"My first pilgrimage experience was the summer of 2005. The time spent practicing the spiritual disciplines every day for a week was wonderful, deepening my sense of who God is and causing me to look beyond myself for awhile. As a result of this experience, not a day goes by that I don't wonder what God is up to, that I don't ponder how I should be living, and that I don't grow in my sense of who God is and look for the ways He is transforming me." - Connie Greenlee, Elementary School Teacher

“I have been involved in coordinating trips with teens to build houses and churches in the Tijuana area for several years. These trips always had a positive impact on my spiritual life, but it was not until we began taking intentional pilgrimage's to Mexico 3-4 years ago, that I experienced an even deeper spiritual awareness and purpose for these trips. I have incorporated many of the disciplines practiced during these trips into my own personal life. They have given me a greater purpose in my Christian walk back at home.” - Roy Brower, Manager, Metro Regional Government, Portland, Oregon

“The Westside/Highpoint Mexico Pilgrimage got me out of my comfortable North American/USA cocoon. This trip showed me the substantial service I can do for brothers and sisters separated from us by borders constructed with fences, ideas, and money. The physical and spiritual change for a week on this trip, coupled with a spiritual discipline routine we practiced, transformed my approach to daily schedules and life decisions both large and small. Spiritual patterns we practiced together gave us (both adults and teens) useful, tangible experience; our work and contemplation moved us toward Christ's work in a world yearning for good news. The growth and insight gained continues to develop when you return home, forever changed.” - Dann Pierce, Ph.D., Professor

“In 2004 I went on a pilgrimage to Tijuana, Mexico to build a church building for a group of Christians meeting in a very poor section of the city. I thought that the experience was about providing physical blessing for the members of the faith community there in Tijuana. It turned out to be so much more.

I learned a lot about myself and was able to take a real-life spiritual inventory in the midst of the week long journey there. Yes, we built a church, and yes, the coming together of believers from the U.S. and Mexico was a beautiful thing, but I believe it was those experiences combined with spiritual practices such as silence, reflection, journaling, and examen that created an environment where I could more fully understand what it meant to follow Christ. Had I gone on a trip and built structures for impoverished people, it would have felt good but not had the same impact on me. In essence, I would have been participating in mere international social work. It would have been good, but not at the essence of what I needed to learn what it meant to follow Christ. I believe it is important for followers of Christ to practice both service and devotion, this trip helped me to more fully understand the devotion element of belief in the midst of very rewarding service.” - Mike Lafferty, Mobile Marketing Manager, Intel Corporation