship.

Finding Joy and Resilience

We expected a somber situation; but what we received instead during those six days was an abundance of human resilience and faith. We shared several meals, including both the food from our bags and from food shipments we funded through Supermarket 23. We danced with El Fuerte members to Cuban music and attended a Bible study at Robert Wharton Pastoral, which included a surprise concert by Tony Avila, a national music star! Tony serenaded our Bible study group with some of his new songs as well as his nationwide favorites, including “Timbiriche”—a song that filled our group with so much joy, we continued to sing it for the rest of our mission trip.

Cuban singer, Tony Avila, performs a surprise concert at the Bible study at Robert Wharton Pastoral with Juan G. Hall and SCAPC members.

The Work Ahead

We also visited homebound El Fuerte members and exchanged stories of faith and small gifts. Alongside these visits, we completed the critical work of delivering drinking water purification filters, UV bulbs, Teflon tape, PVC joints, and other parts to El Fuerte Church, Dora Valentin Church, and Brigida Convent (Havana). While with our partners, we obtained the necessary inventory list of parts to bring on our next mission trip, ensuring maintenance of the systems in place and helping them adapt as available components change over time.

El Fuerte Church member and trip interpreter Kenia Ramos discusses the Living Water treatment system at El Fuerte Church with Rick Grubb and John Koch.

We traveled to Cuba with a spirit of giving, but we returned entirely overwhelmed by the love we received. Spending time with our brothers and sisters reminded us that you can never out-give God's grace. Like Luke 6:38 promises, the love poured back into our hearts was a full measure, running over. We went to bless, but we ourselves left abundantly blessed.

Letter sent to SCAPC Global Ministries Committee from El Fuerte Church members April 29, 2026, following their mission trip in Spring 2026.