Eric Varela, Associate Campus Pastor for Cuscatlán, Digital Campus Pastor

Eric was born on June 6, 1971, in San Salvador, the fourth of five siblings, in a nominally Catholic family. In the late 1970s his family encountered the gospel through a brother‑in‑law, a Baptist deacon who became like a second father to him. His death during the civil war in 1980 deeply marked Eric’s childhood. Only a couple of months later, at age nine, he accepted Christ during Vacation Bible School and was baptized alongside his mother. However, growing up in a Catholic school and facing social pressure, Eric kept his faith hidden and lived much of his youth in a quiet, in‑between spiritual state.

After graduating high school in 1989, he began studying Civil Engineering and entered the world of digital graphic arts, a field so new that it opened many professional doors. There he met Kathia, who later became his wife. He married in the Catholic church in 1997, completed his engineering degree in 1998, and built a successful career in advertising as a designer, creative director, strategist, and eventually COO. In 1998–1999, Kathia received Christ, and Eric reconciled his life with the Lord. Together they began serving in marriage ministry, a calling that has remained central to their lives.

In 2006, God led them to Vida Nueva, where they grew through small groups, IDEM, and eventually launched their own couples’ group in 2013. They served in marriage camps and continued deepening their ministry involvement. A defining moment came in 2019 when their youngest daughter, Susi, faced a life‑threatening diabetic ketoacidosis crisis. God intervened powerfully, and she recovered far sooner than expected. Since then, Eric and his family have walked faithfully through her Type 1 diabetes with gratitude and trust in God’s sovereignty.

In 2022 Eric joined the Vida Nueva Staff. He has served in production and discipleship but his main title is Pastor of the Digital Campus. Eric and Kathia have 3 children, Pamela who is married, born in 2000, Sebastian, born in 2002, and Susana, born in 2009. Eric’s vision is to build more than livestream church services—his dream is to build an authentic community of discipleship, care, and growth across countries and cultures, united by the same need for Jesus.