Written By: Aidyn Fischli | CS Wilmington
Photos By: Terra Gilman | CS Carlsbad

In March, 13 girls from the East and West Coasts of CS Girls traveled to El Salvador for the third annual Christian Surfers Girls surf and share trip in El Cocal. Over the course of a week, the girls were able to connect with the local chapter and pour into the community. They also surfed some of El Salvador’s most famous breaks, including El Zonte, K59 and more.

“From the 5 a.m. wake-ups to the pupusas and everything in between, this trip exceeded all my expectations,” says Sarah Stotz, one of the trip’s co-leaders. “I had the privilege of co-leading this trip for the first time with Terra, and each moment was such a blessing.”

Despite living on opposite coasts, Sarah, a member of CS Jacksonville, and Terra Gilman, a member of CS Carlsbad, were able to work together on organizing the trip through months of phone calls across time zones.

“I’ve never led a trip before, so this was definitely new for me,” says Terra. “But it was pretty cool because I felt like God’s grace was over the entire thing. It didn’t feel like we had to strive or do anything. He was just making everything happen the whole trip.”

Throughout the week, the girls participated in a range of service activities from helping out at local surf camps to sharing personal testimonies at an orphanage. 

“​​I loved the wide variety of activities we were able to do and how, through each one, different girls would grow and utilize their unique skills,” says Sarah.

For a lot of the girls, helping a local artist paint an encouraging mural was a unique new way to serve the community. The finished mural depicts the message of the gospel. In the midst of a colorful sea of fish and flower doodles, the words “JESUS TE AMA” (Jesus loves you) are painted in large, dark letters to stand out against the soft orange background. 

“It’s in the middle of this area where Christian Surfers’ local chapter has poured into that community,” says Terra. “To have a mural, and they put their name on it too. It’s cool to see how much God’s done in that area.”

Along with the service activities, each of the girls had the opportunity to share their testimony with the rest of the group, too.

“A lot of the girls had never even shared their testimony,” says Terra. “We all would get to pray for each other, and that really brought unity to our group.” 

“When we went to the orphanage, Terra wanted me to share my testimony to the kids, and I think that was a really beautiful moment for me because I’ve never done any public speaking or sharing my testimony,” says Maggie Dempsey, a member of CS Jacksonville. “At the beginning of the trip, Sarah was talking about being bold in prayer, and I think that’s exactly what the trip was for me — being bold and doing stuff I would never do before.”

During their time, the group was able to spend a night with the local church and CS leaders in the El Cocal area and worship together. 

“It affirmed why we do trips like this,” says Terra. “It’s really to come together with other parts of the body — other parts of the church — and fellowship with each other, and then love on everyone else together.” 

Many of the girls are already looking forward to returning next spring. Over the years, several of them have been blessed with lasting connections in the El Cocal area through participating in the annual trip.

“Every year this trip grows and expands my love for Jesus more and more,” says Sarah. “It was so sick to watch the love for Jesus grow in both the community there and in the girls on the trip.” 

She adds, “It’s such a cool way to connect and to use surfing as a tool to share God’s Word.”

In 2026, CS Girls will be heading to New Zealand. For more information about the trip, click here.