 David & Tina Whited |
Dallas couple participates
in
apartment ministry
DALLAS, Texas—Grace Family members Brian and Amy Tate gave a testimonial at the June 6 service about their ministry geared toward apartment dwellers.
The Tates are involved in Cares Ministry, a group that operates in more than 100 apartment complexes across the country.
Workers for the Cares Ministry typically include either a married couple or two single adults. The two adults obtain a free apartment in exchange for providing 80 hours per month of service to the apartment management. The ministry members partner with local churches.
The Tates cited the need for such a ministry because of a lack of a sense of community within apartments. “It’s the perfect place for a ministry because it’s so neglected,” Amy said. The couple cited statistics showing that only five percent of apartment dwellers are active in local churches, compared with 40 percent of people living in houses.
A main way the Tates conduct their ministry is to organize various social events at the apartment complex. Events have included children’s pool parties, computer and sign language classes, monthly birthday parties, a Christmas party and a pet parade. They host a monthly Saturday breakfast that has drawn up to 50 people.
Anyone interested in learning more about the organization may visit their web site at www.cares team.org. Frank Lewandowski.
Reaching out in Buford, Georgia
BUFORD, Georgia—Our new program, led by co-pastors David Whited and Terry Cohron, continues to grow in strength and numbers.
|
David & Tina Whited |
On May 23 the church was blessed with four baptisms: Holly Hamilton, daughter of Lawrence Burke, siblings Jennifer and Michael Payne, daughter and son of Jan and Peggy Payne, and Zaira Piedra, daughter of Anastocia and Filliberta Piedra.
On March 20 Filliberta Piedra organized a festive Mexican social and called it Family Night Fiesta. Thirty members and guests were treated with authentic native Mexican food and music.
On May 6 the Buford church particpated in a combined service
 Terry & Susie Cohron |
conducted by the Buford Ministerial Association comprised of 14 churches.
On May 15 we conducted the first of four planned outdoor events. We called it the Church and Community Picnic, and we had a turnout of 61 people. On June 19 we had our second outdoor event, serving 32 people.
On June 27, Bill Rappe, a minister from the Assemblies of God Church in Buford, led the Buford Fellowship Church in a song service. Mr. Rappe substituted for songleader Sally Stratton. Whit Russell.
Ambassador’s Duckatorium
On June 6, Joseph Tkach, on
behalf
of employee chapel attendees, presented
Gary Leonard (right) and Milan
Zima (left)
with a certificate of excellence.
[Photo by Mickey McKenna]
PASADENA—Fourteen mallards are about
to begin their flight from the waters of Ambassador Auditorium. They are a male
and a female who have raised 12 ducklings in these waters, with the care of
church employees Gary Leonard and
Milan Zima.
On June 6, the employee chapel presented to Mr. Leonard and Mr. Zima certificates of excellence for their service. These certificates were prepared by Monte Wolverton.
Mr. Leonard made sure the waters remained high enough that the ducklings would not get sucked into the drains. Mr. Leonard and Mr. Zima put some boards under the Auditorium where the ducklings could retire at night above the waters and safe from their predators.
Mr. Leonard made sure the ducks were fed well enough so they would not wander off onto streets and be killed. Numerous visitors to the campus enjoy the sight of the family of ducks. John McKenna.
Bulgarian
magazine
launches Russian edition
BONN, Germany—The German church, in concert with Bulgarian pastor Nickolay Nicolov, has printed the first Russian edition of Swiata Istina (the sister magazine of our German Nachfolge), according to Santiago Lange, WCG national ministry leader in Germany, and Alois Mair, accountant in Germany.
Mr. Mair sent the following announcement: “The Russian edition of Swiata Istina was launched because we had many inquiries from Russians who live in Bulgaria. Until recently, Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, had one evangelical Russian congregation with 65 members. Most of the members were refugees from the former Soviet Union. The pastor was expelled.
“Now, Russians who live in the cities of Warna, Plovdiv, Sofia, Burgas and Pleven receive the magazine. These are people who do not belong to any specific denomination or church. We also send the magazine to Moscow, St. Petersburg, Perm Magadan (Ukraine) and Belarus.
