Guest Post By MedSend-supported psychologist Dr. Eveylen Badillo Cordero
On January 11, 2025, I had the opportunity to lead a group of 33 volunteers from Catacumba Church in Aguadilla, PR, along with three community leaders, and conducted an evangelistic feeding outreach in La Vía, an impoverished area in their town.
La Vía is a hillside community located at the entrance of Aguadilla. For years, Catacumba Church has run a feeding program called “Five Loaves and Two Fish”, which provides breakfast every Sunday morning for the homeless and those in need at the foot of the hill. However, this was the first time the church was able to take the outreach directly into the community itself. Through coordination with local leaders, we were granted access to minister within the area.
Meeting the Most Vulnerable
Puerto Rico has a growing elderly population, exacerbated by the mass migration of working-age residents following Hurricane Maria in 2017. Community leaders identified 16 elderly residents with medical conditions that prevented them from traveling to our outreach site at the top of the hill.
We divided our volunteers into two groups:
- One group went into the community, visiting the most vulnerable individuals in their homes.
- The other group remained at the top of the hill, where we distributed groceries and lunch and an evangelistic service took place, featuring worship, testimonies, and the preaching of God’s Word.
I joined the group that entered the community and we encountered challenging conditions, navigating broken buildings and steep terrain to reach those most in need. Despite these difficulties, the elderly men and women we visited welcomed us with open hearts. While they appreciated the groceries we provided, they expressed even greater gratitude for the simple act of being seen, heard, and valued. As they shared their struggles, we listened to stories of pain, loneliness, and hardship—but also had the privilege of sharing words of counsel and the hope of the Gospel with them. Every person we visited was open to receiving prayer, and by the end of our time together, they expressed deep gratitude and a desire for us to return.
Evangelistic Service and Community Gathering
At the top of the hill, many from the community gathered for a time of worship, testimonies, and the preaching of the Gospel. Several individuals received prayer for healing and personal needs, and some made the life-changing decision to accept Christ as their Savior. We witnessed tears of joy as people encountered the presence of God.
To conclude the event, we distributed groceries to 46 families and served 125 hot meals to community members.
A Testimony of Answered Prayer
One particularly moving moment occurred when a woman arrived toward the end of the event, and the Lord put it upon my heart to pray for her. After I prayed for her, she shared with me that she was the wife of one of the community leaders and a believer who had been praying for a long time for God to send His people to minister inside La Vía. While church groups had visited before, they typically remained at the base of the hill, preventing those in greatest need from receiving the outreach’s full impact.
We are deeply grateful to have been the hands and feet of Jesus in response to this prayer and we look forward to returning soon and continuing to spread God’s love among the most vulnerable members of this community.
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This is the impact you make possible when you support MedSend. You help healthcare missionaries like Dr. Badillo Cordero bring physical and spiritual healing to communities that are too often overlooked.
Help equip more missionaries to reach the most vulnerable.
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“I am forever grateful to the Lord for MedSend and the incredible support they have been in these 16 years of mission service. Not only has MedSend taken the burden of my student loan payments off my shoulders but in the last few years they have also been providing emotional and spiritual support through the MedRefresh retreats. These retreats have been a time of solace for my soul, have provided me with mentorship from seasoned clinicians and missionaries as well as they have allowed me to connect with wonderful health care missionaries serving all over the world. Thank you MedSend for allowing me to respond to Gods call on my life and supporting me in these different and important ways.”
Dr. Badillo Cordero is a mental health provider in the Caribbean and serves multiple fields, including supporting Massia girls in Kenya for over 10 years, pictured above.
