Youth leader Zach Sarsoza inspires a younger generation at Evergreen Valley Church

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Pastor Bernie Castillo greeted him with a simple question: “Can you help with song service this morning?”

Zach Sarsoza, newly arrived from the Philippines and knowing almost no one in California, said yes. By the next Sabbath he was giving the announcements. Within weeks, the newcomer with the ready smile had become the unofficial face of Evergreen Valley’s youth ministry.

“From day one God put me to work,” Zach said. “I realized that young people stay when they’re invited to serve, not just to sit.”

From loneliness to leadership

Like many congregations emerging from COVID‑19 shutdowns, Evergreen Valley had lost a noticeable share of its teens and young adults. Zach felt that absence acutely.

“I’d finish a 10‑hour caregiving shift and come home to an empty apartment and had no friends to hangout with,” he recalled. “I kept praying, ‘Lord, there has to be more than this.’”

Rather than accept the status quo, Zach began vespers at church. Humble beginnings, the vespers were usually composed of 3or 4 people, sometimes no one would show up. It was during this time that Zach had met Jaziel, the bible worker for Milipitas church at the time. They formulated an event in the hopes that Youth and Young Adults in the Bay would join. They hosted “Real Talk”, a conversational bible study on relationships.  More than 30 youth and young adults attended that event. “It was short lived,” Zach laughs, “we did that event once but because of that, more people started coming to vespers.”

“That told me the hunger was real,” Sarsoza said.

Building consistent community

Zach and his young adults have met nearly every Friday evening since, first at Evergreen Valley and now in rotation with four other Bay Area churches. Zach’s growing team provides music, discussion guides, and promotional graphics, allowing host churches to focus on hospitality. The consistency, he believes, is what keeps attendance steady.

“If you open the doors at the same time every week, young adults know they belong someplace,” he said.

That consistency—and the vision behind it—soon caught the attention of leaders throughout the region, including Jimmy Nguyen from the SDA Vietnamese San Jose Church.

“I saw what Zach was doing and immediately recognized how powerful it was to bring young people from across churches together,” Nguyen said. “In Vietnamese culture especially, young people can often feel disconnected. But Real Talk gave them a space to grow, serve, and worship in a language they understood—spiritually and socially.”

Together, Zach, Jimmy, and others began rallying support for a united Bay Area youth movement. What began as a few churches rotating vespers nights has grown into a regional fellowship that is fueled by friendships, shared vision, and a commitment to make space for every young voice at the table.

“Zach planted the seed,” Nguyen said. “Now we’re tending the garden together.”

Digital evangelism: truth over noise

An avid photographer and self‑taught video editor, Sarsoza also sees digital platforms as an extension of the mission field.

“Most people are scrolling through aimless content online,” he said. “Why not give them truth instead?”

He recruited a social media manager, trained teens to operate the audio‑visual booth, and began streaming Real Talk discussions on Instagram and YouTube. Clips regularly top 500 to 800 views—a modest number, Sarsoza admits, but one that represents meaningful conversations.

“Every view is a person,” he said.

Nursing by trade, minister by calling

Sarsoza works full time as a nurse at a rehabilitation hospital—a path he jokes “comes with the Filipino passport.” The long shifts, he said, have sharpened his compassion.

“When you watch pain up close, you learn to listen,” he noted. “That same listening is what young adults crave from the church.”

Vespers conversations now range from dating ethics and career burnout to faith and mental health. “Nothing is off the table,” Sarsoza said. “The Bible has something to say about real life, and that’s what our friends are hungry for.”

ACT Ministries: Arise, Commit, Transform

To organize the momentum, Sarsoza and a small advisory group formed ACT Ministries, a volunteer network aimed at revitalizing youth and young‑adult work across the conference. The model is straightforward: partner with a local church, train its young adults through weekend intensives, and then coach leaders for three months. 

“We don’t parachute in and leave,” Sarsoza explained. “We walk with them until they can walk on their own.”

Nguyen, whose church has hosted Vesper nights through ACT Ministries, has been a consistent collaborator in this growing movement.

“It wasn’t about one group leading and the other following,” he said. “We came alongside each other to serve. It felt like family—different churches, different cultures, but the same purpose.”

Mission in motion

Last summer Zach led 24 volunteers on a short‑term mission trip to Bohol, Philippines. The team conducted a Vacation Bible School, facilitated nightly evangelistic meetings, and helped local Bible workers prepare candidates for baptism. Eight people were baptized during the weeklong effort, with 10 more joining the church later.

“Our young adults preached, taught, and were the ones leading the whole event,” Sarsoza said. “Seeing them own the mission was the highlight of my year.”

Engagement multiplies

Today, Evergreen Valley’s youth are woven into nearly every facet of worship life. Teens and young adults rotate through music sets, live‑stream operations, and greeting duty. They also assist Stand4, a ministry led by Janet Abbey, once a month in helping the unhoused.

Pastor Bernie Castillo credits Sarsoza’s servant mindset: “Zach never asks, ‘What can the church do for me?’ He asks, ‘What can I do for the church—and who can I bring with me?’”

Sarsoza points to Acts 20:35. “It’s more blessed to give than to receive,” he said. “When young people know they’re needed, they stay.”

Looking ahead

ACT Ministries plans to help churches in building their community and Youth/Young Adult Group. Zach is also developing a resource kit—complete with social media templates and discussion scripts—to help small churches launch their own church-based communities.

“The goal is not to build a brand,” he said. “The goal is to make Jesus more known.”

A call to serve

For Zach, the formula remains simple: invite, involve, empower.

“I came to the Bay Area with no community,” he said. “God gave me one when I chose to serve. I believe He’ll do the same for anyone willing to say yes.”

Jimmy echoes the same invitation: “If you’re wondering where you fit, come to a vespers night. You’ll find friends, faith, and purpose. That’s what keeps us coming back.”

By Justin Kim