“Our production team consists of four translators, who make translations into both Russian and Bulgarian, two people who are involved in the printing process, and 11 who fold, cut and mail the magazine, all of whom are volunteers.”
Patrick Fearon receives
homiletics award
 Patrick & Shabon Fearon |
GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan—Patrick Fearon, who pastored churches in the Bahamas with his wife, Sharon, and now attends Grand Rapids Theological Seminary of Cornerstone University in Michigan, received a 2004 Homiletics Award from Acton Institute.
Mr. Fearon placed second out of a field of 1,200 sermons sent in by students from at least 43 colleges, seminaries and universities. He received a cash award of $1,000.
The Homiletics Award is an annual competition for seminarians and graduate students who are in the process of preparing for a career in preaching and teaching ministries.
According to the Acton Institute, “The annual Homiletics Award recognizes and promotes outstanding achievement in effective Christian preaching.”
Criteria for judging the competition include preparation and presentation, and also an evaluation of the sermon’s content, structure, and exegetical accuracy, along with the contestant’s delivery, clarity and style.
For more information on the Acton Institute and to read the manuscripts of this year’s award-winning sermons, visit their web site at www.acton.org
Orlando church honors
oldest
members
Betty Buelow and Paul Church
of Orlando, Florida, were honored
May 1. [Photo by Riccinni Banham]
ORLANDO, Florida—The oldest female and male members of the New Beginnings Christian Fellowship Orlando were honored May 1.
Betty Buelow turned 93 April 27. She was born in Hamburg, Germany in 1911. She has two daughters, Annalie and Barbara, nine grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren. She was baptized in 1974 while living with her daughter, Annalie, in Australia.
Paul Church turned 78 on April 25. He was born in New Castle, Pennsylvania. He has one son, Daniel, three grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. He served in the Navy during World War II. Like Betty, Paul was baptized in 1974.
Betty and Paul are both loved by members, old and young. Betty loves the church and considers that her life. Her love for God is evident by her outgoing personality and contagious smile. Paul is an example of a Christian servant. He serves the local church as an usher and drives the older members, including Betty, to church. Riccinni Banham.
Orlando seniors
attend flower
festival
The Senior Club of New
Beginnings Christian
Fellowship Orlando visits EPCOT Center.
ORLANDO, Florida—The Senior Club (55 and older) of the New Beginnings Christian Fellowship Orlando participated in an outing to Disney’s International Flower and Garden Festival at EPCOT Center April 17. Twenty-six church members participated.
Some of the highlights included seeing gigantic fruits and vegetables at The Land, the boat ride to Mexico and the patriotic America show. Betty Buelow mentioned that the last time she was at EPCOT was 30 years ago. Raisa Schmidt, a widow, reminisced about the happy times she spent at EPCOT with her husband. Riccinni Banham.
Jim Stokes retires as pastor
in Belleville and Alton, Illinois
 Jim & Grace Stokes |
BELLEVILLE, Illinois—Jim Stokes retired as pastor of the Belleville and Alton, Illinois, churches July 16.
Mr. Stokes and his wife, Grace, were baptized in 1974 and served in the Trenton and Vineland, New Jersey, churches before moving to Pasadena in 1984, when Jim entered Ambassador College. He worked part-time in Mail Processing while attending Ambassador, and Grace worked there full-time until they were transferred.
In 1987, Jim was hired as assistant pastor of the Pasadena West P.M. congregation. In 1995, he and Grace were transferred to Belleville to pastor the Belleville, Alton and the (now closed) Mount Vernon congregations.
Mark Queener is now the bi-vocational pastor in Belleville, and Austin Caldwell is the bi-vocational pastor in Alton.
Doctor needs stuffed toys
for
South American children
GREENVILLE, North Carolina—The Greenville church helps a doctor serving in South America collect stuffed toys for needy children there.
The doctor will leave for South America in mid-September. He would like for all stuffed toys to be sent to him at the end of August. If anyone is interested in this project please send an e-mail to Becky Winn at beckwinn@yahoo.com, and she will work out the details on an individual basis.
Church Administration
announces ordinations
PASADENA—Church Administration announced the following ministerial ordinations.
