Neisy Castillo has been a Salvation Army camp counsellor, cook, kettle co-ordinator and driver, toy shop co-ordinator, Spanish translator, and leader of a Spanish congregation. Today, she is the youth and family ministries co-ordinator at Boundless Vancouver.

Where are you from?

This is a bit of a tricky question! My life has been divided into three different countries. I was born and raised in Venezuela and I’m proud of who I am and where I come from. I grew up close to all my aunts, uncles and cousins. My parents were the leaders of our church, and it was a closeknit community.  My dad was the main organizer for an event in our town called the Dia de Proclamar a Jesus (Day to Proclaim Jesus), and it was one of my favourite experiences, seeing people in the streets worshipping God and telling others about his love.

When I was 15 years old, we moved to Illinois in the United States, and I had to learn a new language and a new culture. This is where my family found The Salvation Army, through a local corps that had services in Spanish. Soon we became part of the church, and my parents became envoys. We often had united services with people from all over our division and worshipped in different languages together. 

Throughout my young adult years, I had a few people pray for me. While I was attending the War College in Chicago, the principal, Josh Polanco, made sure I heard God’s message for my life at a time when I wasn’t listening. I truly believe I wouldn’t be where I am if it wasn’t for his obedience to the Lord’s message.

How did you come to Canada?

As part of the War College, I came to Vancouver to experience ministry in the Downtown Eastside. I didn’t know much about this neighbourhood, other than that it was the poorest postal code in Canada, and there was a lot of poverty and drug use. I was scared the first time I walked around, and asked the Salvationists who lived here how they didn’t notice the open drug use. They said, “It’s not that we don’t notice—it’s that we get to know people and walk with them as we live here.”

That week, I met new friends and met my future husband, Robbie Alberts, who was in his second year at the War College in Vancouver.  We started chatting, which evolved into a long-distance relationship, until we got married in July 2011. So that brings me to my third country, Canada, where I have lived for the past 13 years. We have two sons, Gabriel and Nathaniel, who were dedicated at 614 Corps.

We still live in the Downtown Eastside and are choosing to bring up our children here, to teach them compassion for the people we see each day. They are learning to treat people with love and respect, and not fear those who are experiencing a hard time in their lives.

How do you live out your faith in your neighbourhood?

Having been part of the church in three different countries, I have found that everyone is searching for community. We all need love and connection. To me, mission is not a nine-to-five job; it’s more the way I live my life. I try to be present in my community, in the different activities and opportunities that we have. I am an active member at our community centre. I have deep relationships with single moms who are my friends and neighbours, and I try to be available to sit, listen and pray, as they go through their daily lives and all the difficulties that come with being a single mom. I have led different groups for moms in our neighbourhood, spanning from exercise to art therapy. When I walk in our neighbourhood, I am open to my neighbours and try to show them love with my actions, to be available to chat and pray—that’s what ministry looks like.

What are your dreams for the future?

My dreams are for my family. One is for my parents to be in Canada again. I am very close to them and not having them around has been difficult for us as a family. In part, my dreams are the same as any parent—for their children to have a safe and loving childhood. But one of my main dreams is to be a godly woman and show my children who God is and help them be close to God. 

What are you passionate about?

God has given me a heart for children. Ever since I can remember, I longed to be a mother. While I was at the War College, God gave me a word, calling me to be “a mother to the motherless,” and I’ve always taken that title seriously. In my young adult years, I was the one my friends could count on and was loving and caring toward those who had no parents around.

God has blessed me with two wonderful sons, and many nieces and nephews (blood-related and not blood-related). I have taken the role of a mother to anyone who needs or wants me to be, and have been a reliable person in their lives.

Now, as the youth and family ministries coordinator at Boundless Vancouver, I get to be a loving presence to the children in our community, and I take this responsibility to heart. I pray God gives me the wisdom to continue teaching and nurturing children and showing them the love of Jesus.