October 1, 2026
MIAMI — Miami was uncharacteristically cold—42 degrees—when Felipe and his mother walked through the doors of First Baptist Church of Homestead.
He was 18 years old. This was the first time he’d ever been inside a church.
They’d heard about the free dental clinic. In a city where many go years without dental care they can’t afford, word had spread quickly about the mobile unit parked outside the church. But what stayed with them wasn’t the dental work.
“It was the first time they had ever been to any church of any kind,” said Pastor Howard Harden. “They said they really felt the love of the people who were ministering to them.”
Before they left, Felipe promised he’d be back on Sunday. The church scheduled a home visit to go deeper into the gospel and answer questions.
On Feb. 6 and 7, 650 volunteers from 60 churches and nine states completed 38 projects across Miami. They served in schools, churches, community centers, and neighborhoods, painting buildings, packing meals for hungry kids, and sharing the gospel door to door. By the time it ended, at least 82 people had come to faith in Christ.
This was Send Relief’s Serve Tour Miami, a two-day outreach hosted by the Florida Baptist Convention with the Miami Baptist Association. The singular focus: demonstrate what churches can accomplish when they work together and give local congregations the resources and momentum to keep going.
The cold weather became a running joke. Local pastors apologized as if they’d broken a promise about Miami warmth.
But the cold didn’t slow anyone down.
At the University of Miami, a crew from South Carolina painted the exterior of the Baptist Collegiate Ministry building. The 75-year-old structure looked brand new by Friday.
“I was kind of scared,” said Andrew Fernandez, the BCM director. “That was a big building. But the team said, ‘We have a faith that can move mountains.’ And the mountain was moved.”
While painters worked, they struck up conversations with a local handyman. Over four days, gospel conversations deepened. By the final day, he was praying with the team.
That evening, volunteers from Tennessee set up a block party at the BCM with free food, games, and an open invitation. About 131 students walked through.
One of them was Jewish. He sat down next to Sam Mitchel, a BCM staff member, who shared how he’d come to faith in Christ during his own time at the University of Miami.
When the student heard that Jesus rose from the grave, he looked up. “Are you serious? This really happened? I want to know more.”
He turned to his Christian friend and asked why no one had told him this before. Sam and the student scheduled a gospel appointment for the following week.
Across town in Homestead, volunteers at Grace Connection Baptist Church, a vibrant Haitian congregation that worships in English and Creole, were tearing out carpet that had been there since 1992, installed after Hurricane Andrew and never replaced.
Members of Pastor Loti Marc’s congregation had been saying for some time that the carpet needed replacing. But when Serve Tour volunteers arrived to do the work, it became more than a building upgrade.
“This shows my own congregation that they can serve other churches, too,” Marc said.
By Saturday, new flooring covered 2,800 square feet of sanctuary and stage. But Saturday wasn’t over yet.
That afternoon, volunteers from Grace Connection joined a grill walk through their own neighborhood, loading a trailer with burgers, chips, and copies of the Gospel of John.
What stayed with leaders wasn’t just the response from neighbors, but what the experience stirred in the church itself.
“When you see young adults, youth, and older folks serving together, the joy is unmistakable,” said project leader Marlene Dordoye. “The joy we feel when we ring the bell for each person who accepts Christ, and the joy I see in the youth who are serving people, it brings joy to my heart.”
By the end of the afternoon, 28 people had prayed to receive Christ.
Three other grill walks happened across Miami that Saturday. At one, a team approached a group of young men playing basketball. They offered burgers. The young men said yes.
“We asked if they were certain of where they would spend eternity if they were to die today,” said project leader Yohan McGlashan. “They were uncertain, and asked, ‘How can we know for sure?’”
The team shared the gospel. None of the young men prayed to receive Christ that day, but all of them agreed to pray. The group circled up at the free-throw line, and one of the volunteers led a prayer over them.
It was one of 40 gospel conversations that happened during that single grill walk.
At Iglesia Bautista Estrella de Belén, 86 volunteers set up for a block party along the street in front of the church. They held signs about prayer, grilled hundreds of burgers and hot dogs, and played music. Families came.
“The Lord moved mightily,” said Pastor Javier Portillo. “We were able to share the gospel with 46 people, and glory to God, 12 of them accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior.”
At One More Child, a residential program for single mothers and their children, 58 volunteers showed up for a Family Fun Day with inflatables, cotton candy, and an animal show featuring 16 animals.
One girl in foster care arrived with her three sisters. She was nervous about holding the alligator, but her sisters cheered her on. She did it. Afterward, she sat next to a volunteer’s daughter and kept repeating the same thing, “My foster family loves me so so much. This is the best day ever.”
“A single mom came to the fun day feeling hopeless and nervous for her next season of life,” said Panos Kourtesis, national director of partnerships for One More Child. “She shared how the event and volunteers showed her that she will be okay and that the Lord is with her and her children.”
At Shenandoah Elementary, 45 volunteers spent Saturday pressure washing, landscaping, and stocking the school’s food pantry. At Horace Mann Middle School, 17 volunteers painted a mural and prayed with the vice principal over the students who would see it every day.
At Caring for Miami’s downtown campus, 25 volunteers packed 1,530 weekend meals for 875 students across 34 schools, many of whom don’t eat on weekends if they don’t receive food from school.
At the dental clinic, volunteers served 122 patients over four days. One woman hadn’t had her teeth cleaned since childhood. After her appointment, she hugged everyone on the team.
On Saturday night, volunteers gathered for a celebration rally. Pastor Louis Egipciaco of Elevate Church stood up to speak.
“Jesus often stopped to attend the needs of others while he preached the message of salvation,” he said. “Jesus fed people. He healed people. He visited the sick, the hurting. Jesus was willing to stop and be inconvenienced to serve people’s needs.”
He talked about Bartimaeus, the blind beggar who called out to Jesus. The crowd tried to silence him, but he called out louder. Jesus stopped.
“I think that we will be surprised at how many ministry opportunities will come our way as we just pause our schedules and listen to our communities to serve,” Egipciaco said. He pointed to what had happened across Miami that weekend. “Jesus didn’t just serve people. He saved people.”
Rick Martinez, director of missions for the Miami Baptist Association, challenged the crowd.
“I think we have all experienced the power of collaboration this weekend,” he said. “I want us as Miami Baptist to continue this experience. Let’s be intentional about this. We can do this once a quarter at different churches.”
He paused. “Just do it. We have proven that this is possible.”
Al Fernandez with the Florida Baptist Convention reminded the volunteers that Miami isn’t finished.
“You are in a city where you can impact the gospel of Jesus Christ in an international way,” he said. “We got the world here. We desperately need people to share the gospel of Jesus Christ in this city.”
What happened over two days wasn’t meant to stay contained to a weekend.
Felipe will be back at First Baptist Homestead this Sunday. The Jewish student has a gospel appointment scheduled. The young men at the basketball court heard the gospel. In one neighborhood, 28 people now know the name of Jesus.
Serve Tour Miami didn’t create hunger. It revealed it.
Across schools, sidewalks, sanctuaries, and front yards, people were already searching for something more. And when the church showed up with both compassion and truth, doors opened. Conversations followed. Lives began to change — and the local church is already walking with them.
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