Bart Baril, Port Orchard, Washington.
Kwan Borden, Brisbane, Australia, East.
Austin Caldwell, Alton, Illinois.
John Muir, Irvine, Scotland.
Stewart Raeburn, Glasgow, Scotland.
Micah Royal, Los Angeles, California.
Roy Spencer, Springfield, Illinois.
Michael Stewart, Pikeville, Kentucky.
Gerald Trennepohl, Cincinnati, Ohio, South.
NEW CHURCH SIGN—Jimmy
Meeks, pastor of the Restoration Church in Burleson, Texas, wanted to have the
WCG congregation name, Burleson Christian Fellowship, on the same sign with
their name. Eric Bennett, a WCG member who is a professional sign painter, did
the work and then with the help of some other WCG members, installed it on the
same poles where the former sign had been. “We were all honored that Pastor
Meeks expressed his feelings of brotherhood toward us in this way,” said Tom
Pickett, WCG pastor. His congregation has been sharing a facility with
Restoration Church of Burleson for the last five years.
Festival updates
INTRA-MIRALAGO, Italy—A festival will take place in Intra-Miralago on Lake Maggiore, north of Milan and close to Switzerland, Aug. 28 to Sept. 4. Services will be translated from Italian into German and not into English. Daniel Boesch.
EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France— A festival will take place at Evian-les Bains, on the south bank of Lake Leman, facing Switzerland, Oct. 23 to 30.
For more information contact the French Office by e-mail at dpi@club-internet.fr or by telephone at 011.33.6.81.14.83.22.
ACAPULCO, Mexico—A festival will take place in Acapulco Sept. 29 to Oct. 7.
Translations will be provided with a $25 per adult rental fee for the translation equipment.
For information, send an e-mail to Salvador Barragan.
KARLSTAD, Sweden—A festival will take place in Karlstad Sept. 30 to Oct. 7.
The site is the Bomstad-Badens family resort on the shores of Vanneren, the largest lake in Sweden. The resort has its own home page: www.bomstad-baden.se
For more information, contact Carl Fredrik Aas at 011 47 64 86 93 30 or send e-mail to him at cfaas@online.no.
E-mail address for Haitian pastor
The correct e-mail address for Pastor Blaise Franklin in Haiti is jblaise22@compa.net
An incorrect e-mail address appeared in the May WN article, “Who Cares What Happens to Haiti?”
Malaysian wins
international
public speaking awards
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia—Wong Xiao Qing, 19, from Kuala Lumpur, was chosen in late March as one of two Malaysian representatives to participate in the International Public Speaking Competition conducted in London by the English Speaking Union (ESU) of the Commonwealth.
ESU’s goal is to promote international understanding and human achievement through the widening use of the English language throughout the world. The competition is open to students in the countries where ESU has chapters.
Xiao Qing was one of two Malaysian representatives chosen from 92 national competitors to travel to London with all expenses paid by the sponsor, HSBC, a London-based international bank.
In the international finals conducted on May 14, Xiao Qing was one of eight finalists chosen from 60 participants representing 34 countries. The theme of the competition was “A Borderless World.” Speakers had to answer questions from the audience after their speeches.
Wong Xiao Qing is the daughter of Malaysian pastor Wong Mein Kong and his wife, Chew Yeng.
Ohio men hear freedom’s cry at retreat
GROUP PRAYER—Men
are led in prayer by Ed Faulk,
pastor of the Lorain, Ohio, congregation.
RAVENNA, Ohio—Twenty men from Grace Community Fellowship (the Akron-Canton congregation) and Edgehill Community Church (the Cleveland congregation) had a retreat March 12 to 14 at a church camp east of Akron.
The theme for the weekend was “Men, Transformed Into Glory by His Spirit,” using the passage from 2 Corinthians 3:17. The motto for the retreat was “Freedom’s Cry.” Through various speakers, we discussed how the men could find inner wholeness and healing in Jesus.
We spent the rest of the retreat in worship, discussion, testimonies, prayer and free time for personal reflection, as well as time for fun. As in past years, we had several men join us from Pennsylvania area WCG churches. David Kaiser.
Copyright © Grace Communion International, 2004