MARCH 2, 2025:  Agua Prieta Day 1

We spent our first day in Agua Prieta, Sonora, Mexico! At eight o’clock this morning, we went across the border to have breakfast at the Lirio de los Valles (Lily of the Valley) Presbyterian Church to participate in their worship. Miriam Maldonado (Mark Adams’ wife and fellow Frontera leader) joined us to lead reflections and prepare us for sermon.  

As we reflected on the fears and anxieties around crossing the border that morning, Maldonado reminded us that border crossing is supposed to be a beautiful thing—"there are lives here that exist on the border. This is a community of visitors; we all visit each other back and forth across the border. It’s the culture.”  

The church service was a couple hours long, and we were able to really feel the connection and community in the congregation. Despite religion looking differently for each member of the team, we came together to be immersed in the culture and religious practices of Agua Prieta. I [Emily Skaar, author] loved singing the hymns with the church—music crosses a metaphorical border, completely breaking the language barrier between English and Spanish. Even if we butchered Spanish in the process, we sang loudly and unashamedly. Our wonderful translator, Ximena, spoke through our earbuds so we could understand the pastor’s sermon, and we owe much of our understanding to her. It was so powerful to see and be a part of.  

Afterwards, we got to have a big potluck lunch and spend time with the members of the church. I [Emily Allison, author] found myself in love with the children, who played basketball and hacky sack with us for hours. Zoe Wagstaff remarked on witnessing the community at the church, and being reminded of how much love there is. “Also,” she added with a laugh, “the mango ice cream we got later. It was wonderful.”  

We took a walk to an ice cream store in a downtown Agua Prieta, where we got the chance to walk around a shopping plaza and play pretend-local for a bit. The weather was warm, and after being inside the church all day, it was great to get out into the sun and stretch our legs. Agua Prieta was bustling—traffic was everywhere, and street vendors played lively Spanish music and laughed with one another.  

That was one of the true gifts of today—laughter. We began this morning with a reflection question from Maldonado: what has made you laugh this morning? And that laughter never ended—whether shared between new friends or echoed throughout the bright streets of Agua Prieta, it surrounded us; we remained engulfed in the joy.  

Our last stop before crossing back into Douglas was the wall once again—only, the Mexico side.  

Emily Thompson couldn’t stop talking about how colorful it was—“an unimaginable contrast to Douglas’ side.” Murals stood out against the rusted brown of the wall—beautiful paintings of women, birds, monarch butterflies, and nature in gorgeous paint. Migration was literally plastered against the very wall that was stopping it—and it was beautiful. It was welcoming, in ways none of us were expecting.  

We ended our night back at Iglesia Bautista Amistad, where we were served dinner by the pastor—Pastor Luis—as well as a few wonderful members of the congregation: a special thanks to Ilma, Dora, Adriana, and Esmerelda for serving us so kindly in that space.   

Our gratitude is endless for Pastor Luis and the entire Iglesia Bautista Amistad for not only allowing us to stay here, but for also providing us with so much wonderful food, amazing hospitality, and the space to come together in love and in community.  

Written by Emily Allison & Emily Skaar