Downtown Campus Elder; Pastoral Director, Hispanic Ministries

Campus: Downtown

Ministry Areas: Hispanic care and outreach, 16/33 Center ministries

Contact Information: 612-338-7653 x430; email

Luis was born in the Dominican Republic and became a Christian during his college years through the invitation of a friend to attend church. He met his wife, Vilma, through church and they were married in 1988. Early in their marriage, Luis worked a secular job and served as a deacon in their church in Santiago.

In 1998, Luis was called to become a pastor of the church and had the opportunity to grow his gifts of preaching, counseling, and oversight. He also became familiar with the writings of John Piper during these years, and his hunger to receive further theological training increased.

Due to the lack of opportunities in his home country, Luis sought the opportunity to come to the U.S. to receive training, and the Lord miraculously opened the door for his entire family to move to Minnesota so that Luis could attend The Bethlehem Institute (TBI).

In the summer of 2006, the Méndez family arrived in Minnesota and Luis began his journey of four years of theological training.

He greatly enjoyed his studies and his role as Director of Hispanic Ministries at Bethlehem. He now serves full-time as Pastoral Director for Hispanic Ministry. Vilma serves alongside of Luis, leading the women of the Hispanic Ministry in Bible studies and Titus 2 homemaking groups. Luis & Vilma have three children: Raquel, Eva, and Luisen.